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The Lion in Winter
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Anthony Harvey
Produced by	Joseph E. Levine
Written by	James Goldman
Starring	Peter O'Toole Katharine Hepburn Anthony Hopkins John Castle Nigel Terry Timothy Dalton
Music by	John Barry
Cinematography	Douglas Slocombe
Editing by	John Bloom
Distributed by	Avco Embassy Pictures
Release date(s)	October 30, 1968
Running time	134 min.
Country
Language	English
Budget	$10 million
Gross revenue	$22,276,975
Preceded by	Becket (1964)
Followed by	The Lion in Winter (2003)
IMDb profile

The Lion in Winter is a 1968 historical costume drama made by Avco Embassy Pictures, based on the Broadway play by James Goldman. It was directed by Anthony Harvey and produced by Joseph E. Levine from Goldman's adaptation of his own play, The Lion in Winter.

Contents 1 Plot 2 Cast 3 Background and production 4 Trivia 5 Awards and nominations 5.1 Academy Awards 5.1.1 Wins 5.1.2 Nominations 5.2 BAFTA Awards 5.2.1 Wins 5.2.2 Nominations 5.3 Golden Globe Awards 5.3.1 Wins 5.3.2 Nominations 5.4 Other Awards 5.4.1 Wins 6 External links

The film is set during Christmas 1183 at Henry Plantagenet's château (castle) and primary residence in Chinon, Anjou, part of the Angevin Empire in France.

The film opens with the arrival of King Henry II's wife, Eleanor of Aquitaine from prison; the story immediately centres on the conflict and shifting alliances between the estranged couple and their adult sons and heirs to the throne: prince Richard the Lionheart (the future King Richard I of England), Geoffrey Duke of Brittany, and prince John (the future King John I of England). Also present in the château and pursuing their own intrigues with the family are King Philip II of France, the son of Eleanor's ex-husband, and Philip II's half-sister Alais, a daughter of Louis VII of France. Alais was betrothed to Richard, but is in fact Henry II's mistress. In reality, Henry had many mistresses and many illegitimate children. The "Rosamund" mentioned in the film was Henry II's mistress until she died.

The article on the Revolt of 1173-1174 describes the historical events leading up to the fictional events in the film.

• Peter O'Toole as King Henry II
• Katharine Hepburn as Queen Eleanor
• Anthony Hopkins as Richard the Lionheart
• John Castle as Geoffrey
• Nigel Terry as John
• Timothy Dalton as King Philip II
• Jane Merrow as Alais
• Nigel Stock as Caption William Marshall
• Kenneth Ives as Queen Eleanor's guard

The film debuted on October 30, 1968 (December 29, 1968 London premiere).

The film was shot at Ardmore Studios in Bray, County Wicklow, Ireland and on location in Ireland, Wales, and in France at Abbaye de Montmajour, Arles, Château de Tarascon, Tarascon, and Tavasson, Saône-et-Loire.

An interesting aspect of the film was that Hepburn was 61 years old and thus the same age that her character Eleanor of Aquitaine was in 1183, the film's plot year.

Hepburn won an Academy Award for Best Actress for her role. The musical score by John Barry also won an Oscar, as did Goldman's adaptation of his play.

• This was the second time that Peter O'Toole played King Henry II. The first time was in Becket. He received Academy Award nominations for both performances.
• Katharine Hepburn is descended from Eleanor of Aquitaine in numerous lines, from both Eleanor's marriage to Louis VII, King of France, and Eleanor's marriage to Henry II, King of England.
• Timothy Dalton's first film role.
• While filming close-ups of Richard (Anthony Hopkins) in his jousting costume, the horse was spooked and bolted. Hopkins fell off and broke his arm. Filming the scene with his sword raised above his jousting opponent was very difficult due to this.
• Eleanor greets King Philip by telling him that she could have been his mother. This is in fact, true. Eleanor's first husband, Louis VII, later fathered Alais by his second wife and Philip by his third. Eleanor's marriage to Louis was annulled by the Pope when she was unable to bear him sons. She gave Henry five boys, two of whom died before the action of the movie takes place.
• Katharine Hepburn affectionately referred to 'Peter O'Toole (I)' as "pig" during filming. Every day at five o'clock the two would unwind over a cigarette and a glass of white wine.

The film received seven nominations.

• Best Actress - Katharine Hepburn
  • Tied with Barbra Streisand for Funny Girl
• Best Music Score - John Barry
• Best Screenplay - James Goldman

• Best Picture - Martin Poll
• Best Director - Anthony Harvey
• Best Actor - Peter O'Toole
• Best Costume Design - Margaret Furse

• Best Actress - Katharine Hepburn
• Anthony Asquith Award for Film Music - John Barry

• Best Cinematography - Douglas Slocombe
• Best Costume Design - Margaret Furse
• Best Screenplay - James Goldman
• Best Sound Track - Chris Greenham
• Best Supporting Actor - Anthony Hopkins
• UN Award - Anthony Harvey

• Best Motion Picture
• Best Actor - Peter O'Toole

• Best Actress - Katharine Hepburn
• Best Motion Picture Director - Anthony Harvey
• Best Original Score - John Barry
• Best Screenplay - James Goldman
• Best Supporting Actress - Jane Merrow

David di Donatello Awards

• Best Foreign Production - Martin Poll

Directors Guild of America Awards

• Outstanding Directorial Achievement - Anthony Harvey

Laurel Awards

• Female Dramatic Performance - Katharine Hepburn

New York Film Critics Circle Awards

• Best Film

Writers' Guild of Great Britain

• Best British Screenplay - James Goldman

Writers Guild of America

• Best Written American Drama - James Goldman

• The Lion in Winter at the Internet Movie Database
• The Lion in Winter at DVDwolf