Beckett (1964)

Plot: Historical drama based on the conflict between Henry II (Peter O'Toole) and Thomas Becket (Richard Burton).

Pros: Beautifully photographed and full of kingly ostentation and pageantry. Both Burton and O'Toole were justly nominated for academy awards. The script is intelligent and full of witty lines.

Cons: The movie is almost 3 hours and bogs down a little in the 2nd hour. And I wish the film had been more focused on Beckett and less on Henry II. Further, the movie seemed historically inaccurate to me. I doubt English kings ran around raping peasant women or forcing Ladies-in-Waiting to sleep with them - there's never been a shortage of women willing to bed the King. And O'Toole is so sad, scared, and irrational and has such a "man-crush" on Beckett, you wonder how he ever ruled as King and whether he was "playing for the other team" Per the history books, Henry II was an intelligent, forceful monarch and a strong, handsome, athletic man. As for Burton, he has trouble playing his characters piety which comes off as cold rigidity. Rating ***