The Lion in Winter

I stumbled across The Lion in Winter on Turner Classic last week. My dad's often spoken of the movie, and seemed to feel we've watched it together at some point. I usually just nodded, because I was confusing it with The Wind and the Lion, with Candice Bergen and Sean Connery, which we did watch. Suffice to say, if we have watched the former, I've forgotten it.

I came in a bit late, but basically Henry II's (Peter O'Toole) 3 remaining sons, Richard, Geoffry, and John want him to get off the pot and pick an heir. And Henry won't do it. He keeps leading everyone around in circles, acting as though he'll marry off his mistress to Philip II (Timothy Dalton), then letting his wife Eleanor of Aquitaine (Katherine Hepburn) think she can talk him into choosing Richard if she gives up her lands to Henry. But no, he's going to pick John. Or maybe not! Throughout the whole thing, Henry is so damn smug about how clever he's being, when all he really seems to be accomplishing is pissing everyone off. After the wedding thing falls apart, and everyone save Eleanor has stormed out, Henry leans against the steps leading to the altar, and O'Toole does a quite convincing job of portraying a man completely satisfied with himself, that he's the puppet master.

Of course, the end result of all this is I spent the entirety of the movie waiting for someone to kill the ass. Stab him, shoot him with an arrow, roll a cask of wine on him, crack his skull with one of those candelabras, whatever. This never happened, though his sons all did start courting Philip's support behind Henry's back. I did enjoy that scene, the princes all hiding behind tapestries when Henry comes strutting in, and starts trying to outmaneuver Philip. And just as he's busy crowing about how effectively he's learned all of Philip's plans, BAM!, here are all his sons, plotting against him. Even though I assume Philip is supposed to be the bad guy here, it was hard not to laugh at Henry. Especially when he starts in with not having any sons any longer (I thought he was going to have a heart attack during all that), then runs to Eleanor and she basically laughs in his face, reminding him how many other sons he's scattered all over the countryside. What's three more bastards? Also, probably not a good idea to go for sympathy to the lady you've largely cast aside for a younger woman.

Those two were a weird pair. They seem to care for each other, but they can't stop deliberately hurting each other. There's no trust on either side, so every move is regarded with suspicion. Of course, every seemingly gracious gesture is actually designed to get some concession from the recipient, so the lack of trust is apparently justified, but it's sad. That's good acting by Hepburn and O'Toole, I guess, to sell something so tangled up and messy (and melodramatic, very melodramatic).

One thing I must have missed was why Henry didn't like Geoffrey. When Philip tells Henry about Richard's seduction of Philip (which Philip claims he played along with to be able to use as a weapon against Henry someday), well there seemingly goes Richard's chance of getting the throne (and good work by Anthony Hopkins in that scene as Richard, because I couldn't tell whether he was hurt that Philip was telling this secret, or that he never had feelings for Richard at all). So Henry says fine, John gets the throne (which is a poor choice, even ignoring his portrayal in Robin Hood stories, John here seems like he's barely smarter than a waffle), but John was conspiring with Philip first. Geoffrey seems ecstatic, 'cause that just leaves him (even though he was right there with John), and Henry says no. Never Geoffrey, and it has the feeling of something that's been between them for a long time, but I'm not clear on what. Was Geoffrey too much of a schemer, too obvious in his ambition for the throne? Is he not Henry's son?

The Lion in Winter is kind of a slanted title. It conveys a nobility to Henry that his actions here don't demonstrate he merits. Like, it's only once he's older and weaker that his enemies dare challenge him, which kind of frames them all as scavengers and jackals. But he really comes off as more of a bully. He had the whip hand, and he was more than willing to use it. Abuse his power sleep around, blame his wife for not just accepting it and letting him have whatever he wants. The contrast between how he and Philip see Philip's dad was telling. Henry had the upper hand, so Philip's dad's acceptance of that is seen as a good thing, whereas Philip sees it as weakness, which drives at least some of his aggressiveness towards Henry. He wants to redress what he sees as an old wrong, not repeat the failures of his father.

The film basically confirms my opinion that royal families are train wrecks, and monarchies are a thing to be avoided.