<I>King Lear</I> is a violent storm on a grand scale. It is a timeless tale of greed and lust for power. It is the story of a sick old man, his scheming children, and lost loyalties. King Lear is arguably Shakespeare's greatest work, masterfully adapted for the screen by Sir Laurence Olivier, unquestionably one of the greatest Shakespearean actors of the 20th century. 158 minutes.
Viewer Reviews Laurence Olivier was excellent as King Lear, and his performance in this production compares well with his other great films that he made in the past. The other actors also complemented his role and helped to make this a fine interpretation of Shakespeare. The "Stonehenge" sets added much to the atmosphere of the play.
However, I think some better technology could have made this program look better on the screen. The DVD looks like it was copied from from an unrestored video made in the 1980's. The program really shows its age. Perhaps it was the only copy available, but one would think that more effort would have been made to preserve it. If the this television special was made Today a larger budget with more technology would have been used so that the play would have looked more attractive on the screen. This is more like viewing a recording of the play, which is pleasing, but it is something seen at a distance instead of the vivid art of Olivier's previous films.
