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source: Becket

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!

something magic defines Becket. the source is not the acting, the music, the costumes, atmosphere. but the silence. it does force to the fight for honor, to loyalty, to the friendship and to the final word of king. it is the heart of tension and the drawing of lead characters. Richard Burton does one of his memorable roles. but his role is like a coat for two. his Thomas Becket is great, convincing, touching, profound, vulnerable and profound human for the science of Peter O ' Toole to discover his Henri II as the runner to his precise destiny. it seems be the film of two great actors and that is its high virtue. but its status of memorable movie has deeper roots. because it becomes more than a remarkable play adaptation and sustain a generous message in brilliant manner. story of power and faith, it is good support of reflection about politics and its necessary limits.

While there may be those who are not so taken with any historical inaccuracies Becket has, as a film is very good. While a tad overlong, it looks lavish, with fine cinematography and ravishingly beautiful costumes, scenery and sets and has a very evocative music score. The script is literate and very interesting, the story is very compelling with some great scenes, the pace while mannered is also efficient and the direction is more than competent. The acting I have very little to criticise either. Both Richard Burton and Peter O' Toole are superb as Becket and Henry II, Burton is nicely understated and O' Toole is very flamboyant and shows a range that is equal to that of his role in Lion in Winter. All in all, it is a very good film that is worth seeing for the leads. 8/10 Bethany Cox

POSSIBLE SPOILERS! This is a superbly executed film! It depicts the true story of Thomas a Becket, wonderfully portrayed by Richard Burton, and his king (Henry II), wonderfully portrayed by Peter O'Toole. They are best friends, drinking and debauching together. The king has some headaches with the Church of England but then the Archbishop of Canterbury, leader of the church, dies. The king urges Becket to become Archbishop of Canterbury in order to have a friend in that role. Becket warns the king that if he takes the job, he will look after the church first, then the king. O'Toole prevails and Burton's Becket becomes the Archbishop. Soon, they are at odds with each other over church business and soon become bitter enemies. Most students of history know that the king ultimately had Becket murdered. The film is historically fairly accurate and beautifully acted! This one is worth a watch!

If this movie had won all that Academy Awards that it was deservedly nominated for it would be a well-remembered film today but it seems like a forgotten classic. I haven't seen it shown on TV in years and seldom hear people talk about or reference this film. It won a best screenplay Oscar but was basically shut out. Best Picture, Best Director, two Lead Actor, one Supporting Actor, Art Direction, Cinematography, Editing, Score and Sound nominations that all came up short. Two great Actors Richard Burton and Peter O'Toole during the peak or prime of their careers with the great John Gielgud as a bonus. Wow! What an acting duel between Burton and O'Toole. A great script and great direction. This film has a lot going for it and deserved and should have won most of it's nominations but any other two actors in the lead and I may not have given it a 10 but this is a 10 and I highly recommend it.

Ah, words. To paraphrase Henry Higgins, they are the pillars of society. Language is the means by which emotions are expressed, wars and love affairs are started and ended, and friendships are struck -- and melted down. "Becket" is a movie in love with words, their eloquence and, in some cases, majesty. It's a movie about friendship and loyalty, God and country, and the dynamics that occur when one tries to mix them together. I cannot think of movie so in love with words in recent memory; the only one that comes close (perhaps even superseding it) is "A Man for All Seasons." This is the proverbial film to sink your mental teeth into. It is cerebral, challenging, controversial, and tragic. If you've ever had a friend grow more and more distant no matter how hard you tried to keep things right -- this is for you. And that is all I have to say about that...