Led by Anthony Hopkins as the title character, the cast of this media adaptation was outstanding. But Shakespeare's play was so truncated that the result was the Cliff's Notes version of "King Lear."
It is not clear why the filmmakers wanted to cut the play so severely. The long speeches were abbreviated with the apparent goal of capturing the principal narrative. But the result was that the character developments suffered.
One of the main problems was in the portraits of Goneril and Regan, the two greedy daughters of Lear. By eliminating so much of the dialogue, there was only a sketchy portrayal of the two characters. In the early part of the film, both Goneril and Regan were sympathetic in light of the boorish behavior of their old father, his grubby one hundred retainers, and a brood of dogs. Then, with insufficient motivation and exposition, the two sisters turned instantly into studies in evil.
While the concept of the film was an updated modern setting for Shakespeare's pre-Christian, the effects seemed gimmicky. There was not enough of a pretext for France to be invading Great Britain in the twenty-first century, due to a falling out of the old king and his daughters. The visuals, including bombs dropping and battalions marching on the streets overwhelmed the language. The best scenes were the quiet moments, such as the opening scene where Lear fatefully divides his kingdom and the later reunion of Lear and Cordelia.
It is unfortunate that there is not a "director's cut" version of this film that adds an extra two hours of dialogue necessary to do justice to Shakespeare's masterful tragedy.
It is not clear why the filmmakers wanted to cut the play so severely. The long speeches were abbreviated with the apparent goal of capturing the principal narrative. But the result was that the character developments suffered.
One of the main problems was in the portraits of Goneril and Regan, the two greedy daughters of Lear. By eliminating so much of the dialogue, there was only a sketchy portrayal of the two characters. In the early part of the film, both Goneril and Regan were sympathetic in light of the boorish behavior of their old father, his grubby one hundred retainers, and a brood of dogs. Then, with insufficient motivation and exposition, the two sisters turned instantly into studies in evil.
While the concept of the film was an updated modern setting for Shakespeare's pre-Christian, the effects seemed gimmicky. There was not enough of a pretext for France to be invading Great Britain in the twenty-first century, due to a falling out of the old king and his daughters. The visuals, including bombs dropping and battalions marching on the streets overwhelmed the language. The best scenes were the quiet moments, such as the opening scene where Lear fatefully divides his kingdom and the later reunion of Lear and Cordelia.
It is unfortunate that there is not a "director's cut" version of this film that adds an extra two hours of dialogue necessary to do justice to Shakespeare's masterful tragedy.