RICHARD III
A film review by Alan Kersey
Copyright 1996 Alan Kersey
by Alan Kersey, Cambridge Evening News, UK
WHEN Clarence is taken off to The Tower it is by motor launch ... to Battersea Power Station. And when a jubilant Richard III celebrates his ghoulish seduction of his future queen he dances a jig through a tube station lined with injured men, women and children. This is a fascinating interpretation of Shakespeare's portrait of our most villainous king; and Sir Ian McKellen is awesome in the lead. Even he must have been aware of the hard act he had to follow. With Sir Laurence Olivier's twisted hunchback still fresh in the minds of most veteran filmgoers after 40 years, it was time, though, for a fresh approach ... and this is certainly fresh. It is also full of surprises, albeit without tinkering with text. We are kept guessing for the first few minutes as the social scene of high society in the Thirties gives the impression that we are in for something that is more Wodehouse than Shakespeare. Although it is not without humour, however, it does have all the tragic elements as it dawns on the audience that this Richard had more in common with Adolf Hitler than Henry VIII. In fact, the parallels with Nazi Germany come to a head with his introduction at a Nuremberg-style rally just prior to his coronation. Red and black are the prime colours but it is a wild boar on the flags instead of a swastika. Sir Ian reminded me of Tom Courtenay in Dr Zhivago as he boarded the train that takes his troops to the final battle. And when he utters those immortal words "A horse, a horse. My kingdom for a horse" what he really needs is a Chieftain tank. The civil war obviously has to be fictitious but the equipment, from divebombers to ak-ak guns, is authentic. Debatably the most memorable scene is of the beleaguered king manning an anti-aircraft gun with his only good arm before getting his final come- uppance ... to the tune of Al Jolson's I'm Sitting on Top of the World. All this could prove too bizarre for some Shakespeare lovers and I did have doubts about it myself. The fact that is all handled so brilliantly and by such an impressive cast carries the day. Alongside Sir Ian is Nigel Hawthorne, fresh from his BAFTA award for The Madness of King George and playing a very sad and stoical Clarence; Annette Bening as Queen Elizabeth, Jim Broadbent as the Duke of Buckingham, Bill Paterson as Ratcliffe and, perhaps best of all, Adrian Dunbar as the murderous Tyrrel. I was fairly happy with Annette Bening's accent but very uncomfortable with that of Robert Downey Jr, whose performance as Earl Rivers was fine until he opened his mouth and reminded us that he is more at home in Beverley Hills than war-torn London. Maggie Smith provides a formidable Duchess of York and Kristin Scott Thomas is convincing as Lady Anne. They all help to make this one of the most interesting films for years and one destined to be as memorable in its own bizarre way as the 1955 classic shared by John Gielgud, Ralph Richardson and Claire Bloom. The icing on the cake is that Sir Ian will be at the Arts in person this Friday to launch Richard Loncraine's powerful masterpiece on its three week run. I advise early booking.
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