THE MAD POET
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Laurence Olivier's interpretation of Richard III is interesting, to say the least. Having recently watched it for the first time, I was struck by the oddness of some of the creative choices involved in this movie. To be sure, many points of the film are excellent (John Gielgud packs some fine acting into his role as Clarence, despite that role being drastically diminished), yet there are other spots which just left me... a wee bit baffled. (Why all the screeching?) But this is Olivier. Like him or not, the man is one of the pillars of modern Shakespeare interpretation, and as such he deserves his due for his seminal performances of the Bard's works. His films would serve as inspiration for the actors and directors of later decades. Oliver made an unmistakable contribution to the transition of Shakespeare performances into the modern era, not merely because he was one of the first big creators of Shakespeare movies, but specifically because of the way he created them. His acting style wavers somewhere between stage and screen, sometimes apparently bellowing his lines for the benefit of those in the balcony, sometimes speaking heart-to-heart with the camera. He is comfortable cutting the original script to a more cinema-friendly length and using long traveling shots or other cinematic devices as needed, but still preserves some of the look and feel of a stage play with the use of confined interior sets and "outdoor scenes" with rather obvious painted backdrops. In Richard III, Olivier is not too deeply concerned with portraying the historical Richard; he sees it as his job to embody Richard as Shakespeare wrote him. The opening titles go so far as to offer this very disclaimer, stating that Shakespeare's tale differs somewhat from the historical facts of Richard's reign, but that as an English cultural legend, it deserves preservation. Shakespeare's image of Richard may well have been influenced by the fact that the reigning monarch at the time was Elizabeth Tudor - a direct descendant of Henry Tudor, who (as is portrayed in the play and film) wrested the crown from Richard at the Battle of Bosworth in 1485. A positive or neutral portrayal of the Tudors' ancestral enemy would possibly have landed him on the wrong side of good Queen Bess. However, historians are now rather doubtful as to whether or not Richard murdered his brother or young nephews to "catch the English Crown," and there is simply not enough evidence that he was quite the coldblooded monster Shakespeare painted him as (at least not to the same degree). But that's an article in itself! Historical fact notwithstanding, Olivier sets about embodying the legend with a vengeance. His Richard is a physically twisted monster, complete with long nose, sinister grin, and ugly black bob-wig. His clothing is mostly reds and blacks, hinting at bloodlust, deceit, and sundry other pleasant qualities. He speaks honeyed words to his victims, and moments later confides directly to the camera the plots he has laid for their bloody demise. He coldly orders the murder of his nephews with no hint of compunction or remorse. Even at his last, his cry of "A horse! A horse! My kingdom for a horse!" is not a plea for escape, but for a tool with which to take out his enemy before he himself is slain. His death scene (spoilers, by the way!) is a fit of desperate stabs at empty air as he twitches on the ground, covered in blood, still trying to kill even as he dies. It may well have been an image from Shakespeare's imagination, but the image also likely had resonance in the time of Olivier's film. The character of Hitler still loomed large in the minds of many in the 1950's, and Olivier deliberately imitated him. The screeching crescendo of Richard's voice in one of his rages could well have come straight from a Hitler speech. Olivier stated in a later interview that he also sought to make him an almost cartoonish villain, even partly basing the characterization off Walt Disney's Big Bad Wolf, as well as incorporating a caricature of a tyrannical director under whom he had "suffered greatly." This director was in fact the real source of Richard's hooked nose - neither the near- contemporary portraits (that Olivier would almost definitely have seen) or modern 3D facial reconstructions of the real Richard's skull show him with this feature. The real Richard is thought to have suffered from scoliosis, which, while definitely a cause of back pain and spinal distortion, would not necessarily have seen one labelled as a hunchback, even in medieval times. Even while aiming to follow Shakespeare's vision, Olivier seems to have kept this fact in mind, keeping the "hunchback" posture to a minimum and concealing his frame within various padded doublets and armor. Even his "halt," or limp, alluded to in the original script, is subtle. (It is also said to have been entirely genuine at some point during the film - the result of a stunt archer shooting an arrow at a concealed armor plate on Olivier's horse during the battle scene, only to wind up hitting Olivier's leg instead). The music is one of the best parts of the film. William Walton's royal fanfares blast across the movie, including his "Crown Imperial," a piece played at the coronations George VI, Elizabeth II, and most recently, Charles III. The setting of the film is largely contained in a studio, with lofty building facades concealing most of the painted backdrops in the majority of scenes. Despite this level of artificiality, the finer details of the sets are clearly intended to be accurate to the period - the washed-out earth tones of later medieval-setting films have yet to make their appearance, and panels, shutters and walls are frequently seen bedecked with vibrant, living color, either in the form of paint or tapestry. If one looks closely during some scenes, one can spot the heraldry of various royalty of decades past (Henry V, Edward the Black Prince, etc.) decorating the palace interior. This detail can even be used to make hidden references to other historical events (and, of course, other Shakespeare plays!); in one scene, a young king-to-be mulls over his intentions to invade France once more, while looking up at the arms of Henry V! The costumes likewise reflect the colorful pageantry of the late middle ages. While not yet an expert by any means in 15th century fashion, I can comfortably say that the garb worn in this movie at least gets the general look right. Quilted doublets, bicocket ("Robin Hood") hats, and tight leggings appear on men, with the occasional instance of 'chaperon' headdresses made from rearranged liripipe hoods. The armor and weaponry was a sight to behold. Not only is the armor largely correct to the period, but the designers were obviously aware of finer details often overlooked by others; we see Richard with his upper breastplate off, and beneath is shown an arming jacket, reinforced with patches of mail at the joints and armpits, where a careful stab might go through a chink in the armor above it. The sallet, a style of helmet prevalent during this century and designed to cover the neck and upper face (when visored), appears on multiple soldiers in the final battle. Richard himself briefly wears a bevor, a piece of armor riveted to the top of the breastplate to protect the wearer's neck, chin and mouth. While this would often have been worn in conjunction with the sallet, thus completing the facial protection, the filmmakers seem to have been aware that there were exceptions, and have given Richard an open-faced helmet with better visibility (and better room for the actor's face to be seen). Short padded gambesons appear as well, sometimes worn with only a helmet and no other armor, as was common for soldiers of lower income. Halberds, pikes, longbows, daggers, and swords are all carried throughout the film. There's little to fault with any of them, except perhaps the swords; in a century when many blades were getting a bit bigger generally, the film seems to have gone with the usual Shakespearean rapier blade proportions, perhaps to cut costs or make it easier on the actors wielding them. Richard still manages to use one of these slender weapons to viciously incapacitate a halberdier who threatens him, and later cuts through a dozen soldiers or so in the battle scene.(He had sought to have a battleaxe provided, which was reportedly Richard's favorite weapon, but apparently no one told the film's armorer that the battleaxe was not supposed to resemble a "toy tomahawk," and a disappointed Olivier was forced to stick to the sword for the battle scene. The battle of Bosworth scene was filmed in Spain against a rather parched background of brown grass and shrubs, not at all resembling the (likely) green fields and forest landscape of the real battle. Relatively little actual fighting is shown; Olivier, by his own admission, was not an epic battle director. The armies clash briefly, with some half-hearted exchange of blows and arrow-volleys, and then the camera skips back to the main characters. Henry Tudor is depicted flying a dragon banner almost identical to the modern national flag of Wales; this was in fact a banner he designed and carried. There is very little notion of tactics or maneuvers, beyond the arrangement of the armies' battle lines; the armies charge and clash, and eventually we see that Richard has been betrayed as a large contingent of Richard's army switches sides, embracing the men they had just been fighting, and the Tudors receive reinforcements in the form of charging knights. Richard goes into a rage at this, leading a very small cluster of mounted knights into the battle, and after hacking his way through the field in an ill-fated attempt to find and slaughter Henry Tudor, he has his horse shot out from under him, his remaining allies picked off by archers and knifemen, and is himself surrounded by forty or so soldiers and promptly cut to ribbons, bringing the battle to a close. (There is some evidence for this brutal demise - the skeletal remains of Richard III, famously found under a car park in Leicester, were found to show some signs of being repeatedly slashed and stabbed by many blades). After his expiration, Richard's crown is found under a thorn bush, as tradition has long held it was, and is presented to Henry Tudor, who then leads his victorious army off with the carcass of Richard in tow, flung over the back of a horse. Ineffective battle theatrics aside, "Richard III" is fraught with attention to historical detail - detail which Olivier himself displayed an imperishable thirst for. When actor (and heraldry hobbyist) Douglas Wilmer pointed out one day that some of the heraldry on set was incorrect, Olivier immediately sought to correct the issue and eagerly pumped Wilmer for more information as though he were, in Wilmer's words, "drilling for oil."
From battleaxes to heraldry to armor, this film, whatever its faults, displays a thirst for visual historical accuracy not often seen in others of its own time... or since. And Olivier deserves credit for keeping a straight face in that wig.
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AuthorThe Mad Poet Himself: History Lover, Medieval Enthusiast, Amateur Poet and Filmmaker, Folk Musician, and Madman Extraordinaire Archives
December 2023
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