Rating: 
Summary: Why did i watch this movie?
Review: 2.5+ hours wasted on a film that i heard was supposed to be one of the great works by Elliot. Olivier, whom plays King Lear himself, did a wonderful job playing the part. The only true fall back that made me despise the movie was the way it was done. The actors said their lines as if reading straight from Shakespeares play itself. and while this seemed good at the beginning, i found it VERY hard to stay awake towards the middle and end. If a movie of King Lear is what you are looking for, then i suggest you view the movie "Ran" by Kurosawa. Not only does it follow the King Lear story, but it does a wonderful job of doing so.
Rating:
Summary: Very bad production of a great play.
Review: For a great actor, Olivier makes an awful director...at least in this production. Compared to Kenneth Branagh, and his amazing interpretations of Shakespeare's works, this film is pathetic. From the bad acting, to the sets, this film feels like it was made by a college student with a home video recorder. That this version is acclaimed, is a joke. It is so boring it is unreal, and it is one video that I wish I had never seen.
Rating: 
Summary: King Olivier!
Review: From his earlist roles to his last Laurence Olivier was a consummate actor, the best in my opinion that ever was. His extraordinary talent shines best however in Shakespeare's plays, with his King Lear being the finest I have ever seen. This version is filmed on stage with a great supporting cast that includes Diana Rigg of the "Avengers" as Lear's older daughter Regan, Leo McKern who was Cromwell in "A Man For All Season", and John Hurt playing the Fool. Well scripted and directed, this particular version of King Lear made me addicted to Shakespeare when I saw it on P B S many years ago. Most Shakespeare plays have been poorly done - according to self-aggrandizing wants of the director or someone else. Happily, this is not the case as this production sticks with Shakespeare's script. I only wish all Shakespeare plays were as well done as this. King Lear? King Olivier!
Rating: 
Summary: Powerful
Review: I am not a film critic, but have read a lot of Shakespeare. I remember the first time that I had to watch this film as a teen in college. I covered my eyes when they were about to out Gloucester's eyes and I cried at the end. I rarely cry when I watch movies. So, I don't know about comparing this version to others or about set, but I don't think I would have responded so if the movie hadn't been effectively done. I also found Olivier's acting to be great because it left me ambivalent toward Lear (it made me sense both his greatness and his folly). Now, I am going to make my students watch it in their college class. I'm sure their will be at least one who felt its power like I did.
Rating:
Summary: Maybe Olivier's best performance
Review: I have to disagree with the negative reviews posted above. This is possibly Olivier's best recorded performance, and the bulk of the other performances are excellent as well, particularly that of Diana Rigg. The actors speak their lines so casually and easily that, even if you're not used to Shakespearian dialog, it'll soon all seem perfectly natural. The set is minimalist, true, but if your enjoyment of Shakespeare is dependent upon set design then I recommend you never attend a stage performance. If I have one complaint about this production it's that the actors, while individually turning out great performances, don't appear to be relating to each other very well--as if they're each giving their rendition of their characters without letting their performances be informed by the performances of those around them. Still and all, this is an extremely moving production of one of the most powerful plays in the canon.
Rating:
Summary: King Lear
Review: I saw this movie for the first time 10 years ago and it remains one of my all time favorite movies. Olivier is absolutely perfect as Lear. The entire ensemble is incredible. This movie takes you on an emotional roller coaster and does exactly what a good movie does.. touches you to the soul. It does not have special effects or a seemingly large budget. What is does have is one of the most complete and complex of Shakespeare's plays performed flawlessly...what else do you need???!
Rating:
Summary: Olivier's best work ever.
Review: In this play, Laurence Olivier is King Lear and will always be King Lear. The set work isn't spectatcular, but Shakespeare is the writing and character, and thats what this gives you: Great acting and Shakespeare's greatest work.
Rating:
Summary: "Our darker purpose..."
Review: It is difficult to imagine a better Lear than Laurence Olivier at this stage in his carreer. He had said that he completely identified with Lear by this stage in his life. We see the ruination of an old, but monumentally great man. The DVD notes describe Lear as a man brought down by his excessive pride, but that is wrong. Lear's weakness is his capacity, and his need, for love. He cannot bear that Cordelia may not love him as much as he loves her and it drives him mad. It is a pleasure to watch Olivier beat his head as he curses his daughters as only he can.I don't know of any other comparable production of Lear, unless one counts Kurosawa's Ran. It seems that the art of Shakespearean acting has been lost on the newer guys, so it is a pleasure to watch the old masters of the Royal Shakespeare Company go at it. They make Elizabethan English perfectly lucid to modern audiences. It is a great production.
Rating:
Summary: "Our darker purpose..."
Review: It is difficult to imagine a better Lear than Laurence Olivier at this stage in his carreer. He had said that he completely identified with Lear by this stage in his life. We see the ruination of an old, but monumentally great man. The DVD notes describe Lear as a man brought down by his excessive pride, but that is wrong. Lear's weakness is his capacity, and his need, for love. He cannot bear that Cordelia may not love him as much as he loves her and it drives him mad. It is a pleasure to watch Olivier beat his head as he curses his daughters as only he can. I don't know of any other comparable production of Lear, unless one counts Kurosawa's Ran. It seems that the art of Shakespearean acting has been lost on the newer guys, so it is a pleasure to watch the old masters of the Royal Shakespeare Company go at it. They make Elizabethan English perfectly lucid to modern audiences. It is a great production.
Rating:
Summary: Not the last
Review: It is not the best. Sometimes it is boring, sometimes the scenario doesnt help. Sometimes the actors reactions (including Olivier) look incompatible to the scene. But I think this is much more a hardship inherent to this complex play, wonderful and overwhelming creation of Shakespeare. What I think is that this picture is really good and must be praised.
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