Becket
Genre: historical drama
With: Richard Burton (Thomas Becket),
Peter O'Toole (King Henry II), Donald Wolfit (Bishop Folliot), David Weston
(Brother John), Sir John Gielgud (King Louis VII of France), Martita Hunt
(Empress Matilda, Henry’s mother), Pamela Brown (Queen Eleanor of Aquitaine,
Henry’s wife), Gino Cervi (Cardinal Zambelli), Paolo Stoppa (Pope Alexander
III), Percy Herbert (Baron), Siân Phillips (Gwendolen), Inigo Jackson (Robert
de Beaumont), Felix Aylmer (Archbishop of Canterbury)
Director: Peter
Glenville
Screenplay:
Edward Anhalt (based on Jean Anouilh’s play, translated by Lucienne Hill)
Release: 1964
Studio: Paramount
Pictures, Keep Films
Rating: PG-13
MBiS score: 8.6/10
‟Oh Lord, how heavy thy honor is to bear.”
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Story-line: circa
1170, some 104 years after William the Conqueror and his Norman armies seized
England and began oppressing its Saxon population, his great grandson Henry II sits
uneasily on the throne. Denounced and humiliated, he travels reluctantly to Canterbury
in order to make peace with his deceased Saxon friend, Thomas Becket, the
former Archbishop with whom he had quarreled on issues of great import.
Pluses: superb acting by Richard Burton (as a serious, humble
Becket) and Peter O’Toole (a scheming, fiery Henry), a fine supporting cast, a
virile and very credible screenplay characterized by the gravity of its subject,
acute dialogues and moments of cinematic magic (one symbolic scene begins under
blue skies and ends under cloud cover as Thomas and Henry forge a fragile truce),
first-rate cinematography, impressive production values and an imposing musical
score.
Minuses: if this strong movie doesn’t captivate you from
the start, don’t despair! Things pick up admirably around the 28-minute mark.
Comments: BECKET is a hefty film rich in drama, ideas and ideals, a fitting example of English historical cinema (although based on a French play, no less!). In spite of their closeness, you can always sense a latent antagonism between our protagonists, a discord that will be set ablaze when Henry bestows on his friend an honor that would weigh heavily on anyone, even the noble Thomas Becket. As the great Saint Augustine once said, “There is no saint without a past, no sinner without a future”. Thomas Becket certainly answers to this quintessential description.
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