Becket

In 1066, William the Conqueror crossed from France with his Norman Army and conquered the Saxons of Britain. His grandson King Henry II (Peter O'Toole) recalls his friendship with the minion Saxon Thomas Becket (Richard Burton), a man without honor that prioritizes the pleasure life and is his adviser and companion in promiscuity and bender. Henry II has a troubled relationship with the Catholic Church and when the Archbishop of Canterbury dies, the king decides to appoint Becket to the position to dominate the Church. However, Becket finds his honor in the faith for God and takes seriously his position, defending the interests of the Church. Henry II develops an ambiguous love and hate feeling for his former friend and in hatred he decides the fate of Becket.

"Becket" is a great biographical movie that won an Oscar (Best Writing), had eleven nominations to the Oscar among several awards and nominations in other film festivals. Peter O'Toole and Richard Burton have top- notch performances and deserve their nominations. I believe people that have studied this historical period of England would appreciate it more since they certainly know how faithful the biographies of King Henry II and Thomas Becket are. This DVD has been recently released in Brazil by Cine Art Distributor and has many Extras including and interview with Richard Burton. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "Becket"

BECKET (4 outta 5 stars)

Classic historical drama with excellent performances from the two leads... Peter O'Toole as King Henry II and Richard Burton as his best friend turned nemesis, Thomas Becket. From the start Henry II is not the most benevolent of kings... he steals young girls from their families for his own carnal pleasures... and even tricks Becket into sending the woman he loves to the King's bed. King Henry gets the idea that it might end his problems with the church if he names his best friend Archbishop... but he underestimates Becket's faith (as does Becket himself). Eventually Becket has to choose between his duty to the King and his duty to God... an unenviable choice that bodes ill no matter which choice he makes. Obvious homoerotic undertones to the relationship between the two strong-willed individuals... hard to imagine that this sort of material was palatable to audiences in the early 60s. Great script, great actors, great sets and costumes... a must see!

After having read the other comments, I hardly feel able to improve upon what has already been so eloquently expressed. For anyone who enjoys high-caliber acting, intriguing dialogue, and complex relationships in a film, this is a must-see. I agree with a comment that Burton was shafted the oscar for his performance of Becket. It does seem at times that the Academy veers from rewarding darker, complex, mercurial characters in favor of anaesthitized heroic caricatures. It is one of the greatest tragedies of film-making that the talented are often unrewarded and forgotten. Richard Burton and Peter O'Toole are perfect foils in this film. The souring of their friendship makes a deeply moving story. Historical inaccuracies I can easily forgive; this is a dramatic film, not a documentary, and a director and screenwriter must condense lives into a believable and appealing plot. It is far better to make alterations than to have nothing such as this produced... (Having exposed myself thus, I must own that I am also a history scholar and usually a stickler regarding more inferior productions.) All in all, I recommend this film to anyone who enjoys superior acting and thought-provoking drama.

My comments here tend to be Misremembrances of things past. I know I saw "Becket" decades ago while I must have been suffering from a periodic bout of reviling Richard Burton. Having recently seen "Cleopatra" again, I will forgive myself. Still, there are movies that I've enjoyed - "The Spy Who Came in from the Cold" and "The Night of the Iguana", to name 2 - so I thought I'd give "Becket" another try.

Historical movies are among my favorites, although the IMDB parameter of not spoiling restricts me from discussing plot. But this is a movie that made me click on here to see who directed it...since directing Burton and O'Toole must have been like being a meterologist tracking a tornado and a hurricane. Their synergy is astounding...but whereas O'Toole launches himself on occassion into a thespian stratosphere it is Burton's performance that is incandescent. There are scenes..."inner monologues" - queries to God, where the ribald Burton is transformed into a man illuminated by a spiritual puzzle - he cannot believe that he is becoming who he is becoming - and it is Burton's challenge to share that bewilderment with us.

Well, I'm comforted that I can now stretch the glory days of historical film-making at least to "Becket." Any film in which John Gielgud, Martita Hunt, Felix Aylmer and Pamela Brown are "supporting" - how do I put it, "supporting" performances such as these are most other actors' triumphs. The costumes and sets are sumptous. Finis.

This movie definitely has some positive attributes, but also some annoying flaws.

It is visually enjoyable, with very nice cinematography and superb costume design. And there is some fine acting, especially by Richard Burton, as well as John Gielgud.

But there are many historical inaccuracies, most of them entirely unnecessary to the story.

For example, Henry may have been harsh with his sons and with his wife, but was kind to his mother Matilda, who had always been very loving and devoted to him. The lack of respect between the two added nothing to the movie.

Thomas Becket was not a Saxon, he was born in London but was the son of a couple from Normandy. Henry was less Norman than Becket, he was the son of an Angevin father, and his mother was a mix of Norman, Scottish, and Anglo-Saxon royalty. Her grandparents were William I, Matilda of Flanders, Margaret of Wessex (a descendant of Alfred the Great, she became St Margaret of Scotland), and Malcolm Canmore, King of Scotland. So Henry II had more Anglo-Saxon heritage (1/8) than Thomas Becket (none).

The conflict between Henry and Becket actually went on for years, and there were many differences between them, not just the decision to execute a priest.

Henry was almost certainly not a homosexual. He considered Becket a good friend and supporter at one time, but the movie makes him out to be madly in love with Becket while having no liking or respect for anyone else.

The actress who played Eleanor of Aquitaine was nothing like her. In reality, Eleanor was an elegant and exceptionally strong woman. The makers of The Lion in Winter made a wiser choice by casting Katharine Hepburn.