• Release CalendarDVD & Blu-ray ReleasesTop Rated MoviesMost Popular MoviesBrowse Movies by GenreTop Box OfficeShowtimes & TicketsIn TheatersComing SoonMovie NewsIndia Movie Spotlight
      What's on TV & StreamingTop Rated ShowsMost Popular ShowsBrowse TV Shows by GenreTV NewsIndia TV Spotlight
      What to WatchLatest TrailersIMDb TVIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb Podcasts
      OscarsBest Picture WinnersBest Picture WinnersGolden GlobesEmmysLGBTQ+ Pride MonthSTARmeter AwardsSan Diego Comic-ConNew York Comic-ConSundance Film FestivalToronto Int'l Film FestivalAwards CentralFestival CentralAll Events
      Born TodayMost Popular CelebsMost Popular CelebsCelebrity News
      Help CenterContributor ZonePolls
    For Industry Professionals
      AllTitlesTV EpisodesCelebsCompaniesKeywords
    • Advanced Search
    Watchlist
    Sign In

    The Lion in Winter

    • TV Movie
    • 20032003
    • 2h 47min
    IMDb RATING
    7.1/10
    2.1K
    YOUR RATING
    • Cast & crew
    • User reviews
    • Trivia
    • IMDbPro
    Glenn Close and Patrick Stewart in The Lion in Winter (2003)
    DramaHistoryRomance

    King Henry II meets with Eleanor of Aquitaine at Christmastide 1183 to choose one of his sons as his successor.King Henry II meets with Eleanor of Aquitaine at Christmastide 1183 to choose one of his sons as his successor.King Henry II meets with Eleanor of Aquitaine at Christmastide 1183 to choose one of his sons as his successor.

    IMDb RATING
    7.1/10
    2.1K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Andrey Konchalovskiy
    • Writer
      • James Goldman(play)
    • Stars
      • Glenn Close
      • Andrew Howard
      • Antal Konrád
    Top credits
    • Director
      • Andrey Konchalovskiy
    • Writer
      • James Goldman(play)
    • Stars
      • Glenn Close
      • Andrew Howard
      • Antal Konrád
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 39User reviews
    • 2Critic reviews
  • See production, box office & company info
  • See production, box office & company info
    • Won 1 Primetime Emmy
      • 7 wins & 21 nominations total

    Photos3

    Glenn Close and Patrick Stewart in The Lion in Winter (2003)
    Glenn Close and Patrick Stewart in The Lion in Winter (2003)
    Add image

    Top cast

    Edit
    Glenn Close
    Glenn Close
    • Eleanoras Eleanor
    Andrew Howard
    Andrew Howard
    • Richardas Richard
    Antal Konrád
    • Toastmasteras Toastmaster
    John Light
    John Light
    • Geoffreyas Geoffrey
    Soma Marko
    • Young Johnas Young John
    Jonathan Rhys Meyers
    Jonathan Rhys Meyers
    • Phillipas Phillip
    Rafe Spall
    Rafe Spall
    • Johnas John
    Patrick Stewart
    Patrick Stewart
    • Henryas Henry
    Yuliya Vysotskaya
    Yuliya Vysotskaya
    • Alaisas Alais
    Clive Wood
    Clive Wood
    • William Marshallas William Marshall
    • Director
      • Andrey Konchalovskiy
    • Writer
      • James Goldman(play) (teleplay)
    • All cast & crew
    See production, box office, & company info

    Storyline

    Edit
    King Henry II (Sir Patrick Stewart) keeps his wife, Eleanor (Glenn Close) locked away in the towers because of her frequent attempts to overthrow him. With Eleanor out of the way, he can have his dalliances with his young mistress (Yuliya Vysotskaya). Needless to say, the Queen is not pleased, although she still has affection for the King. Working through her sons, she plots the King's demise and the rise of her second and preferred son, Richard (Andrew Howard), to the throne. The youngest son, John (Rafe Spall), an overweight buffoon, and the only son holding his father's affection, is the King's choice after the death of his first son, young Henry. But John is also overly eager for power, and is willing to plot his father's demise with middle brother, Geoffrey (John Light) and the young King of France, Phillip (Jonathan Rhys Meyers). Geoffrey, of course sees his younger brother's weakness and sees that route as his path to power.
    king henry ii characterqueen eleanor of aquitaine charactermistresstv mini seriesknife fight54 more
    • Plot summary
    • Add synopsis
    • Taglines
      • All of Britain and half of France were his kingdom. But there was one thing Henry II would never control . . . His Family. (DVD)
    • Genres
      • Drama
      • History
      • Romance
      • War
    • Parents guide
      • Add content advisory

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Patrick Stewart previously played Henry's son, Richard the Lionheart, in Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993).
    • Goofs
      Eleanor refers to syphilis in one of her speeches, an impossibility in 1183 England. Syphilis was not named such until 1530 by Hieronymus Fracastorius. Regardless of whether Europe even had the disease prior to 1200, it could not have been known by that name to the Queen.
    • Quotes

      John: He has a knife, a knife!

      Eleanor of Aquitaine: Of course he has a knife! I have a knife. We all have knives. It's 1183 and we're all barbarians!

    • Connections
      Featured in The 56th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards (2004)

    User reviews39

    Review
    Top review
    10/10
    I couldn't turn it off
    I've never seen the original ALIW with Hepburn, so I wasn't able to make comparisons there. I did see a stage version, years ago at my old university, so I was familiar with the plot and characters.

    Patrick Stewart and Glenn Close have wonderful chemistry. I freely admit that I could watch Stewart sit on a chair and read from the phone book, but he makes an absolutely commanding Henry II. Close is alternately domineering and fragile, but always riveting. Their separate scenes are elegant, but they shine most when they play off of each other; Henry and Eleanor have a fascinating dynamic, and the interaction between husband and wife is dazzling.

    I was less enamored with the performances of the three English princes. Andrew Howard's Richard was done well enough, particularly the scenes where he was portraying softer emotions. John Light's Geoffrey didn't seem quite right to me, but that may not be his own fault; the actor who played Geoffrey in the stage version I saw was a friend of mine, so my opinion of the character will forever be biased. Rafe Spall's John was utterly appalling -- but he was supposed to be, so does the fact that I absolutely loathed him mean he was brilliant?

    Yuliya Vysotskaya was a luminous Alais. She has a splendid range and presence, and I wish she would do more acting projects that would let her be seen in the U.S. She has a charming ethereal quality when the script calls for it, yet can be equally hard as needed.

    For me, though, the best performance was that of Jonathan Rhys-Meyers, who I found utterly captivating as King Philip of France. He steals every scene in which he appears, and gives the young King just the right balance of anger, slyness, contemplation, and humor. (And let's be honest, he's not really hard on the eyes either.)

    On the whole, I couldn't bring myself to stop watching the movie until it was over, and it's definitely one I would be happy to watch again.
    helpful•29
    7
    • laurakay76
    • Nov 16, 2005

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • May 23, 2004 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Lionheart
    • Filming locations
      • Budapest, Hungary
    • Production companies
      • Flying Freehold Productions
      • HCC Happy Crew Company
      • Hallmark Entertainment
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      • 2h 47min
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Stereo
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.37 : 1

    Related news

    Why Elisabeth Moss and Kerry Washington lost SAG Awards
    Why Elisabeth Moss and Kerry Washington lost SAG Awards
    Jan 19Gold Derby
    Special Features - The Andrei Konchalovsky Retrospective
    Jan 4Flickeringmyth

    Contribute to this page

    Suggest an edit or add missing content
    • IMDb Answers: Help fill gaps in our data
    • Learn more about contributing
    Edit page

    More to explore

    View image
    Photos
    Before They Were Stars
    See the entire gallery
    Image caption not available
    2:51
    4 Feel-Good Comedies You Might Have Missed
    Get some picks

    Recently viewed

    You have no recently viewed pages
    Get the IMDb App
    • Get the IMDb App
    • Help
    • Site Index
    • IMDbPro
    • IMDb TV
    • Box Office Mojo
    • IMDb Developer
    • Press Room
    • Advertising
    • Jobs
    • Conditions of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Interest-Based Ads

    © 1990-2021 by IMDb.com, Inc.