The lion in winter
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| German title | The lion in winter |
| Original title | The Lion in winter |
| Country of production | Great Britain |
| original language | English |
| Publishing year | 1968 |
| length | 129 minutes |
| Age rating | FSK 16 |
| Rod | |
| Director | Anthony Harvey |
| script | James Goldman |
| production | Martin Poll |
| music | John Barry |
| camera | Douglas Slocombe |
| cut | John Bloom |
| occupation | |
| |
The Lion in Winter (Original title: The Lion in Winter ) is a British film by director Anthony Harvey from 1968 based on the play of the same name by James Goldman . It premiered on October 30, 1968 in Hollywood , United States .
action
Christmas 1183 at the French castle Chinon : The aging English King Henry II is concerned about his kingdom and decides to choose his successor from among his three sons Richard , Geoffrey and John , as the intended heir to the throne Henry the Younger has recently passed away. Henry has taken the young French princess Alix as his lover, who, however, is intended to be his son Richard's wife. Her brother, the young French King Philip II of France , is also visiting Henry and calls for the princess to be married soon, otherwise he wants her country dowry back.
Heinrich shares a love-hate relationship with his wife Eleanor . Because Eleanor conspired against Henry several times, she has been exiled in the English castle of Old Sarum for ten years . She is bitter that her husband left her for younger lovers like the late Rosamund or now Alix. Henry calls her to Chinon for the Christmas court. Eleanor sees this Christmas day as her chance to regain influence and power through her son Richard. Between Henry and Eleanor an intriguing game of intrigue develops about the succession of the king, because while the king favors the still young John, Eleanor wants to bring Richard to the throne. Richard is considered capable by his father, but he has already opposed him in the past and has become unpopular with him.
Henry agrees to marry Alix to Richard and make him heir to the throne. Richard learns at the wedding, however, that not only Eleanor will be given freedom, but that John will also be given the important province of Aquitaine . Richard then rejects the wedding. Meanwhile, John believed that he was no longer his father's favorite, and with his middle brother Geoffrey and King Philip forged a plan for war against England. Henry finds out through a conversation with Philipp that John and Geoffrey had turned against him and that Richard had a homosexual affair with the younger Philipp a few years ago.
Henry now considers all three sons to be unworthy of the throne and has them locked up in a wine cellar by his guards. He gives instructions to the court that he and Alix go to Rome to see the Pope, where the Pope should annul his marriage to Eleanor so that he can marry Alix and have new children with her. Alix points out, however, that he does not have that long life span and that the three sons pose a danger to them and the potential heir to the throne after his death. Henry then sentences his three sons to death, but fails to execute them and lets them escape. Henry remains alone with gloomy thoughts, while Eleanor, returning to her prison, advises him to cover up the pain with laughter.
background
James Goldman's play The Lion in Winter premiered on Broadway on March 2, 1966 with Robert Preston as Henry, Rosemary Harris as Eleanor and Christopher Walken as Philipp . Her portrayal of the Queen brought Rosemary Harris a Tony Award , but the play itself was discontinued after two and a half months due to a lack of audience interest and meant a financial flop. Nevertheless, Goldman's play was made into a film because after the success of Thomas More's biography A Man in Every Season (1966), material about English history was sought in Hollywood.
For director Anthony Harvey it was the first directorial work in a major film, previously he had only made the independent film Dutchman (1966). At the time of filming, Peter O'Toole was around 15 years younger than the real Henry in 1183, but was considered predestined for this role, as he had already played the king in Becket four years earlier and received an Oscar nomination for it. For Timothy Dalton , The Lion meant the film debut in winter , for Anthony Hopkins it was only the second feature film after The White Bus (1967). Katharine Hepburn is said to have been a descendant of her own film character Eleanor, in her family tree there is allegedly an illegitimate child of Eleanor's son John.
From October 1967, the actors rehearsed together at London's Theater Royal Haymarket before they began filming from November 1967 to March 1968. The lion's budget in winter was around $ 4 million. Most of the interior scenes were filmed in Ardmore Studios near Dublin , while exterior scenes were shot in Wales and France, among others. The Welsh Pembroke Castle served as the backdrop for the tournament with Richard at the beginning of the film. Although the main location of the film, Chinon Castle , still exists today, it is not in the film. Since it had changed a lot since the Middle Ages and was in a largely dilapidated state in the 1960s, the Montmajour Abbey served as the location for the film instead .
synchronization
The German dubbed version was created for the cinema premiere based on the dialogue book and dialogue direction by Michael Günther .
| role | actor | German Dubbing voice |
|---|---|---|
| King Henry II | Peter O'Toole | Ernst Wilhelm Borchert |
| Queen Eleanor of Aquitaine | Katharine Hepburn | Gisela Uhlen |
| Richard the Lionheart | Anthony Hopkins | Michael Chevalier |
| Geoffrey | John Castle | Lothar Blumhagen |
| John | Nigel Terry | Horst Gentzen |
| King Philip | Timothy Dalton | Michael Günther |
| Captain William Marshal | Nigel Stock | Martin Hirthe |
Reviews
The lion in winter receives largely positive reviews to this day. On the critic portal Rotten Tomatoes , based on 35 reviews, it has a positive rating of 91%. The film is "sharper and more witty" than a typical period film and offers fantastic acting, so the critical consensus.
“The historical events surrounding the succession struggles of the sons of Henry II of England (1133–1189) as a psychological family drama full of hatred and envy. [...] despite epic breadth full of inner tension. "
“Using historical material [...] the viewer experiences a climax of psychological self-tearing and sarcasm in the form of a theater dialogue projected in color and widescreen, which goes hand in hand with an unconditional climax in the art of acting. A sophistic and intellectually tinged drama; a pleasure - ultimately worthless, but a pleasure. "
Awards (selection)
- Academy Award - Katharine Hepburn received the third of her four Oscars for Best Actress in 1969 for this role . John Barry received his third Oscar for best film music and James Goldman received the Oscar for best adapted screenplay . Peter O'Toole was nominated for Best Actor , but lost; it was his second nomination for the role of Henry, whom he had previously played in Becket . The film also received nominations in the categories of Best Picture , Best Director, and Best Costume Design ( Margaret Furse ).
- Society of Film and Television Arts Awards - for Katharine Hepburn and John Barry.
- Golden Globe - the film received the Golden Globe for best film in the Drama category ; Peter O'Toole received the Golden Globe for Best Actor .
Remake
In 2004 a television film was made with Patrick Stewart and Glenn Close . The film received various awards, including the Golden Globe Award for Close .
literature
- James Goldman : The Lion in Winter (Original title: The Lion in Winter ). German by Gina Kaus . S. Fischer, Frankfurt am Main circa 1965, 166 pp.
Web links
- The Lion in Winter in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- Lion in Winter in the archive of the Documentatie- en Onderzoekscentrum voor Religie, Cultuur en Samenleving (KADOC), Leuven
Individual evidence
- ↑ The Broadway League: The Lion in Winter - Broadway Play - Original | IBDB. Retrieved May 10, 2018 .
- ↑ The Lion in Winter. Retrieved May 10, 2018 .
- ↑ The Lion in Winter. Retrieved May 10, 2018 .
- ↑ Katharine Hepburn - Kate the Great, A Woman of Influence . In: The Culture Concept Circle . ( thecultureconcept.com [accessed May 10, 2018]).
- ↑ Facts: Katharine Hepburn - Classic Hollywood Central. Accessed May 10, 2018 .
- ↑ AFI | Catalog. Accessed May 10, 2018 .
- ^ Filming Locations for The Lion In Winter (1968), in France, Ireland and Wales. In: The Worldwide Guide to Movie Locations . ( movie-locations.com [accessed May 10, 2018]).
- ↑ AFI | Catalog. Accessed May 10, 2018 .
- ↑ German synchronous index: German synchronous index | Movies | The lion in winter. Retrieved May 10, 2018 .
- ↑ The Lion in Winter at Rotten Tomatoes. Accessed May 10, 2018 .
- ↑ The lion in winter. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed October 22, 2016 .
- ↑ Evangelical Press Association Munich, Review No. 444/1970.
- ^ Internet Movie Database: The Lion in Winter (2003). May 23, 2004, accessed May 10, 2018 .