England, 15th century. Edward IV is crowned as the King, but his brother with a hunchback Richard of Gloucester wants the throne for himself. Richard uses intrigues to come closer to the line of succession: he is engaged to Lady Anne, whose husband he killed; he invokes an ancient prophecy that someone named "G" will bring an end to the King, so Edward IV has Richard's brother George arrested, and Richard has George killed, puting the blame on Queen Elisabeth. Edward IV dies from grief, whereas his underage sons are imprisoned and later killed in a tower by Richard. He also spreads rumors that Lord Hastings joined forces with Jane's ex-mistress, whom he accused of being a witch, and thus Hastings is beheaded. Ultimately, Richard is crowned as the new King. He engages in the civil war against Henry Tudor, but dies on the battlefield.
The third and one of the most famous film adaptations of William Shakespeare's power-grab play, "Richard III" is one of the four Shakespeare's film roles played by Laurence Olivier ("Henry V", "Hamlet", "Othello"), who here again delivers an indestructible, sweeping and smashing performance that overshadows a majority of other modern actors who tried out these kind of roles. Richard is a fascinating villain: he uses tricks, ploys and intrigues to eliminate all competition left and right, until he is the only one left to secure for himself the crown. The opening sequence is brilliant, starting from the coronation of Edward IV, with a lot of people celebrating and rejoicing around him, only for the camera to enter through the door into another room as a contrast, showing an angry Richard standing all alone, looking into the camera and lamenting to the viewers how he longs for the crown. In a great 5-minute scene without a cut, Olivier delivers a bravura monologue, starting from "Now is the winter of our discontent...", then going on to lament about his deformity ("I, that am curtailed of this fair proportion, cheated of feature by dissembling nature. Deformed, unfinished... and that so lamely and unfashionable that dogs bark at me as I halt by them..."; "To heap an envious mountain on my back..."), all to give an excuse, a reason for himself to be so selfish and cruel in trying to rise to the top in the hierarchy of power ("Then since this Earth affords no joy to me but to command, to check, to order such as are a better person than myself, I'll make my heaven to dream upon the crown"; "Torment myself to catch the English crown, and from that torment I shall free myself!").
As he looks into the camera, he practically dictates his manifesto of going over corpses and doing anything to achieve his lust for power ("I'll drown more sailors than the mermaid shall, I'll play the orator as well as Nestor, deceive more slyly than Ulysses could, and like a Sinon, take another Troy. I can add colours to the chameleon, change shapes with Proteus for advantages, and set the murderous Machiavel to school. Can I do this, and cannot get a crown?"). This opening is maybe too strong, since nothing after that ever comes close to such majestic, electrifying power. It's as if the best lines were already shot out in the opening act. The middle part drags a bit, and feels a bit overstretched, whereas Shakespeare's archaic words are difficult to understand at certain moments, requiring subtitles to understand them fully. Nonetheless, it is fascinating watching Richard doing his tricks, telling his servants to spread rumors, for instance, that the two princes are illegitimate children of King Edward IV, while later he welcomes and hugs said children, feigning to be their best friend. Through him, Shakespeare touches upon some timeless themes about the excessive thirst for absolute power, reminiscent of Byzantine scramble for power, but it is also interesting to note how a person with a slight disability is able to trick all the people around him to be their ruler. This is the prototype of dictators, and a dark commentary that only the most ruthless shall achieve the top position. Olivier is fascinated by this play, and it shows, since it is crafted with a lot of passion, though he is better as an actor than as a director, since the movie is a tad too conventionally directed. Still, "Richard III" is a feast for Shakespeare fans.
Grade:+++
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