Henry V: An Evening at the Globe
Laurence Olivier. Photo: United Artists In Donald Spoto’s 1991 biography on Laurence Olivier, the actor is described as having a somewhat disastrous turn as a soldier during World War II.…
Downton Abbey
In 1927, the Crawleys are informed that King George V and Queen Mary will visit Downton Abbey, and the preparations begin. The movie adaptation of the 2010-2015 TV series has…
The Favourite: All the Queen’s Women
Emma Stone and Olivia Colman. Photo: Fox Searchlight Pictures During the PR campaign for this film, Rachel Weisz called it ”a funnier, sex-driven All About Eve”. Is there a better…
Henry V: Branagh and the Bard
Photo: Renaissance Films When I was a teenager, my class was treated to a performance of Shakespeare’s ”Hamlet”. It was not a bad production; the young leading actors later became…
Braveheart: Creating a New Wallace
Mel Gibson. Photo: Paramount As the story goes, American writer Randall Wallace made a trip to Scotland and came upon a statue at the entrance of Edinburgh Castle. Since the…
Becket: The Bishop Who Found God
Richard Burton and Peter O’Toole. Photo: Paramount When I told a friend recently that I had just seen Becket and that Richard Burton plays the Archbishop of Canterbury, he quickly…
Black Adder: Hilarious History
Tony Robinson and Rowan Atkinson. Photo: BBC At a time when Rowan Atkinson chooses to make another Johnny English, one needs to be reminded of an era when he was…
The Tudors
After writing two movies about Elizabeth I, Michael Hirst turned his attention to another Tudor, the Queen's father, the guy who was married six times and had two of his…
The King’s Speech: Royal Pains
Colin Firth and Geoffrey Rush. Photo: The Weinstein Company After watching this brilliant drama, I knew I had to consult YouTube for the speech King George VI made after Britain's…
The Madness of King George
In 1788, King George III of England (Nigel Hawthorne) starts acting peculiarly for no obvious reason and his son, Prince George (Rupert Everett), conspires to have him dethroned. First-time director…