Richard II
Original title: King Richard the Second
- Episode aired Mar 28, 1979
- 2h 38m
IMDb RATING
8.0/10
323
YOUR RATING
The incompetent King Richard II is deposed by Henry Bolingbroke and undergoes a crisis of identity once he is no longer King.The incompetent King Richard II is deposed by Henry Bolingbroke and undergoes a crisis of identity once he is no longer King.The incompetent King Richard II is deposed by Henry Bolingbroke and undergoes a crisis of identity once he is no longer King.
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaDirector David Giles shot this movie in such a way as to create a visual metaphor for King Richard II's position in relation to the court. Early in the movie, he is constantly seen above the rest of the characters, especially at the top of stairs, but he always descends to the same level as everyone else, and often ends up below them. As this movie goes on, his positioning above characters becomes less and less frequent.
- Quotes
John of Gaunt: This royal throne of Kings, this scepter'd isle, this precious stone set in a silver sea; this blessed plot, this earth, this realm, this England!
- ConnectionsFollowed by Henry IV Part I (1979)
Featured review
spectacular acting and a largely excellent production though with some regrettable excisions
Derek Jacobi delivers a superb performance as Richard II, and John Gielgud is equally riveting as John of Gaunt. Gielgud's rendering of the famous "This royal throne of kings" speech is one of the highlights of the whole BBC Shakespeare Series, as is Jacobi's rendering of the exquisite soliloquy at the beginning of the penultimate scene of the play.
Likewise excellent is Jon Finch, whose portrayal of Bolingbroke is admirably nuanced (in line with his performances as Henry IV in the BBC's productions of the next two plays of the tetralogy). Charles Gray handles the difficult role of the Duke of York commendably. It is amusing to see him paired with Wendy Hiller as his wife, for the two of them were also in the BBC's production of "The Comedy of Errors" (he as Solinus and she as the Abbess). Clifford Rose, in a role very different from the role of Boyet which he performed in the BBC's production of "Love's Labour's Lost," is convincing as the Bishop of Carlisle.
I have rated this production with nine stars rather than with ten, for two reasons. First, the staging of the final scene of the first Act takes for granted the veracity of Bolingbroke's claims (at the outset of Act III) about the homosexual debauchery into which Richard was led by his favorites. Given that nothing else in the play supports those claims, and given that what Bolingbroke says about the Queen is not reconcilable with what we see of the interaction between Richard and her, the truth of Bolingbroke's allegations should not have been taken for granted. The staging of scene I.iv is not strictly inconsistent with anything in the text, but it goes well beyond the text.
Bolingbroke's claims about Richard and his favorites are likewise not supported by the interaction between the Queen and those favorites in II.ii. And here I come to my second reservation about this production. We never see the interaction between the Queen and Richard's favorites, because more than half of scene II.ii is cut. Almost as heavily cut is scene IV.i, including the encomium to Mowbray by the Bishop of Carlisle. Similarly gone are Bolingbroke's remarks about Prince Hal at the opening of V.iii, which prepare the way for the next two plays in the tetralogy. All of these excisions could and should have been avoided, without pushing the length of the production beyond three hours.
Still, my reservations are considerably outweighed by my plaudits. Overall, this version of "Richard II" is the best that I have ever seen.
Likewise excellent is Jon Finch, whose portrayal of Bolingbroke is admirably nuanced (in line with his performances as Henry IV in the BBC's productions of the next two plays of the tetralogy). Charles Gray handles the difficult role of the Duke of York commendably. It is amusing to see him paired with Wendy Hiller as his wife, for the two of them were also in the BBC's production of "The Comedy of Errors" (he as Solinus and she as the Abbess). Clifford Rose, in a role very different from the role of Boyet which he performed in the BBC's production of "Love's Labour's Lost," is convincing as the Bishop of Carlisle.
I have rated this production with nine stars rather than with ten, for two reasons. First, the staging of the final scene of the first Act takes for granted the veracity of Bolingbroke's claims (at the outset of Act III) about the homosexual debauchery into which Richard was led by his favorites. Given that nothing else in the play supports those claims, and given that what Bolingbroke says about the Queen is not reconcilable with what we see of the interaction between Richard and her, the truth of Bolingbroke's allegations should not have been taken for granted. The staging of scene I.iv is not strictly inconsistent with anything in the text, but it goes well beyond the text.
Bolingbroke's claims about Richard and his favorites are likewise not supported by the interaction between the Queen and those favorites in II.ii. And here I come to my second reservation about this production. We never see the interaction between the Queen and Richard's favorites, because more than half of scene II.ii is cut. Almost as heavily cut is scene IV.i, including the encomium to Mowbray by the Bishop of Carlisle. Similarly gone are Bolingbroke's remarks about Prince Hal at the opening of V.iii, which prepare the way for the next two plays in the tetralogy. All of these excisions could and should have been avoided, without pushing the length of the production beyond three hours.
Still, my reservations are considerably outweighed by my plaudits. Overall, this version of "Richard II" is the best that I have ever seen.
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- mhk11
- Sep 5, 2019
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- Also known as
- The Complete Dramatic Works of William Shakespeare: King Richard the Second
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- See more company credits at IMDbPro
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