‎The Lion in Winter (1968) directed by Anthony Harvey • Reviews, film + cast • Letterboxd

The Lion in Winter

1968 Directed by Anthony Harvey

The most significant reserved seat attraction of the year!

1183 AD: King Henry II's three sons all want to inherit the throne, but he won't commit to a choice. They and his wife variously plot to force him.

Peter O'Toole Katharine Hepburn Anthony Hopkins John Castle Nigel Terry Timothy Dalton Jane Merrow Nigel Stock O.Z. Whitehead Kenneth Ives Kenneth Griffith Henry Woolf Karol Hagar David Griffith

Country

Language

English

history drama

134 mins More details at IMDb TMDb Report this film

Popular reviews

Review by Aaron ★★★★★ 11

Part of Buddy the Elf, What's Your Favorite Color?

“I hope we never die.” “So do I.” “Do you think there’s any chance of it?”

The year was 1969. Nominations for the 1968 Academy Awards were soon to be announced. Naturally, the films leading the Oscar discussion and the nomination field were 2001: A Space Odyssey, Stanley Kubrick’s dazzling venture into the far reaches of space, human evolution, and the future, and Rosemary’s Baby, Roman Polanski’s American debut featuring an oustanding Mia Farrow performance and a memorable exploration of maternal anxiety and paranoia. The two films combined to sweep the ceremony held in March, with 2001 winning Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, Best Film Editing, and Best Cinematography,…
Review by CJ Probst ★★★½ 6

Katherine Hepburn’s voice really annoys the shit out of me. It was always irritating but as she grew older it got worse. It makes me want to stick ice picks in my ears. That’s not to say she isn’t a great actress because she is. But she sounds like a pretentious death rattle.

Peter O’Toole was the star of my favorite film of all time so he gets a free pass for everything he ever did. Even Caligula. I own Caligula on Blu-ray.

Sooooooo, I’m sort of typing this while I’m watching it because it’s preeeeeeetty boring. 2 hours and 14 minutes huh? Pfffffffffffff. Twiddles thumbs. I’ve never written ‘twiddled’ before now. I guessed right. Great cast. 2 great actors…
Review by Florin Stan ★★★★ 11

Based on a play by James Goldman that is fictional but centers around historical facts and characters, The Lion in Winter is a historical drama about King Henry II and his family during Christmas of 1183. Henry (Peter O'Toole) has to decide which of his three sons will inherit the throne: Richard (Anthony Hopkins in his debut), a formidable soldier with a heart made of stone; Geoffrey, a cold and calculated man lacking honor; and John, the youngest and Henry's favorite, a simpleton with no muscles nor brain. Henry allows wife Eleanor (Katharine Hepburn) out of imprisonment for the holiday while King Philip II of France is Henry's guest at the castle.

The movie takes place almost entirely inside or…
Review by Daniel Kibbe ★★★★½ 5

"Power is the only fact"

Ah. A good, old fashioned medieval drama. This is the original game of thrones (without all the incest).

The Lion in Winter is a criminally unseen period drama. It's a master class in acting, presenting an interesting plot filled with memorable characters and one hell of a script. It's a tour-de-force in nearly all it's aspects, whether they be technical or human.

The film takes place during Christmas 1183, King Henry II desires for his youngest son Prince John to inherit his throne, while his estranged wife Queen Eleanor of Aquitaine (whom he keeps locked away) favours their oldest son Prince Richard the Lionheart. Meanwhile, King Philip II of France, Eleanor's ex-husband, has given his…
Review by audreyv ★★★★ 7

if you're one of those people who would DIE without a little good old-fashioned DRAMA in your life, THIS IS A MUST SEE!!!!!!!!!!!!
Fourth April film for 3 Twits and a Brit Movie of the Week Club (Bond actor theme)
Review by ScreeningNotes ★★★★

There are so many great movies like this I still haven't seen that sometimes I feel my frame of reference for judging movies is a bit inadequate. I know the only way to progress forward is to keep doing my best, but occasionally it feels like there's just too much out there for me to wrap my head around it all.

In any case, this brought me back to my college days studying Shakespeare. Definitely feels like a play, and it's a bit slow and long, but the dialogue is just so perfect and snappy and all the characters work phenomenally well. Everyone was cast perfectly. Production design was through the roof. Very classically shot. A real pleasure.

Recent reviews

Review by Nick H. ★★★½

Was this the Oscar Peter O'Toole most deserved? Or was it for Lawrence of Arabia? I enjoyed him more in The Lion in Winter than I did Lawrence of Arabia. I didn't really like Lawrence of Arabia, something which is likely a travesty to say. So take my opinions with a grain of salt I guess.

I remember seeing parts of Charly in grade school, most notably because we read Flowers for Algernon. It was fine, but Cliff Robertson was nowhere near the caliber of work O'Toole put on here.

In other news, is there anything Katharine Hepburn didn't do well? I would watch her buying groceries just to see her perform. I would watch her return clothes to Macy's. I would listen to her cancelling a magazine subscription over the phone.
Review by Cliff Galiher ★★★★½

SAW: at home in HMB, with Mom
Review by Kevin Jones ★★★ 6

25 Films x 4 Decades: 1960s

The year is 1183. Intent on not losing his holdings in Britain and France, King Henry II (Peter O'Toole) begins to plan his succession. Though he favors his immature and frightfully dumb son John (Nigel Terry) to succeed him, his exiled wife Queen Eleanor (Katharine Hepburn) prefers their warlord but gay son Richard (Anthony Hopkins). Neither really like their other son Geoffrey (John Castle) all that much. With both the King and Queen plotting and scheming to get their preferred choice into the role of King, things are destined to spiral out of control. Matters only get worse when the sons begin to plot and scheme as well, rendering this a position that can…
Review by Anthony ★★★★½

my god... i'm exhausted wow lmao
Review by Jack Moulton ★★★★

I have to admit, I expected this to be a major drag but it was thoroughly compelling. Total masterclass in acting - Hepburn wins a well-earned 3rd Oscar and O'Toole meets her match. I'd even argue he's better, and gives the best performance of his career, even over Lawrence.

Pleasantly surprised that this worked for me so well, but I will admit it's a little too dense, and I did find the namedropping hard to follow and certain character turns, but the dry wit of the dialogue made it a modest thrill nevertheless.

I'm in the mood to sink On Golden Pond now. Will have watched 3/4 of Hepburn's Oscar winnings within 3 weeks. Not in a rush to complete the set I must be honest.
Review by Shawn ★★★★★

A film built entirely on the marvelous script by James Goldman. It requires great acting and everyone in the cast does just that, especially O'Toole and Hepburn. The dialogue flows through them beautifully and the scenes they share are special. I love this more and more every time I see it.
Review by Gregory Wood ★★★★½

awesome historical/period pic amazing cast pitch perfect casting
Review by madquark ★★★★

Soberbias actuaciones de Hepburn y O'Toole. Muy teatral. Diálogos fascinantes, llenos de puyas, ironía, dobles sentidos...
Review by lukys ★★★★

A proper dialogue film.