The Madness of King George (1994)

Directed by

Nicholas Hytner

Genre

drama film, comedy film, biographical film

Country

United Kingdom

Runtime

1h 49m

Rated

PG-13

Rating

6.8 of 10 from 260 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

King George III goes through a period of mental illness that strains his relationship with his son and threatens the stability of the British monarchy. The film follows his decline and the political maneuvering around the Regency Crisis of 1788.

wittytragicomichistorically-groundedemotionally restrainedstage-likepolitically sharpcharacter-drivendarkly funny

What happens

The Madness of King George is a 1994 British biographical comedy drama film directed by Nicholas Hytner and adapted by Alan Bennett from his own 1991 play The Madness of George III. It tells the true story of George III of Great Britain's deteriorating mental health, and his equally declining relationship with his eldest son, George Prince of Wales, particularly focusing on the period around the Regency Crisis of 1788–89. Two text panels at the end of the film note that the colour of the King's urine suggests that he was suffering from porphyria, adding that the disease is "periodic, unpredictable and hereditary." The Madness of King George won the BAFTA Awards in 1995 for Outstanding British Film and Best Actor in a Leading Role for Nigel Hawthorne, who was also nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor. The film won the Oscar for Best Art Direction and was also nominated for Oscars for Best Supporting Actress for Mirren and Best Adapted Screenplay. Helen Mirren also won the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actress and Hytner was nominated for the Palme d'Or. In 1999, the British Film Institute voted The Madness of King George the 42nd-greatest British film of all time. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

Trailer

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