Shakespeare's powerful tale of the wicked deformed King and his conquests, both on the battlefield and in the boudoir.
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Title: Richard III (1955)
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Cast
| Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
| Cedric Hardwicke | ... | King Edward IV of England | |
| Nicholas Hannen | ... | Archbishop | |
| Laurence Olivier | ... | Richard III | |
| Ralph Richardson | ... | Duke of Buckingham | |
| John Gielgud | ... | George, Duke of Clarence | |
| Mary Kerridge | ... | Queen Elizabeth | |
 |
Pamela Brown | ... | Jane Shore |
|
|
Paul Huson | ... | Edward, Prince of Wales |
|
|
Stewart Allen | ... | Page to Richard |
| Claire Bloom | ... | The Lady Anne | |
|
|
Russell Thorndike | ... | First Priest |
|
|
Wallace Bosco | ... | Monk (as Wally Bosco) |
|
|
Norman Fisher | ... | Monk |
|
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Andrew Cruickshank | ... | Brackenbury |
| Clive Morton | ... | The Lord Rivers | |
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Plot Summary
|
Plot Synopsis
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Storyline
Richard's military skills have helped to put his older brother Edward on the throne of England. But jealousy and resentment cause Richard to seek the crown for himself, and he conceives a lengthy and carefully calculated plan using deception, manipulation, and outright murder to achieve his goal. His plotting soon has tumultuous consequences, both for himself and for England. Written by Snow Leopard
Plot Keywords:
battlefield | murder | wife mourns husband | shakespeare play | reference to william shakespeare |Parents Guide:
View content advisory »
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See full technical specs »
Details
Country:
UKRelease Date:
11 March 1956 (USA) See more »Also Known As:
Ricardo III See more »Company Credits
Show more on
IMDbPro »
Technical Specs
Runtime:
Sound Mix:
Mono (Western Electric Recording)Color:
Color (Technicolor)Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1
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Tyrell: Please you, but I'd rather kill two enemies.
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Did You Know?
Trivia
The failure of this movie to earn a profit in the U.S. during its theatrical release, together with the untimely death of Alexander Korda, who had backed the production of this movie, effectively ended Olivier's dream of filming Shakespeare as a director. He is accorded the honor of being the greatest Macbeth of the twentieth century, but he could never raise the financing to make the movie after the financial failure of this one. Mike Todd expressed interest in financing an Olivier version of "Macbeth", but Todd was killed in a plane crash before those ideas could come to fruition. Olivier never again directed a Shakespearean film, possibly the result of the fabled actors' curse attached to "The Scottish Play". See more »Goofs
When Richard tells Lady Anne to kill him, she grabs the sword and it bends. It is even more noticeable when Richard puts the sword to his own neck. See more »Quotes
Richard III: Darest thou resolve to kill a friend of mine?Tyrell: Please you, but I'd rather kill two enemies.
See more »
Crazy Credits
Most of the film's credits are shown at the end. The opening credits show only the title of the film, Shakespeare's name, and the names of the main actors. See more »Frequently Asked Questions
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Many great actors made their names with this Richard, and it turns out to be Olivier's greatest Shakepearean role as well. He captures the whole production coiling his way around the Crown of England: his asides to us through the camera are lovely. They say all actors love to play a villain. Well, it works for me.
The movie is beautiful, rich; the costumes are awesome; and the dialogue, of course, is wonderful. He patches in that great speech from Henry VI, part 3: "Why, I can smile, and murder whiles I smile . . .": and the movie wouldn't be right without it.
The other actors, Britain's elite of the time, seem to be tyrannized by the boss; and the text should have been edited better, because if you don't know the play and practically the whole history you'll get lost. Not to worry, though; the subplots here aren't really important (but they should be), and the thundering battle at the end will leave you satisfied. Special mention of Sir William Walton's music, the vibrant colors, and of course, England itself.