Stream It or Skip It: ‘King Lear’ (2018) on Amazon Is A Brisk Run Through Shakespeare’s Epic Tragedy

As an old ruler is struggling with his grip on reality, his most trusted advisors and beloved children turn on him — and battle it out for ultimate power. Sound familiar? That’s because it’s William Shakespeare’s King Lear and it’s been adapted for the umpteenth time for Amazon by the BBC. Will this star-studded version have you shouting “Blow wind!” or will you find it blowing chunks?  

KING LEAR: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?

The Gist: King Lear is a faithful modern adaptation of William Shakespeare’s classic play about an old man losing his grip on everything. That means while the setting and costumes are contemporary, the language is straight up Billy Shakes. (Though, it must be said this is a condensed version of the play so you’ll only get the famous lines, and not all of the juicy soliloquies.)

Need to brush up on your Shakespeare? King Lear (Anthony Hopkins) is an aging ruler of England with three daughters. To avoid a conflict upon his death, he decides to split the kingdom in three smaller pieces, one for each daughter. He asks all of them to make a histrionic declaration of devotion. The ambitious older two, Goneril (Emma Thompson) and Regan (Emily Watson), oblige, but the youngest daughter, Cordelia (Florence Pugh) gets all sassy about how dumb it is. This is a problem for the narcissistic Lear since Cordelia was his favorite. He disowns Cordelia, setting off a chain of events that sours his inner court to him and sets the stage for Goneril and Regan to push the elderly king out. Eventually, the sisters kick their father, suffering from dementia, out

Meanwhile, one of Lear’s most loyal allies, Gloucester (Jim Broadbend), finds himself ruined by his own scheming bastard son, Edmund (John Macmillan). Edmund conspires to turn Gloucester against his legal heir, Edgar (Andrew Scott), and manipulates Goneril and Regan to further his own ends. When Gloucester tries to stop the sisters, Regan and her husband Cornwall (Tobias Menzies) gouge his eyes out and set him outdoors to die.

Then there’s this storm, Lear yells at it, some sad stuff happens, and, well…you don’t want us to spoil all of King Lear, do you???

What Movies Will It Remind You Of?: King Lear is a fancy modern Shakespeare movie in the mold of Kenneth Branagh’s Hamlet and that fascist Richard III with Ian McKellen. However, it also owes a lot to slick political shadows of House of Cards.

Performance Worth Watching: I understand that this is a glossy Shakespeare adaptation with Anthony Hopkins, Emma Thompson, and every other actor in England, but one actor really does steal the show…and it’s Tobias Menzies. The Outlander alum turns the oft-forgotten stooge boy Cornwall into a winking panther, hungry for the kill. Every line of dialogue is syrupy with ambition and he struts through each scene like a dapper assassin. Come for the Remains of the Day reunion, stay for cable TV’s best supporting actor. (Side note: I am now PUMPED for Menzies’ take on Prince Philip in The Crown.)

Memorable Dialogue: Could it be “Nothing will come of nothing”? What about “Thou shouldst not have been old till thou hadst been wise”? Or maybe “My poor fool is hanged”? Like I said, all of the good and famous lines are here!

Single Best Shot: There’s a lot of striking visuals throughout this adaptation, but I’m still haunted by the scene where Gloucester is blinded by Regan and Cornwall. It’s the stuff of horror.

Sex and Skin: There is no sex in King Lear, but we do see Andrew Scott shirtless. The problem there is the Sherlock villain is woefully miscast as Edgar. His shifty impulses give way to over-acting. The worst of it is when he is in the guise of Poor Tom, whom Scott plays like Mr. Peepers from SNL.

Our Take: I’m sad to say I’m torn on this Lear. I’m a hardcore Shakespeare nerd and early footage of the film had me absolutely salivating. The main issue I had was that the film as a whole failed to live up to the promise of each solitary scene. Individual moments are crafted with care, but it comes out feeling kind of…stillborn. Part of this has to do with how quickly the film zips through the dense play, and part of it has to do with one really miscast actor (the aforementioned Scott who never sold me on Edmund and seemed to switch his character’s personality scene-by-scene).

That said, it is an absolute joy to watch Hopkins, Thompson, Menzies, Watson, and Christopher Eccleston chew into Shakespeare. Macmillan and Pugh both hold their own – which is saying something considering the company — but it’s those first five actors who all really rise to the challenge of interpreting Shakespeare with rare feeling and raw humanity. Finally, you know how I said it’s short? IT’S SHORT. This might be the shortest Lear you’ll get.

Our Call: STREAM IT – for Tobias Menzies’s revelatory take on Cornwall of all things.

Watch King Lear (2018) on Amazon