Shakespeare "King Lear"- (1997 TV-Ian Holm), Act 1, scene 1

[Joelandez]

Very powerful performance, bravo, bravo.

"Item, qe nul soit si hardy de crier havok sur peine davoir la test coupe."

[ricardogutierrezable]

where is scene 2

[Nelsonhojax15]

Kent is the magistrate from Braveheart!

[TheOrthodoxSteven]

Ian Holm is an absolutely brilliant actor! A true master.

[ntherewas1]

well that kiss at the beginning was a little creepy

[Whovian69uk]

This King Lear version didn't fall into the recent trap of 'updating' or 'modernising' a great story. This fantastic version of a literary master work was flawlessly portrayed and a must see for all, not just fans of shakespeare.Thank you so much for uploading. You are a star.

[Artvy1]

A genious creation of Shakespeare,

Played by the actors so ingeniously bright!

[dylanbonnar]

Shakespeare is so right about parents, and making children feel ''obligated'' towards them. There is such truth in every one of his plays.

[JohnCurry1]

Victoria Hamilton shines.

[jccusell]

I love shakespeare. It's like listen to English, 'xcept you cant understand have of what is being said.

[bridgetlear2009]

I am Princess Lear. LOL! 19 year old brat, youngest of 3, I have a sister and brother.

[BandWagon1987]

@bridgetlear2009 Cordelia had two sisters, no brother. :)

[bridgetlear2009]

my dad is known far and wide as "King Lear" of Maine. lol yes my last name really is Lear!

[dgolumolu]

man i had to do the damn play at skool and bloody made a mess of the fr8 role of Lear

[classicalsasha]

I love this Cordelia!!!

[swannavon]

@classicalsasha Me, too. Victoria Hamilton is an awesome Cordelia.

[Chikin1ninjas]

Hey look! It's David Burke as Kent! He played Watson in the Sherlock Holmes series from the 80's.

[TheJay9002]

@PhilMann93 the sexual tension between king lear and his two daughters??? wtf?

[swannavon]

@TheJay9002 What sexual tension?

[swannavon]

@PhilMann93 What sexual tension?

[Teezer44]

He is looks too young to play King Lear. The whole reason why Lear abdicates his thrown is because he is old and is aware that death is near. He needs to be old and pathetic for the play to work. I am not convinced by this portrayal though he is a good actor. Paul Scofield is the best one.

[Montyleeny14]

The black guy ruined the play.

[conewells]

Not exactly TEVYE'S DAUGHTERS, are they?

[ponyfaces]

Where's the rest of this production?

[CitizenAngel]

For a supposedly wise and noble King Lear is incredibly immature, unreasonable and narrow minded not to mention stubborn. Basicly you can't help but feel he dserves what happens to him for so being so bloody minded and not listening to his daughter and Kent, a man who was one of his more faithful trusted friends who ended up punished only for trying to make his King see sense. He eventually learns the error of his ways but by that time It's too late!

[shackdoctor]

honesty is not the best policy :( .

[Pacinofan78]

Damn, Cordelia got ass!

[SangaJanga]

isn't that obama?

[RJdrumguy]

lol! looks like star wars...

[Kristophirst]

Olivier is the only true Lear.

[chino933]

WHERE THE HELL IS SCENE 2

from act 1

[Silversgrl]

Holm is...amazing. And what a treat to see David Burke as Kent! Their interaction was like a well-oiled tennis match. Great pacing and tension.

[polymath7]

@Silversgrl

A well oiled-tennis match? Swing soft your racket lest it may mix thy metaphors.

Or is it nobler in the mind to take up a wrench against a volley of troubles?

Just ribbing you; I mostly agree.

This performance, thouh certainly not perfect in my estimation, is certainly good enough that I'm watching it again.

But I'd have preferred to see Olivier's version. He plays Holm such a match as to strike his crown into the hazard.

[Jenzasan]

INCEST INCEST INCEST!!!!!!!!

[polymath7]

The actor playing Kent has a few more years years on his back than forty-eight.

[CambridgeLSD]

aaah i hated this when i just started doing my coursework about LOVE in "King Lear" :D But as i watched this scene over and over again I found it being rather brilliant and the actors being stunning. This is the most emotional piece of all movies I watched. But of course nothing can compare to Madagascar :D okok, joking. My actual reaction to the play ended up being speechless. Great work. Great scenery. Great author, great director.

[SolacePiano]

if it wasn`t for the title, with a few fancy badges, that could be a scene straight from star trek!

[priapus56]

Ian Holm..what a great actor. I have on tape a production of Othello in which he plays the best Iago I have ever heard..

[JessieBullen]

what did she say that made him angry??

[Devalera23]

@JessieBullen she didnt flatter him like her sisters she just said that she loves him and that if she got married she couldnt possible give all her love to her him half of that love must go to her huspand

[priapus56]

@JessieBullen ..."Nothing."

[deyoungparker]

"Mend your speech a little, lest it may mar your fortunes."

The mantra of ad copywriters everywhere.

[BarnabasFrid]

I love me some David Burke!

[rollingklouds]

Regan and Goneril should have looked happy and sly when Cordelia was being deprived of everything...

Not very good acting on their part.

[Jordanmode]

I disagree. I think that would be a poor reaction considering the situation, and a blatant one. Regan and Goneril aren't mere vaudevillian, black-clad villains who twirl their mustaches and snicker at peoples' misfortune. Never in my mind, anyway. They're far more multi-dimensional than that. Subtlety in this scene works better for me than such obvious deviousness.

[Barramonm]

@rollingklouds

I think they're going for subtlety.

[MrYpres]

act 1 scene 1 line 226

does any one know the meaning of oily art?

[kjdob]

She is talking about lear

[MrYpres]

cordilia is talking" to ""lear and says

i yet beseech your majesty, if for i want that glib and oily art, i have to research a poem and uses that referance. i need the meaning ,and cant find it untill i go to school tomorrow,

[tsushima91]

@ MrYpres,

the "glib and oily art" is referring to Goneril and Regan's deception. She is making a distinction between her and her sisters: that she does not possess a bile, "glib" countenance, as she loves Lear "according to [her] bond".

[priapus56]

@tsushima91 How embarrassing to see an intelligent Japanese Lady explain Shakespeare to an English moron...or should I say "Rude Mechanical."

[MrYpres]

no scene 2?

[anonymice14]

Cordelia looks like Carrie. o.o

[ilovehellokitty92]

cordelia looks familiar

[DarthSlayden]

im sorry wtf are they wearing, too modern like

[lethe56]

I guess YOU don't like them because they look like Jedi knights...

[powerhouseyo]

this is stunning

[MrYpres]

how do actors shed tears on command like that>?

[priapus56]

@MrYpres ...Most women can do it with ease....

[MrYpres]

@priapus, that's funny

[mycheesedguitar]

WOW that was freaking brilliant.

I LOVE Shakespear just because of this play...and DAMNN this interpretation is REALLY good lol. I watched th Brian Blessed production, but this is so much better played out....

BRILLIANT

[musicaldudepeter]

What about the 2007 RSC Nunn production. Personally, I think this is the greatest version. This version on this clip has no interesting set or costume. Watch the RSC version, it's full of vibrance and colour. And Gould's 2009 version is obscure to say the least. However, Lear in the 70s is interesting. Goneril is pregnant and Regan sucks out Gloucester's eye. Thanks for the vid all the same!

[MagicEmperor]

Because costumes are the best elements of the play, instead of acting!

[markleonard07]

0:46

[achiappa]

I wish we could watch the whole play... This is great!

[JashuganZ]

Absolute perfection. I praise no other King Lear than Ian Holm.

[twags32689]

i totally agree, Holm is such an underrated actor... he's utterly brilliant

[polymath7]

I'm not sure I agree; he seems to miss a good deal of Shakespeare's ironic worplay.

For example, at 5:05: "By Jupiter this shall not be revoked" -stress should be placed on "this", for this line is a mocking allusion to Kent's "revoke thy doom" at 4:06.

Also, to my mind he doesn't strike the right admixture of wounded bemusement upon hearing Cordelia's "Nothing". Indeed, he sounds almost mirthful when he delivers the line, "Mend thy speech lest ye mar thy fortunes".

But I'm nit-picking.

[Chikin1ninjas]

@twags32689 I agree! Have you ever heard him play Frodo in the Lord of the Rings Radio Drama? He's EXCELLENT. I imagine him beating up Elijah Wood.

[steerpike66]

Notice how the short Holm leaps on the table to dominate Kent, stamping his foot as he points imperiously at the floor. His power makes him the most imposing person in the room.

[opl1n4]

where can i find the kent attack, "I know you for a knave" remember?

[AJPuk]

Great representation, would it be dubious to say this is the greatest Lear?

[20jazzfunkgreats]

no it wouldn't

[StevieFan85]

Cordelia Looks Like A Pig..Any 1 Know Where To Watch This Play/Film In Full On The Net??

[coryisawake]

OUCH!

[drekecdrekecadrekecu]

essay, yes ;)

[coryisawake]

He's a genius!

[ellenferrier]

What's with the KISS?!?! :O

[SEANMANIA]

Is Lear perpetually drunk ?

All these Shakespearian characters do the dumbest things yet have such deep emotions. It's actually quite hilarious.

[davus0]

because in real life, deep emotions lead to intelligent actions

[polymath7]

@davus0 Huh? Have you ever seen weepy celebrity moms bitching about vaccines on Oprah (unopposed, no less!)?

Then again, it does in fact turn out that some measure emotion is actually indespensible to higher reasoning (see Antonio Da Masio's 'The Feeling of What Happens').

[manthasagittarius]

@davus0 You're being ironic, surely?

[BandWagon1987]

@SEANMANIA That's called being human :)

[llydraven]

Yes! David Burke as Kent. He is the best.

[Lexcea]

wow! Lear was phenomanal!! such great acting!

although i agree that France was a bit weak

[EvilEddtheRed]

Ian Holm is excellent. Sir Ian McKellen made a fine job of it recently, too, and Pete Postlethwaite is playing Lear at the Liverpool Everyman soon.

It seems to be overtaking Hamlet as the percieved greatest Shakespeare play.

[mollynitro]

This has helped me sooo much. I've watched this like 20000 times at school and this is exactly the scene i needed!

I am so over writing my essay.

But this is an amazing appropriation of the play.

Cordelia is perfect and Lear is amazing. His way of portraying his madness is exactly as i view it.

Thanks for this video.

[DrummaGuyTriz]

Hahah ay men to that

I'm sick of writing haha

[Superspyxxx]

it was just the part i needed too, i bet we are all be doing the same essay :-)

[dragonty4]

I have to write an essay on king lear thanks this will help alot

[girlzed]

France is awful. Cordelia is awkward although she's better when she starts speaking after France does. King Lear bugs me. But apart from that, it's OK. :p

[ShinyShinyPlayThing]

The greatest Lear ever. Extraordinary.

[brakpunk]

my 3 1/2 year old is named regan. my husband made the smart move of telling her at the age of 2 that her name means "high queen", in gaelic. start giving her a complex at a young age, right?

[4darin5]

I've seen King Lear, but "Lear" was spelled with two "e"s.

[leontyne2]

Check out "King Lear of the Taxi" on You Tube.

[Flowbee79]

I once saw a later 80s version done by Sir Laurence Olivier (Director and portrayer of Lear). It was set during the very dark ages of Britannia, when Stonehenge might have seen it's current peak. Possibly before the time of Alfred the Great. Very intriguing. I do like this minimalist idea, as well.

[gypocop2]

Is it Possible To View Act 1 Scene 2 and 3 as i cant find them

[fkafka64]

A minimalist setting. Brings the focus on the acting. Great stuff.

[ostattack]

eeeey look!

It´s that Bilbo-guy!

[Flowbee79]

Ian Holm (Bilbo) playing King Lear. Yeah, played a King and then a hobbit. Quite an accomplished, well-rounded actor. He was Cpt. Fluellen in Branagh's Henry V, and Polonius in Zefferilli's Hamlet (Gibson). Also played Mitchell Stevens, the shrewd, cutting lawyer in The Sweet Hereafter.

[ostattack]

I know, impressing guy

[Solitaryhowl]

Thanks for that comment, I never realised he was in so many Shakespeare plays.

[iMiles07]

This is a great aid in understanding King Lear. When read though in Class, I can not grasp the finer details of the plot without refferring to the plot summary, but the actor's expressions and actions make the text come to life.

Thanks for uploading.

[JunkyardQueen]

Thank you for posting this. Interesting Star Wars like wardrobe and fine acting (I think France a little over the top though). I like Goneril, and it's always nice to see dear Dr Watson.

[Anything2bCool]

yeah, at 7:50 he says "this is most STRANGE...she was your ob-JECT!" haha

ob-JECT. Why does he emphasise that syllable?!!

[L0K3]

oh it's the Dr from Eastenders hehehehe

[Lifehouserocks95]

I love this star trek sorta moon spiritual version!

[Nouvil]

notis that bot Burgundy and France come from another country. they are foirengers. this is why ther are negro. no more I belive. just to underline the fact that they are not involved into the "problems of the king-family" and this underline the fact that  Burgundy chose to "enter" in these problems marrying Cordelia. A mixture of human-kinds.

[loveJeremyBrett]

Dr. Watson, nice to see you again. How I wish you had played all granada SH series. (Edward Hardwicked is good too, I love you both:))

[zentropy78]

Cordelia is played quite inappropriately. She's always nervous about her defiance, but the actress isn't portraying that.

[Holtender37]

Im studying this at AS level and it is a fantastic book...ian holme plays a fantastic Lear.

[danprid]

it's a play, not a book.

[dookie4finger]

Nextren, "why is Burgundry a negro?"

1st what decade are you from.

2nd why are you a twat?

[0Methuselah0]

i wonder how many people who have watched this in the last while are hsc students. i make one at least

[lenegan]

Check out my soliolquies; type in lenegan and they will come up. Comments are welcomed!!

[lenegan]

Ian Holm..a truly gifted actor...awesome!

[brayshizzle]

Ian Holm is amazing!Just amazing

[nextren]

Why is Cordelia still hanging around at 6:08? And behind Lear, who seems to accept her presence back there?

And why is Burgundy a Negro?

And why is Lear himself so overwrought? There's the noble anger of a king who is misguided, but this is the snippy lashing out of an actor misjudging his role and going over the top too soon.

[1GodsAdvocate1]

Cordelia is still there because they still have to decide who will accept her, Burgundy or France. And what does Burgundy being a Negro have to do with anything? In the play, it never says "Enter Burgundy (must be played by a white person)"

[Nouvil]

notis that bot Burgundy and France come from another country. they are foirengers. this is why ther are negro. no more I belive. just to underline the fact that they are not involved into the "problems of the king-family" and this underline the fact that Burgundy chose to "enter" in these problems marrying Cordelia. A mixture of human-kinds.

[EbClectic]

aw, a negro. how terrible.

pansy.

[lomarambor]

wow.....i'm just blown away by this version of King Lear!! I'm doing King Lear this semester and this video REALLY helped a lot. Post more!!

[xiangyik]

The acting here is absolutely brilliant. I am touched.