10 / 10
The Lion in Winter is one of the great chamber pieces in cinema, written as a stage play by James Goldman and adapted by him for the screen with all the dialogue intact. Anthony Harvey directed it. Peter O’Toole plays Henry II of England, six years older than he was when he played the same character in Becket. Katharine Hepburn plays Eleanor of Aquitaine, his estranged queen, whom he has kept imprisoned for ten years and now releases for Christmas court at Chinon in 1183 so they can argue about which of their three sons will inherit the kingdom.
The film is two hours of family members trying to destroy each other with words. Anthony Hopkins plays Richard the Lionheart in his film debut. John Castle plays Geoffrey, the middle son who knows he will not be chosen and is therefore the most dangerous. Nigel Terry plays John, the youngest and the favorite, who is also the most disappointing son anyone has ever had. Timothy Dalton plays Philip II of France, in his film debut, who wants Henry’s kingdom and uses the family’s hatred against them. Jane Merrow plays Alais, the French princess Henry has been sleeping with for years and was supposed to marry to one of his sons.
The Dialogue
The script is one of the great pieces of English-language dialogue. Goldman writes the medieval royal family the way Shakespeare writes the medieval royal family, with the difference that Goldman has been to a twentieth-century therapy session and Shakespeare had not. The arguments sound modern and they sound ancient at the same time, which is what good historical writing always does. The characters are people you have met. The throne is the only difference.
Lines that have entered the language: “I’m at the breaking point. I’m in pieces. You’re losing me.” “What family doesn’t have its ups and downs.” “Of course he has a knife. He always has a knife. We all have knives. It’s 1183 and we’re barbarians.” The barbarians line is the thesis statement of the film, delivered roughly halfway through and never built on. Goldman trusts you to keep it in mind.
For Writers
Theatrical dialogue translates to film if the writer trusts the actors and the director trusts the writing. Most film adaptations of plays soften the language to feel less stagey. The Lion in Winter does not. It runs the play’s language at full strength and lets cinema accommodate. The lesson is that artificial-sounding dialogue can be more powerful than naturalistic dialogue if the artifice is consistent and earned. Naturalism is not the only valid mode.
Hepburn and O’Toole
Katharine Hepburn won her third Best Actress Oscar for this performance, in a tie with Barbra Streisand for Funny Girl. Hepburn was sixty-one years old. She had recently lost Spencer Tracy. She brought a real grief to a part written for a fictionally grieving queen. Her Eleanor is one of the great female performances in mid-century cinema.
O’Toole was thirty-six and playing a Henry who was fifty. He is enormous in the role. His Henry is a man whose appetite for everything in life remains undiminished even as he can feel the kingdom slipping. The scenes between Hepburn and O’Toole are some of the best acting between any two people in any film of the period.
For Writers
A long marriage built on equal parts love and hatred is one of the hardest dynamics to write convincingly. Most fiction simplifies it into one or the other. The Lion in Winter lets it be both at once. Henry and Eleanor would die for each other and have spent years actively trying to destroy each other. The contradiction is not resolved. It is the relationship. The lesson is that contradictions in characters and relationships are often what make them feel true. Resolved emotions feel false because real long relationships do not resolve.
The Sons
Anthony Hopkins makes Richard the Lionheart a man whose violent reputation has not yet fully formed but is clearly inevitable. The scene where his mother realizes he has been intimate with Philip is one of Hopkins’s best early-career moments. John Castle makes Geoffrey the smartest and least loved of the three. Nigel Terry makes John exactly what John was: the youngest, the favorite, and the worst.
Timothy Dalton’s Philip is a quiet horror. He has been waiting for this Christmas for years. He knows what each member of the family wants. He gives them just enough to make them turn on each other. The film’s manipulation plot is almost entirely his work.
For Writers
Three or more siblings in conflict require careful differentiation. Goldman gives each son a distinct strategy. Richard is direct. Geoffrey is conspiratorial. John is whining and incompetent. The audience never confuses them because the script never lets them act alike. The lesson is that ensemble characters survive only if each one has a different relationship to the central conflict. Pile up indistinguishable characters and the reader gives up tracking them.
Craft Note
Anthony Harvey directed. James Goldman wrote, adapted from his own 1966 Broadway play. Peter O’Toole as Henry II. Katharine Hepburn as Eleanor of Aquitaine. Anthony Hopkins (film debut) as Richard the Lionheart. John Castle as Geoffrey. Nigel Terry as John. Timothy Dalton (film debut) as Philip II of France. Jane Merrow as Alais. John Barry composed the score (Oscar). Set at the Christmas court at Chinon, 1183. Released October 1968. Three Oscar wins from seven nominations: Best Actress (Hepburn, tied), Best Adapted Screenplay (Goldman), Best Original Score (Barry).
The Verdict
10/10. One of the great dialogue films. Hepburn’s third Oscar performance. O’Toole’s best work. Anthony Hopkins making his entrance. The script will be quoted as long as English is spoken. If you have not seen it, you have a treat ahead of you.
FAQ
Is it based on a play?
Yes. James Goldman’s 1966 Broadway play. He adapted his own work for the screen. The Broadway production starred Robert Preston and Rosemary Harris.
Is the history accurate?
The setting is real. Henry II did keep Eleanor imprisoned. The three sons did struggle over succession. The specific events of the 1183 Christmas court at Chinon are dramatized. The personalities are recognizable to historians.
Is Anthony Hopkins really making his film debut?
Yes. He had done extensive stage work in Britain. The Lion in Winter was his first significant film role. So was Timothy Dalton’s.
Did Hepburn really tie with Streisand?
Yes. The 1969 Best Actress Oscar was a rare tie. Both received a statue.
Is the gay subplot historically accurate?
Debated. Contemporary chronicles describe Richard and Philip sharing a bed, which was an act of political alliance in the period and may or may not have been sexual. The film interprets it sexually. Historians remain divided.
How does it compare to Becket?
Becket is also excellent. The Lion in Winter is the more sustained achievement. Both star Peter O’Toole as Henry II. Watch them together if you have the time.
Should I watch this?
Yes. One of the great mid-century English-language films.