Monday morning...

[fajrdrako]

Yesterday I saw both Becket and The Lion in Winter at Sheila's place. I was particularly impressed this time by the costumes in Becket - they were generally gorgeous, especially the things Becket wore, and I liked the way Henry's clothes all looked a little haywire, not quite fitting right, while Becket's clothes were always perfect - tightfitting and not a crease. The women looked absurd but of course the women in that story are absurd - no resemblance to history - Anouilh took great pains to make Becket look good and the King look bad (though Peter O'Toole gives him a lot of charm) and so much of it is simply fantasy. Becket was no Saxon and no former peasant.

I found myself much less sympathetic to Becket than I was years ago. All the business about the honour of God - which he seemed to believe so sincerely - it was just another power-play in the church vs. state question, in a round of the game where the Church (i.e., the Pope) resoundingly won.

The orignal 1968 version of The Lion in Winter as as brilliant as ever, and shows what Peter O'Toole could really do with a good role. I was surprised to see that the movies were made only four years apart, when I'd really believed Henry had aged twenty years. Tmothy Dalton is great. Katharine Hepburn is unsurpassable.

Our food was a potluck and I enjoyed it immensely, especially Sheila's meat balls.

Comments

[widget-alley.livejournal.com]

Oh, Lion in Winter.... how I adore thee. I could watch that movie on repeat for a long, long time.

I bought the script for Becket but haven't read it yet.

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

I read Becket long ago but don't seem to own it any more. For all its wild twisting of history, I think it's a wonderful play. It's been years since I've read the history in detail, and I don't think I ever read the "lives of the saints" version of the Becket story.

Now I want to see Eliot's Murder in the Cathedral on stage.

[selenak.livejournal.com]

Oh, Anoulih threw history right out of the window. Henry's mother Maude and of course Eleanor were two of the toughest, most impressive ladies of the Middle Ages, but he couldn't have that since it would have distracted from Henry/Becket, so he made them into unrecognizable bimbos. And yes, Becket-as-man-of-the-people is just ridiculous, though within popular legend.

As far as the church vs state power struggle is concerned, it's worth noting, though,, that Henry, clever fox that he was, got a huge advantage out of this after all. Because the fiasco of Becket's murder was followed by Eleanor's and her sons' rebellion. Once Henry had done the public atonment in Canterbury, he got the excommunication threat against young Richard in no time flat. End of rebellion.

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

Henry's mother Maude and of course Eleanor were two of the toughest, most impressive ladies of the Middle Ages, but he couldn't have that since it would have distracted from Henry/Becket,

Yes. He made them 'generic' and gave them Lewis Carroll hats. He gave Eleanor an uncle who was an Emperor - a nice promotion in rank for Raymond of Tripoli.

I fully believe that Becket was popular with the people - but not that he had humble Saxon origins. The man was a burgher or Rouen!

Henry had a way of turning reverses into advantages. It's one of the reasons I love the man. What a clever mind!

[batdina.livejournal.com]

There was some scuttlebut about a DVD of Beckett coming out last year or the year before, and then it didn't get made.

Or did it? Might I have to purchase it in Canada? (Wouldn't be the first time that has happened.)

What a great double feature!

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

According to some discussion on htp://www.imdb.com, actually at the board at http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0057877/board/nest/7472419, "The DVD made from the remastered print [of "Becket"] will be available to the public at the end of the year-12/31/04." Apparently the film was in less than great condition but they've fixed it up and with any luck will be releasing it everwhere. I've learned to believe these things when I see them, but I hope we'll have it around sometime soon.

It was a wonderful double feature - I must think of other pairs of movies that fit together so well. I think I want to watch more Katharine Hepburn: this one whetted my appetite.