Richard III
Short description
Richard III is a 1995 British drama that moves Shakespeare's play into a Britain of the 1930s, where a violent civil conflict has ended with a new king on the throne. His younger brother, Richard of Gloucester, a hunchbacked and physically uncharismatic man, is consumed by ambition and sets out to take the crown by deception, conspiracy and murder, removing relatives and allies who stand in his way, including his own wife. His scheming eventually provokes an armed challenge from abroad.
Ian McKellen plays Richard and co-wrote the screenplay with director Richard Loncraine. The cast includes Annette Bening as Queen Elizabeth, Jim Broadbent as the Duke of Buckingham, Robert Downey Jr. as Earl Rivers, Kristin Scott Thomas as Lady Anne and Adrian Dunbar as James Tyrrell, with 32 credited cast members and 45 credited crew. The film runs 104 minutes.
It was Loncraine's third feature, following Full Circle and The Missionary, and predates The Gathering Storm, Wimbledon, Firewall, 5 Flights Up and Finding Your Feet. It earned roughly 3 million dollars worldwide, a modest return. On IMDb it holds 7.3 from about 16,000 votes, while on TMDB it has 6.8 from 198 votes. A critics' rating of 8.3 from 53 reviews places it well above both audience scores.
What's left behind the scenes
- The film used only half of the text from Shakespeare's play. Some details were changed. For example, in the play, Lord Rivers is killed much later than in the film.
- Ian McKellen wrote the screenplay for the film while on tour with a play in which he played Richard III. Initially, he thought a television film would be made from his script, but he soon realized that the production would require a larger budget. While on tour, McKellen began looking for actors among his acquaintances for roles in the future film. Among them were Patrick Stewart, Danny DeVito, and Meryl Streep, who, however, ultimately did not participate in the film.
- Director Alex Cox was involved with the project at one time, but Richard Loncraine ultimately took over the direction.
- McKellen greatly enjoyed working with Robert Downey Jr. on "Royal Deceit" (1995), and therefore offered him the role of Lord Rivers. But since it was too small for Downey, McKellen expected him to refuse. However, to McKellen's surprise, Downey readily agreed and even specifically cleared his work schedule to accommodate filming.
Auditions in India
Casting calls in USA
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