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      King Lear

      1983 2 hr. 40 min. Drama List
      Reviews 61% 1,000+ Ratings Audience Score Olivier plays at 75 the role he played at 39, Shakespeare's king of Britain driven mad by his daughters. Read More Read Less

      Audience Reviews

      View All (30) audience reviews
      Audience Member Olivier...simply brilliant Rated 5 out of 5 stars 01/17/23 Full Review Audience Member Although the production suffers from some truncation to the script (nearly an hour of dialogue is cut out), it is redeemed by the astounding performances of its more-than-able cast: Colin Blakely is a strong, virtuous Kent, Dorothy Tutin and Diana Rigg make for a marvelously wicked double-act as the evil daughters, John Hurt is heart-wrenching even as you laugh at him as the tragic Fool, and while the brothers' performances lack in-depth shading, the whole cast could be very well be subpar and still be redeemed by Olivier's marvelous Lear. Some interesting directorial flourishes make for the definitive screen version to date of the greatest play ever written. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 02/16/23 Full Review Audience Member The pacing of this cheaply made film is glacial, but the emotion of the story and Olivier's Lear pull it through. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/20/23 Full Review Audience Member Lear as it should be Performed, by Sir Laurence Olivier Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/19/23 Full Review Audience Member Olivier is brilliant -as always- as King Lear, with Diana Rigg being the "next best thing" as Regan. But John Hurt's performane is perfect. I think he belongs to a very small number of actors, who are capable of making the viewer understand exactly what their characters are thinking and feeling. His Fool is one of the most sincere and beautiful performances I have ever seen. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/06/23 Full Review Audience Member Olivier's Lear made me like Shakespeare. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 01/16/23 Full Review Read all reviews Post a rating

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      King Lear

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      Critics Reviews

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      Pablo Villaça Cinema em Cena Esta produo para a tev americana tem pssima transferncia de imagem e se beneficia apenas da tour de force de Olivier. No entanto, longa e cansativa demais. Rated: 2/5 Jul 25, 2003 Full Review Read all reviews

      Movie Info

      Synopsis Olivier plays at 75 the role he played at 39, Shakespeare's king of Britain driven mad by his daughters.
      Director
      Michael Elliott
      Executive Producer
      David Plowright
      Production Co
      Granada Television
      Genre
      Drama
      Original Language
      English
      Release Date (DVD)
      Apr 7, 2006