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Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated) Binding: DVD EAN: 9780767064262 Format: Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD-Video, Miniseries, NTSC ISBN: 0767064267 Label: A&E Home Video Languages: Manufacturer: A&E Home Video MPN: 71325 Number Of Items: 1 Publisher: A&E Home Video Region Code: 1 Release Date: April 27, 2004 Running Time: 188 minutes Studio: A&E Home Video Theatrical Release Date: March 21, 2004 Editorial Review: Amazon.com: It's not always good to be king in this fascinating BBC/A&E historical drama, featuring a complex performance by Rufus Sewell as the exiled British monarch who returned to a volatile, post-Cromwell England in the 17th century. Pressed to forgive the enemies who killed his father, Charles II takes the throne and finds himself squeezed from all sides by vicious power brokers, his vengeful mother (Diana Rigg), a manipulative mistress (Helen McCrory), dubious advisers, a contrarian best friend (Rupert Graves), and his bewildered Portuguese wife (Shirley Henderson). Problems with the Plague and Charles's own, restless libido further complicate family and political dramas, but beneath the king's operatic tenure are visible strains of progressive government: Charles, after all, ushered in an early era of democracy in England. The Last King's sharp script never slows, but it's the cast's intense performances that bring royal intrigues to life. --Tom Keogh Average Rating:
 Rating:  - Scenes from the life of a king2 and a half stars. Ultimately, this film is unsatisfying because it is fails to provide context and continuity for the life of the influential and fascinating monarch it attempts to portray--it is more diorama than biography. Actors in the major roles are never portrayed as aging--if it weren't for other indications that he was nearing the end of his reign, Charles's death would be a total surprise. The only character development that rings true is the portrayal of the growth of Charles's respect ... Read More Rating:  - Great Drama and HistoryThe wife and I loved watching this drama closely tracing the history of this British monarch. Rating:  - Hmmmm... skip this one.No, I didn't like it. First of all, Rufus Sewell is supremely miscast as King Charles II - he doesn't look anything like him. Charles II was a swarthy man, with very dark hair and thick lips. The producers seem to have thought that you can just put a wig on someone's head and that's it - but, in a biographical movie, the actor has to look at least a bit like the character he is supposed to be portraying (see, for example, Stephen Fry's Oscar Wilde, or Philip Seymour Hoffmann's Truman Capote - both of ... Read More Rating: - A leadership portraitThis film which begins with the beheading of Charles I follows the life of Charles II from the time he is a 19 year old exile in Holland until the end of his reign in 1685. The film gets an overall top rating for the superb acting, sharp dialogue, excellent art direction and photography, and masterful costume, hair and makeup. This last comment may seem odd until you see the hairstyles of Catherine Braganza as she arrives from Portugal or the make-up and styling of Barbara Villiers, Castlemaine, ... Read More Rating: - Almost Unknown TV SeriesThis DVD of an English TV series came up on an internet search for an actor. We had no idea that it existed. It is a great series on Charles II a perfect solution to the wasteland of current US televison, cable and movies. |
