IMDb > Richard III (1955)
Richard III
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Richard III (1955) More at IMDbPro »


IMDb Holiday Movie Guide

Overview

User Rating:
7.7/10   1,262 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Down 4% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Writers:
William Shakespeare (play) and
Colley Cibber (textual alterations)
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Contact:
View company contact information for Richard III on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
11 March 1956 (USA) more
Genre:
Plot:
Shakespeare's powerful tale of the wicked deformed king and his conquests, both on the battlefield and in the boudoir. full summary | full synopsis
Awards:
Nominated for Oscar. Another 7 wins more
NewsDesk:
(6 articles)
News: Movie Legend In 2009 Specials?
 (From Kasterborous. 29 April 2009, 3:10 PM, PDT)

Seven Scores: Michael J. Lewis - Upon This Rock
 (From Daily Film Music Blog. 4 February 2009, 8:31 AM, PST)

User Comments:
The Summit of Acting Nobility more (32 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)
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Additional Details

Runtime:
161 min
Country:
Language:
Color:
Color (Technicolor)
Aspect Ratio:
1.66 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Mono (Western Electric Recording)
Company:

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
In the opening of the film, Richard accidentally drops the Duke's coronet after the royal party leaves. It was an accidental mistake that Olivier made but left in the film. However, it became a running joke throughout the film and later, you can see the same gag again. more
Goofs:
Audio/visual unsynchronized: When Richard and Buckingham are standing over Edward IV's deathbed, and Buckingham says 'To part the Queen's proud kindred from the princes', Ralph Richardson's lips are out of sync. more
Quotes:
The Lord Hastings: The cat, the rat, and Lovell the dog / Rule all England under the hog. more

FAQ

What is the band shown on Richard's leg during the conclusion of the film?
more
10 out of 10 people found the following comment useful.
The Summit of Acting Nobility, 25 December 2005
9/10
Author: bkoganbing from Buffalo, New York

It's quite a gap that Laurence Olivier covers between his portrayal of heroic Henry V and the evil Richard III. But he certainly does cover it well.

In fact this production boasts the talents of five knighted thespians in its cast, Olivier as Richard, John Gielgud as Clarence, Ralph Richardson as Buckingham, Cedric Hardwicke as Edward IV and Stanley Baker as the Earl of Richmond. That is probably some kind of record.

Once seen you will not forget the heavily made up Olivier with a shylock type nose and hunchbacked form. Unlike in Henry V and in Hamlet the title character's soliliquys are delivered straight to the audience rather than in voice-over. I think Olivier like Shakespeare wanted to emphasize the evilness of Richard as opposed to the tormenting doubts that Henry and Hamlet suffer. No doubts here, he's got his evil course well planned and he's very matter of factly telling his audience what's in store.

Of course when Shakespeare wrote this he was gearing up the Tudor dynasty propaganda machine. Stanley Baker's Earl of Richmond becomes Henry VII grandfather of the Queen whose patronage Shakespeare enjoyed. It was in Tudor family interest to blacken Richard's name to support their own dynastic claims. There have been several plausible theories put forth to claim the murders of Edward V and his brother were done by others.

One guy who in all the stories about Richard III who gets a whitewash is the Duke of Clarence. As portrayed by John Gielgud, Clarence is an innocent sacrificed in Richard's march for the throne. Actually Clarence was quite the schemer himself. He was in communication with Louis XI of France looking for aid in some plotting he was doing. Edward IV overlooked an incredible amount of treachery with him.

One very big flaw is that the film opens with Edward IV being restored to the throne again in 1471 and he has his son with him. Edward IV died in 1483 and the sons have not aged a mite. I believe they were 12 and 9 when they were put to death in the Tower of London in 1483. I'm surprised Olivier had that in his film.

Still and all it's a fabulous production and one should never miss a chance of seeing all that acting nobility in one film.

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Recent Posts (updated daily)User
Terrible! Laura_Krycek
Richard's first speech imdbcrm114
Kids these days... No respect! funkatizer-101
Criterion DVD andersonfamily1999
Music during coronation? Soap82
very interesting illBeSeeingYou
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