This is a poor and unnecessary remake of an outstanding original.
The 1968 version, which starred Peter O'Toole and Kathryn Hepburn (who were accompanied by an excellent cast of supporting actors), told the story of the animosity and conflict which took place between the King of England, Henry II, and the members of his family over Xmas 1183. Their interpretation of this relationship produced one of the great movies of the 20th century.
The remake is inferior in every regard. To begin, the acting can at best be described as mediocre. Stewart and Close are tolerable, but their supporting actors seem little more than cardboard cut-outs staggering through their dialogue without enthusiasm or animation. Entirely absent from their performance is the purported purpose of the movie, to reveal the drama of a group of people battling and scheming for survival and power. The actors seem to be doing little more than reading their lines from cue cards. This performance is doubly painful to watch as the screenplay is a near word for word copy of the outstanding James Goldman original. Even the sets, which I hoped would be an improvement, are inferior. The original had an authentic air of grubby decay and dirt, while the new is filled with clean people inhabiting tidy surroundshardly convincing for the Middle Ages.
The term 'dumbed down' comes to mind when comparing the two.
To be frank, I did not watch all of this movie, however, I am certain I am not the worse for this lack. If anyone wants to see a great movie, see the original, ignore the remake.
The 1968 version, which starred Peter O'Toole and Kathryn Hepburn (who were accompanied by an excellent cast of supporting actors), told the story of the animosity and conflict which took place between the King of England, Henry II, and the members of his family over Xmas 1183. Their interpretation of this relationship produced one of the great movies of the 20th century.
The remake is inferior in every regard. To begin, the acting can at best be described as mediocre. Stewart and Close are tolerable, but their supporting actors seem little more than cardboard cut-outs staggering through their dialogue without enthusiasm or animation. Entirely absent from their performance is the purported purpose of the movie, to reveal the drama of a group of people battling and scheming for survival and power. The actors seem to be doing little more than reading their lines from cue cards. This performance is doubly painful to watch as the screenplay is a near word for word copy of the outstanding James Goldman original. Even the sets, which I hoped would be an improvement, are inferior. The original had an authentic air of grubby decay and dirt, while the new is filled with clean people inhabiting tidy surroundshardly convincing for the Middle Ages.
The term 'dumbed down' comes to mind when comparing the two.
To be frank, I did not watch all of this movie, however, I am certain I am not the worse for this lack. If anyone wants to see a great movie, see the original, ignore the remake.