The classic Shakespearean play about the murderously scheming 15th-century king is reimagined in an alternative setting of 1930s England as clouds of fascism gather.The classic Shakespearean play about the murderously scheming 15th-century king is reimagined in an alternative setting of 1930s England as clouds of fascism gather.The classic Shakespearean play about the murderously scheming 15th-century king is reimagined in an alternative setting of 1930s England as clouds of fascism gather.
- Nominated for 2 Oscars
- 7 wins & 12 nominations total
Denis Lill
- Lord Mayor of London
- (as Dennis Lill)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaSir Ian McKellen enjoyed acting with Robert Downey Jr. in Restoration (1995), and asked him to play the part of Lord Rivers, expecting him to turn the role down as too small. To McKellen's surprise, Downey immediately cleared his diary, and took the part.
- GoofsThis is not a historical drama, nor a biopic. It is an allegory which mixes and unsolved murders from the 1480s with costumes and customs from the 1930s, to make an artistic statement about the similarities between these two eras. While the movie portrays several historical figures, they are not intended to perfectly resemble their real-life counterparts, and their words and actions are never claimed to be what the real people said and did.
- Alternate versionsThe UK (video) release has the cast credits in order of appearance.
- ConnectionsFeatured in 53rd Annual Golden Globe Awards (1996)
- SoundtracksCome Live With Me
Paraphrased from "The Passionate Shepherd to his Love,(1599)" by Christopher Marlowe
Performed by Stacey Kent and Vile Bodies
Music composed by Trevor Jones
Arranged by Colin Good
Published by EMI Music Publishing Ltd.
Featured review
Exceptional performances enhance timeless themes.
Many productions throughout the years have presented Shakespeare in updated formats in order to make his plays more
contemporary with varying results. This production is one of the
most successful. Sir Ian McKellan's extraordinary performance
makes his character, although thoroughly self-serving, incredibly
magnetic. The film is enhanced by many other exceptional
performances, most notably by Robert Downey Jr., Jim Broadbent
and Kristin Scott Thomas. The setting makes the story more
realistic to modern viewers, which helps it to avoid the stiff, stagy
quality seen in most productions of this work. Making
Shakespeare more accessible to today's viewers without
butchering his amazing language is no mean feat, but this film
accomplishes it handily.
contemporary with varying results. This production is one of the
most successful. Sir Ian McKellan's extraordinary performance
makes his character, although thoroughly self-serving, incredibly
magnetic. The film is enhanced by many other exceptional
performances, most notably by Robert Downey Jr., Jim Broadbent
and Kristin Scott Thomas. The setting makes the story more
realistic to modern viewers, which helps it to avoid the stiff, stagy
quality seen in most productions of this work. Making
Shakespeare more accessible to today's viewers without
butchering his amazing language is no mean feat, but this film
accomplishes it handily.
- How long is Richard III?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Ricardo III
- Filming locations
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- £6,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $2,684,904
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $91,915
- Jan 1, 1996
- Gross worldwide
- $2,748,518
- Runtime1 hour 50 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 2.35 : 1
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