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| To Kill a King [Region 2] | ![To Kill a King [Region 2]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51iTagV-fUL._SL500_.jpg)
| Director: Mike Barker
Actors: Tim Roth, Dougray Scott, Olivia Williams, James Bolam, Corin Redgrave
Category: DVD
Buy New: $25.99
New (3) from $25.99
Avg. Customer Rating:  48 reviews
Sales Rank: 153312
Format: Pal
Languages: English (Subtitled), English (Original Language)
Discs: 1
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 7.1 x 5.4 x 0.6
EAN: 5014138039776
ASIN: B0001FYQNQ
Theatrical Release Date: 2003
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
 Roth Good / Movie, Not So Good March 20, 2008
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
Ultimately, this is a very forgetable movie. One of a number of its ilk that have come out in recent years.
I usualy enjoy a movie with Tim Roth in it, but this is sadly not one of them. It is a period costume drama that does very little with what should have been a great historic story. If dramas set in 1600s England are your cup of tea then you could do worse that watch this. But I found myself yearning for it to end. The story seemed to be missing some depth that would draw me in. I would rather watch Rob Roy or even Braveheart over this.
There are almost no bonus features and that was fine with me. I was just happy to eject the disc and put in something more enjoyable.
Roth at his finest March 19, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
The breakdown of the movie is not really needed in a review like this because the editorial does it justice. Basically you have a piece that is reflecting on a specific era in time and that reflection is well done. It earns the label drama, however, and it really wants to be epic in nature. That said, I would certainly say that were it not for Tim Roth I probably would have looked passed this movie because all in all, it was exactly what I expected. It had the set-up, the expected dress, the storyline - all of the things I anticipated just by reading about the movie. The one thing I did not expect was the not-so-run-of-the-mill acting that found its way into the movie.
I was honestly surprised by that - not because I didn't expect a great performance from Roth but because many of these movies start to blur together in my mind after a while.
With regard to a recommendation or not, it depends on how much the description appeals to you. If you want a piece set in a specific timeframe, have a love for these types of movies, and have some inkling of what you are getting into then I would say to try it out. I personally thought this was renting fodder and this isn't really a movie I would have considered if I were just browsing, but I'm not certain I would want it in a collection even if I really found all the descriptors exactly what I needed. Knowing what I know now I would probably rent it and see what I think about it before buying - it made for a good watch and was enjoyable but that alone does not make it an easy sale. For fans of Tim Roth this would be a great pick-up since Roth at the top of his game, and the genre might be appealing enough for people to go out and pick this up.
All in all, I gave it a 3 because I liked it but didn't like it enough to say that it had the rewatchability I crave.
For God's sake, let us sit upon the ground March 18, 2008
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
And tell sad stories of the death of kings.
Richard II, Act iii. Sc. 2.
Oliver Cromwell and Thomas Fairfax led the Puritan revolt against Charles I that resulted in what as known as the Civil Wars. In the mind of Cromwell and his supporters, Charles I led a series of bloody civil wars against the Parliamentary forces that challenged Charles I's right to absolute rule. These civil wars caused the death of approximately 10% of Britain's adult males. It was a bloody time. Eventually, Cromwell and his supporters determined that the only way to end the civil wars was to put Charles I to trial. The trial and subsequent execution of Charles I was a watershed event that left England a republic (albeit only temporarily) and created the legal theory that tyranny was not a right of rulers but a crime against the ruled. The trial destroyed forever the right of kings to act with impunity from justice and the principles established at this trial still exist today and were evident at trials from Nuremberg to Yugoslavia.
"To Kill a King" sets out to tell the story of the trial and execution of King Charles I at the hands of Oliver Cromwell and his republican/Puritan army. However, the film's centerpiece is not, sad to say, the trial of Charles I but, rather, the complex and emotional relationship between Oliver Cromwell and his closest ally, Lord General Thomas Fairfax. The result is a film that, while interesting in its own right, misses the opportunity to explore one of history's most important events.
Director Mike Barker (and his cinematographer) does a commendable job in evoking the horror of the Civil Wars. The opening scene in particular, a scene shot at the end of a battle, gives the viewer a good idea of the devastation and havoc the war had on the English people. Tim Roth, as Oliver Cromwell and Dougray Scott play off against each other very well. Best of friends and comrades at arms Cromwell and Fairfax together secure victory after victory for their armies. As the film opens Fairfax, a great and popular general, was squarely in the republican camp. However, as the puritan revolution took hold Fairfax and his wife (played by Olivia Williams) begin to recoil at the excesses that most revolutions eventually fall prey to. The heart of the film involves the gulf that grows between the two friends as the revolution begins to devour its own. Rupert Everett does an excellent job portraying Charles I. He conveys the host of personality quirks of the king, at once foppish and naive yet also cunning and far from unintelligent, as he tries desperately to find a way out of his rather comfortable house arrest. The trial itself is well done, if played out a bit superficially. The final `estrangement' between Cromwell and Fairfax is probably the strongest part of the film.
All in all this film is worth watching. However, it is worth watching not because it provides any great insights into the Civil War(s) and the trial of Charles I. Rather, it is a decent drama about two friends and their turbulent relationship. The War and Charles I are merely backdrop, even if the backdrop is well thought out and historically accurate.
This is a good film to put in your queue and provides good entertainment if you are in the mood for a lively period piece. The DVD had no `extras' worth mentioning.
Anyone interested in an excellent book on the trial and execution of Charles I would likely enjoy The Tyrannicide Brief: The Story of the Man Who Sent Charles I to the Scaffold .
L. Fleisig
Run of the mill 'costume drama' March 18, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Being a history buff, and one with a particular interest in this period, I was surprised to find this film boring far beyond the norm. The costumes and "sets" were well done - the difficulty was that the actors did little of note in them.
Cromwell, for example, an intriguing if not loveable character in history, comes across here as rather a bored and irritable sort, who expresses emotion by raising an eyebrow. I did not see a genuine hint of the underlying, powerful conflict of the civil war era - tumultuous, violent, but fascinating in itself. One unfamiliar with the period could come away from viewing this film with the impression that it was a time of grumbling between two rivals - with a few bare bums and bosoms here and there just to keep the viewers' interest.
 A litte on the cheesy side but all in all a good movie March 16, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I didn't expect to like this movie. Reading the description it seemed kind of like a purely guy thing- a la "Saving Private Ryan." But it turned out to be a pretty good historical tale of a very turbulent time in English history.
This is the story of the second English civil war between the royalists and the parliament. More specifically it's the tae of Oliver Cromwell and the general of the parliamentary forces, Fairfax. Fairfax's background is royalist, as is his wife, and they have problems reconciling themselves to the new world and lack of power of the king. Soon they betray Cromwell, though they mean well but in the end it is Cromwell who in his lust for power destroys the very goal they were fighting for. A republic.
The costumes and sets are great, the acting is very good and while the script is a little cheesy (and I think compressed in timeline of the real protectorate) all in all this movie is worth watching if you're into history, an anglophile or a particular fan of any of the actors in the movie.
Four stars.
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