''King Lear'' is a 1999 adaptation of
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...
's
play of the same name. The film stars
Brian Blessed
Brian Blessed (; born 9 October 1936) is an English actor, presenter, writer and mountaineer.
Blessed is known for portraying PC "Fancy" Smith in ''Z-Cars'', Augustus in the 1976 BBC television production of '' I, Claudius'', King Richard I ...
(who also co-directed the film, along with
Tony Rotherham) in the title role. Apart from
Peter Brook's ''
King Lear
''King Lear'' is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare.
It is based on the mythological Leir of Britain. King Lear, in preparation for his old age, divides his power and land between two of his daughters. He becomes destitute and insane a ...
'' in 1971, it is the only other feature-length film adaptation to preserve Shakespeare's verse. Yvonne Griggs, in ''Shakespeare's King Lear: A close study of the relationship between text and film'' (2009), characterised it as "a very stilted costume drama".
Cast
See also
*
List of historical drama films
References
External links
*
1999 films
British drama films
Films based on King Lear
Films set in England
1990s English-language films
1990s British films
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