The Madness of King George (1994) - film review

In 1788, King George III of Great Britain is almost 30 years into his reign but those closest to him have noticed a sudden deterioration in his state of mind.  He is prone to incessant babbling, hurls obscenities at those who displease him and foists his unwelcome attentions on his queen’s lady-in-waiting.  The king’s son, the Prince of Wales, sees an opportunity to gain power for himself and allies himself with the Leader of the Opposition to get a bill through parliament making him Prince Regent, effectively ending the king’s reign.  Those loyal to the king enlist the services of an unorthodox physician, Dr Willis, who is confident that he can cure the king by subjecting him to a harsh regime of confinement and abstinence.  The stakes are high and events are moving fast.  Unless King George can make a swift and full recovery, he will be history...

Nicholas Hytner’s vibrant screen adaptation of Alan Bennett’s successful stage play The Madness of George III is a lavish production that relates, with a perfectly judged blend of humour and pathos, one of the darker episodes in the history of the British monarchy.  Although the film can hardly fail to impress with its sumptuous visual design, stylish photography and slick mise-en-scène, its emotional impact is almost entirely down to Nigel Hawthorne’s extraordinary central performance as the afflicted monarch.  In a reprise of the role that he played to great acclaim at the National Theatre in London, Hawthorne takes the audience through the entire emotional range, and often you cannot be sure whether to laugh, cry or flich in horror.  Hawthorne established his comedy credentials in the role of Sir Humphrey Appleby in the BBC television series Yes, Minister, but his outstanding turn in The Madness of King George leaves us in no doubt that he had a much greater range and deserves to be rated as one of Britain’s great dramatic actors.  Yes, the film has a stellar supporting cast, with Helen Mirren, Rupert Everett and Ian Holm all giving their best, but this is unequivocally Hawthorne’s film, the highpoint of his distinguished career in film and television.

In a highly promising screen debut, Nicholas Hytner, the stage director of the original play, does an impressive job of transposing Bennett’s dialogue-heavy play from stage to screen.  Not only does he open up the play, showing the wider consequences of King George’s supposed descent into insanity, but he also makes it more visual, allowing the camera to embellish and embolden what is in the script.  The sequences where the king runs amok in Windsor Castle and its environs, pursued by his attendants, provide the most powerfully moving and memorable moments in the film.  The Madness of King George is well-researched and has great educational value, showing on the one hand how little has changed in British parliamentary procedure since the 1780s, whilst presenting medical practices that now appear to look like something from another (very backward) planet.  Evidently, we’ve come a long way since the days when health care professionals glibly assessed a person’s mental well-being by the size of his lavatory deposits.  But isn’t it reassuring to see that today’s career politicians perfectly resemble their 18th century counterparts?  

Alan Bennett’s impeccable screenplay is up to the author’s usual high standard - laden with wit and poignancy whilst skilfully elaborating on the complex characters of the main players in the drama.  Bennett, along with Hawthorne and Mirren, was nominated for an Oscar for his work on the film, but the only Academy Award it picked up on the night was for its set design.  The film fared somewhat better at the BAFTAs, garnering nominations in 14 categories and winning awards for Best Actor (Nigel Hawthorn), Best Make Up and the Alexander Korda Award for Best British Film.  Lovingly crafted, superbly scripted and set ablaze by Nigel Hawthorne’s magnificent tour de force performance, The Madness of King George is a banquet for both the eyes and the soul - unquestionably one of the British film highlights of the 1990s.

© Alex Sullivan 2011

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