The Ruling Class

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The Ruling Class

PG

Released Sep 13, 1972

2h 34m

Comedy

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

83%

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12 Reviews

85%

Popcornmeter

2,500+ Ratings

When the Earl of Gurney (Harry Andrews) dies in a cross-dressing accident, his schizophrenic son, Jack (Peter O'Toole), inherits the Gurney estate. Jack is not the average nobleman; he sings and dances across the estate and thinks he is Jesus reincarnated. Believing that Jack is mentally unfit to own the estate, the Gurney family plots to steal Jack's inheritance. As their outrageous schemes fail, the family strives to cure Jack of his bizarre behavior, with disastrous results.

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Roger Ebert

Chicago Sun-Times

We get no real feeling that it knows where it's going, and every good comedy needs a certain headlong conviction.

Rated: 2.5/4

Oct 23, 2004

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Dick Lochte

Los Angeles Free Press

The Ruling Class is that rarity, a successful, satiric film. No other genre is so plagued by good intentions and regrettable results.

Jan 4, 2020

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Dennis Schwartz

Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews

In spots a very amusing and irreverent tongue-in-cheek satire on class that features a tour de force performance by Peter O'Toole.

Rated: B

Jun 18, 2008

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Jake Euker

F5 (Wichita, KS)

Rated: 2/5

Mar 18, 2006

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Mark Athitakis

Filmcritic.com

Rated: 3/5

Mar 11, 2006

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Emanuel Levy

EmanuelLevy.Com

The plot is convoluted but director Peter Medak makes some good satirical points about the British class system and Peter O'Toole is terrific in a well-deserved Oscar-nominated performance.

Rated: B

Jul 4, 2005

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Jo B

This movie is brilliant and bizarre and utterly original. Peter O'Toole is a ghastly shade of pale and wonderful as the mad aristocrat who moves from thinking he's God to his "cured" state of Jack the Ripper within a class system that will keep him propped up as it revolves around its own sort of madness -- and he figures out how to manipulate theirs and his own madness. Funny and makes you think/cringe/laugh some more.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/11/25

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bao s

An amusing English comedic romp with crossdressing asphyxiation, Peter O'Toole as schizophrenic Jesus, electric bolts from fingers, Grand Estates and a mustache in soup. Saw the Criterion version on YT. Like many 1970's movies, it certainly is a hangover of the 60's with a tired drug addled vibe. Nice music numbers as well.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

01/18/25

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Alene F

Far out, fabulous. British satire at its best and Peter O'toole who is always at his best.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/02/24

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g j

I like Peter O'Toole, but judged on its primary merit as a comedy... it just isn't funny at all.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/15/24

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Alec B

Both the movie and its source material were written at a time when merely being outrageous was considered subversive so several sequences feel like mediocre late period Monty Python sketches. Still, its worth seeing for O'Toole who holds the movie together with a hilarious and occasionally terrifying performance.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/09/24

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dave s

Jack Gurney (Peter O'Toole), the 14th Earl of Gurney, is a paranoid schizophrenic who believes that he is God, much to the chagrin of his staid, upper-class family, who are committed to having him committed in order to protect the family's reputation and financial fortune. The Ruling Class is a raucous and stinging satire, an indictment of Britain's aristocracy, filled with outrageous set pieces, irreverent song and dance numbers, and some truly outlandish dialogue. O'Toole, as usual, steals the show in one of his lesser known and under-appreciated roles. On the downside, it feels inconsistent in tone at times and, with a running time of over 150 minutes, there are a lot of scenes that feel like unnecessary filler, but it remains relevant and totally original fifty years after its release.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

03/30/23

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Peter Medak

Director

Peter O'Toole

Jack Arnold Alexander Tancred Gurney, 14th Earl of Gurney

Alastair Sim

Bishop Lampton

Harry Andrews

13th Earl of Gurney

Arthur Lowe

Daniel Tucker

Coral Browne

Lady Claire Gurney

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Synopsis

When the Earl of Gurney (Harry Andrews) dies in a cross-dressing accident, his schizophrenic son, Jack (Peter O'Toole), inherits the Gurney estate. Jack is not the average nobleman; he sings and dances across the estate and thinks he is Jesus reincarnated. Believing that Jack is mentally unfit to own the estate, the Gurney family plots to steal Jack's inheritance. As their outrageous schemes fail, the family strives to cure Jack of his bizarre behavior, with disastrous results.

Director: Peter Medak
Producer: Jules Buck, Jack Hawkins
Screenwriter: Peter Barnes
Distributor: AVCO Embassy Pictures, Nelson Entertainment [us], Criterion Collection, Image Entertainment Inc.
Production Co: Keep Films
Rating: PG
Genre: Comedy
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Sep 13, 1972, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Oct 15, 2020
Runtime: 2h 34m

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