Becket
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Posted By:
Kirk Siddals
-
14/03/2007 01:29:42
‘Exhilarating’ The Sunday Telegraph
Nominated for 12 Oscars
‘A wholly engrossing portrayal of the past’ The Radio Times
Second Sight is delighted to announce the release of a wonderful lost masterpiece, Peter Glenville’s fantastic1964 historical epic Becket. Featuring one of cinema’s most legendary pairings in Peter O’Toole (Lawrence of Arabia, Under Milk Wood, Venus) and Richard Burton (Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf, Anthony and Cleopatra, Nineteen Eighty-Four), it has been lovingly restored and will be availableon DVD for worldwide release on 14 May 2007.
Adapted from Jean Anouilh’s (La Mort de Belle, Antigone, A Time for Loving) play, the film concerns the tempestuous yet passionate friendship between King Henry and his friend Thomas Becket. The King appoints his trusted companion Becket to the esteemed position of Archbishop of Canterbury, believing his loyalty will give him control over the church and insulate him from the piety expressed by the rest of the
clergy. However, Becket takes his new duties seriously, an eventuality Henry had not foreseen, and his devotion to God soon brings him into direct conflict with the State and his lifelong friend. Their rift endures prompting Henry’s damning exclamation “Who will rid me of this turbulent priest?” and the Archbishop’s subsequent murder.
Previously unavailable for 20 years Becket has been rediscovered and beautifully restored with the aid of Martin Scorsese’s Film Foundation making this wonderful gem available to own for the first time ever on DVD courtesy of Second Sight. Extras include Peter O’ Toole commentary, interview with editor Anne V. Coates, recent recipient of the BAFTA Fellowship award, interview with composer Laurence Rosenthal, lobby card gallery.
Title: Becket
Release Date: 14 May 2007
RRP: £17.99
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