Nell'Inghilterra del XII secolo Enrico II nomina arcivescovo di Canterbury il suo grande amico Thomas Becket, già suo cancelliere. L'intento è di unire il clero e la corona. I rapporti tra i... Leggi tuttoNell'Inghilterra del XII secolo Enrico II nomina arcivescovo di Canterbury il suo grande amico Thomas Becket, già suo cancelliere. L'intento è di unire il clero e la corona. I rapporti tra i due si guastano: prima la libertà della Chiesa, poi l'amicizia.Nell'Inghilterra del XII secolo Enrico II nomina arcivescovo di Canterbury il suo grande amico Thomas Becket, già suo cancelliere. L'intento è di unire il clero e la corona. I rapporti tra i due si guastano: prima la libertà della Chiesa, poi l'amicizia.
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- 14 vittorie e 23 candidature totali
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- QuizRichard Burton initially turned this movie down because he felt the press would have a field day over the idea of him playing a saint. He also said he would be more suited to playing Henry II.
- BlooperThomas Becket was a Norman (Thomas Bequet), not a Saxon. Jean Anouilh based the play's script on Augustin Thierry's 1825 work "The History of the Conquest of England by the Normans", which presumed that Becket was a Saxon. Anouilh admitted he'd learned the truth after completing the play, but decided to leave it as is because it made for a better story.
- Citazioni
Thomas a Becket: Tonight you can do me the honor of christening my forks.
King Henry II: Forks?
Thomas a Becket: Yes, from Florence. New little invention. It's for pronging meat and carrying it to the mouth. It saves you dirtying your fingers.
King Henry II: But then you dirty the fork.
Thomas a Becket: Yes, but it's washable.
King Henry II: So are your fingers. I don't see the point.
- Versioni alternativeTwo different versions of the closing "A Paramount Release" card exist - one print has these words appear inside the standard Paramount logo of the time superimposed in red, while another has these words as plain text with a small version of a completely different Paramount logo (with a full circle of stars), also in red, beneath them.
- ConnessioniFeatured in Precious Images (1986)
- Colonne sonoreDies Irae
(Medieval Latin Hymn)
When the Archbishop of Canterbury dies, with view to subjugate the mighty Church, Henry picks Becket to be the successor, despite not even being an ordained priest, which proves to be his undoing. As soon as the miter is upon his head and the silver cross in his hand, Becket becomes a thorn in the king's side, opposing him on a point of principle, straining their friendship and putting Becket's life in peril. Henry loves Becket, as he adores no other human being in his life, and it hurts him to the core that Becket chooses honor over their friendship. 'Becket' soon moves from power play to power struggle, a struggle that Henry is not ready to lose.
On the surface, Becket appears to be a humdrum king versus a dignified politician war. But, here, the primary conflict is between the throne of England in its debauchery, and the Church, with its compromised morality. The characters, even while wearing robes of power, stink to highest heaven in every sense. While protected by their power, they freely admit the moral sewer they occupy, and serve their gluttonous appetites with aplomb. Absolute power allows the veneer of quality to drip away, and we can be most thankful for this lack of varnish. Just as the characters' loyalties to one another are called into question, so, too are ours: 'Becket' enters a moral gray area from which it never fully emerges.
Becket crackles with whip-smart dialogue and is anchored by a sharp screenplay that finds resonance even today. Peter Glenville directs with a flamboyant hand, but mostly he lets his two leads have free rein, and the results are glorious. Richard Burton is always at his best when reserved, and this is no exception. Peter O'Toole rips into the script as if he invented the art of acting, and belts out some of the best lines. He has a slithery charm that suddenly erupts into volcanic expulsions of blind fury. His chemistry with Burton is ripe with homo-erotic undercurrents, which O'Toole mines with relish in a hysterical performance, full of cunning, eloquence and mad outbursts.
Years later, Becket remains just as incandescent and relevant!
- sandnair87
- 10 feb 2016
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Dettagli
Botteghino
- Budget
- 3.000.000 USD (previsto)
- Lordo Stati Uniti e Canada
- 149.327 USD
- Fine settimana di apertura Stati Uniti e Canada
- 7.912 USD
- 28 gen 2007
- Lordo in tutto il mondo
- 149.327 USD
- Tempo di esecuzione2 ore 28 minuti
- Colore
- Proporzioni
- 2.35 : 1