The Madness of King George

Synopsis: A meditation on power and the metaphor of the body of state, based on the real episode of dementia experienced by George III [now suspected a victim of porphyria, a blood disorder]. As he loses his senses, he becomes both more alive and more politically marginalized; neither effect desirable to his lieutenants, who jimmy the rules to avoid a challenge to regal authority, raising the question of who is really in charge.
Director(s): Nicholas Hytner
Production: MGM
  Won 1 Oscar. Another 15 wins & 18 nominations.
 
IMDB:
7.2
Metacritic:
89
Rotten Tomatoes:
93%
PG-13
Year:
1994
110 min
1,899 Views


(Child) Give it me!

Amelia.

Captain Greville, ma'am...

His Majesty's new equerry.

Captain Fitzroy?

Uh...

Could you show me...

Oh, God. Come on, Pa.

What's that one, Fred?

I discovered the other day

I'm...I'm bishop of Osnabruck.

Amazing what one is, really.

George!

Crown.

Your Majesty.

Ah, Lord Chancellor.

God, this place is as cold

as a greyhound's nostril.

Lord Chancellor.

(Crying)

(Crying)

Papa!

Ahem.

Papa, Papa!

Lift me up!

Oh, hey. What's this, madam?

Hey? Ha ha ha.

Tickle, tickle.

Yeah. Ha ha ha.

Right.

The son is unwholesome.

And fatter, always fatter.

Fatter because he's not doing,

what?

- Do you know England?

- Yes.

Brighton, Bath, yes.

But you know its mills

and manufactories?

Do you know its farms?

Because I do.

Do you know what they call me?

Farmer George.

- Do you know what that is?

- Impertinent, sir?

No, sir. Love!

Affection.

Admiration! You ought

to marry, sir, settle down.

Yes, grow up.

Good plain woman.

That's what you want.

Then the people will love you,

as they love me.

It is not good, this idleness.

That is why you're

getting fat, sir.

Do not be fat, sir. Fight it!

Now who's got

that blasted speech?

Stop! Who's got the speech?

- Here, sire.

- (King) Lord Chancellor.

- Ready?

- Yes.

Well, come on.

Let's get it over with.

The king commands the members

of this honourable House

to attend His Majesty

in the House of Peers.

Do you enjoy all this flummery,

Mr Pitt?

No, Mr Fox.

Do you enjoy anything, Mr Pitt?

A balance sheet, Mr Fox.

I enjoy a good balance sheet.

(King) Whereas we, George III,

in this year of our Lord 1788

do open this Parliament,

giving notice

that our will and pleasure

is that the following bills

shall be laid

before this House...

A bill for the

regulation of trade

with our possessions

in North America.

Ahem.

Our former possessions

in North America.

A bill for...

You see that the king did not

write his own speech, Mr Pitt.

The king will do as he's told,

Mr Fox.

Then why not be rid of him?

If a few ramshackle colonists

in America

can send him packing,

why can't we?

(Equerry)

Petitioners for the king!

Petitions for the king!

Present your petition!

Open the gate!

Stay with the line.

Over there. Petitioners.

(Cheering)

The petitioners, Your Majesty.

Oh. Yes.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

- The knife!

- Seize her!

(Crowd screams)

(Soldier) Hold her, boy!

No. I'm not hurt.

His Majesty is unharmed!

I've a property due to me

from the Crown of England.

The poor creature's mad.

No, no, no.

Do not hurt her.

I am unhurt.

Give me my property, or England

will be drenched in blood.

Will it, indeed, madam?

Well, not with this.

It's a fruit knife.

Wouldn't cut a cabbage.

Oh.

Ah. Who are you, sir?

Oh, this is Captain Greville,

sir, the new equerry.

Well, you are undressed, sir.

Do yourself up, sir.

You're an equerry,

not a scarecrow.

A property due to me

from the Crown.

You murderous fiend!

Thank God I have you yet.

Do not fuss, madam.

The king has no wound,

just a torn waistcoat.

One would consider that

almost as vexing.

(King) What was that?

I was rejoicing, sir,

that you are unharmed.

(Queen) The son rejoices(!)

The Prince of Wales

rejoices. Huh.

Me, too, Pa.

God save the king... and so on.

Your Majesty!

Aha, Mr Pitt. Well, you had

a lucky escape, what, what?

Aye, Your Majesty.

Yes, you.

You're my prime minister.

If anything happened to me,

you'd be out and Mr Fox in.

There's no danger of that, sir.

Right. Back to Windsor.

George!

Smile, you lazy hound.

It's what you're paid for.

Smile and wave. Come on.

Smile and wave.

Everybody, smile and wave.

(Angrily) Smile and wave!

Arthur.

Pa's right.

I am getting fatter.

I don't mind that.

Oh? What do you mind?

That the world thinks

I'm just your mistress.

That's what I mind.

You shall be queen one day...

the whole bag of tricks.

I am determined.

I just don't want to be thought

a Catholic whore.

George...

If you tried harder

to get on with the king,

you could tell him the truth.

And he'd forgive me, hmm?

(Chuckles)

You are a sweet...

silly...

creature.

Try, George.

Ha ha ha!

Come on, boy!

Come on! Come on!

(squealing)

Pigs!

Come on.

(King) I say,

these are fine specimens.

What are they, Tamworths, what?

If it please Your Majesty.

Yes. Oh, yes.

They're a fine breed.

There's plenty

of meat on them, hey?

(King) Big litter.

Show me the youngster.

Yes, that's the one.

Yes, I say. Hey, hey.

You know what you are?

You're a Tamworth.

Are they really?

Well, are they really?

(King) Hah hah hah

hah hah hah hah!

Married yet,

Mr Pitt, what, what?

No, sir.

Got your eye

on anybody, then, hey?

No, sir.

A man should marry.

Yes, yes.

The best thing I ever did.

And children, you see. Children.

Great comfort.

This fellow we're putting in

as a professor at Oxford.

Was his father canon

of Westminster?

I have no idea, sir.

Yes, yes, Phillips.

That's the father.

This is the son.

And the daughter married the

organist at Norwich Cathedral.

Sharpe. Yes, their

son is the painter.

The other son

is a master at Eton,

he married somebody's niece.

Your Majesty's knowledge of

even the lowliest appointments

never ceases to astonish me.

Ha ha.

(Clock chimes)

What's happened to Mr Fox?

Such a dodger.

Reform!

Too many ideas.

Not like you, Mr Pitt.

You don't have ideas.

Ah, well,

you have one very big idea

balancing the books...

and a very good idea

it is to have, too,

and one with which

I absolutely agree.

As I agree with you,

Mr Pitt, on everything.

Apart from the place

we mustn't mention.

The colonies!

They're now called

the United States, sir.

Are they?

Goodness, me.

The United States.

Well, I haven't mentioned them.

I prefer not to,

whatever they're called.

They are a fact, sir.

The vicar of Lichfield!

- Sir.

- The vicar of Lichfield.

It was his niece that married

the second son of the organist

at Norwich Cathedral.

Good night, Mr Pitt.

Good night, Your Majesty.

# Greensleeves #

(Sighs)

(Whispering)

(Giggling)

Fascinating stuff, what, what?

Let's have it again.

(Muffled groans)

Your Majesty, Lady Townsend

wishes to sit down.

Well, certainly not!

What?

Lady Townsend wants to sit down.

What for?

Because she is

five months pregnant.

So? You've had 15 children.

If everybody who is having

a baby wants to sit,

the next thing will be

everybody with gout!

Before long, the place

will look like a Turkish harem,

what, what?

Oh, that's enough.

Thank you, gentlemen.

Thank you.

(Coughing)

(Cough cough)

(Cough cough)

(King) Ah, Greville.

Thank you.

- Yes, that's better, what, what.

- Your Majesty.

You don't look at the king.

Didn't they tell you?

- I forgot, sir.

- Don't.

(Door opens)

That's Lady Pembroke.

Handsome woman, what?

Daughter of the duke

of Marlborough.

Stuff of generals.

Blood of Blenheim.

Husband's an utter rascal.

Eloped in a packet-boat.

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Alan Bennett

Alan Bennett (born 9 May 1934) is an English playwright, screenwriter, actor and author. He was born in Leeds and attended Oxford University where he studied history and performed with the Oxford Revue. He stayed to teach and research medieval history at the university for several years. His collaboration as writer and performer with Dudley Moore, Jonathan Miller and Peter Cook in the satirical revue Beyond the Fringe at the 1960 Edinburgh Festival brought him instant fame. He gave up academia, and turned to writing full-time, his first stage play Forty Years On being produced in 1968. His work includes The Madness of George III and its film adaptation, the series of monologues Talking Heads, play and subsequent film of The History Boys, and popular audio books, including his readings of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Winnie-the-Pooh. more…

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