MovieChat Forums > Burton and Taylor (2013) Discussion > Burton and Taylor vs. Liz + Dick

Burton and Taylor vs. Liz + Dick

posted 10 years ago by jdandtex-338-717921
17 replies | jump to latest

After seeing both movies, I would have liked to have seen the better Burton, Grant Bowker from Liz & Dick play opposite the better Taylor, Helena Bonham Carter from Burton and Taylor. And, of course, a better script than the afore movies. We might have something worth watching. Oh, and I read in an interview with Helena BC that she wanted to play Taylor with the beauty mark on the left side of her face. She did not want to presume that she was duplicating Taylor. However, in my humble opinion, she should have played it on the right side.

Leolady Seattle

[–] MsGemini 10 years ago

After seeing both movies, I would have liked to have seen the better Burton, Grant Bowker from Liz & Dick play opposite the better Taylor, Helena Bonham Carter from Burton and Taylor. And, of course, a better script than the afore movies. We might have something worth watching. Oh, and I read in an interview with Helena BC that she wanted to play Taylor with the beauty mark on the left side of her face. She did not want to presume that she was duplicating Taylor. However, in my humble opinion, she should have played it on the right side.

I saw both as well and I definitely agree about the cast swap. Carter's Taylor opposite Bowker's Burton would have been fantastic. Liz: The Elizabeth Taylor Story was pretty entertaining. Angus Macfayden's Burton was my favorite Burton portrayal.

The most powerful weapon on Earth is the human soul on fire.--- Ferdinand Foch

[–] jdandtex-338-717921 10 years ago

Thanks MsGemini for commenting to my post. I think that if the Helena BC and Grant Bowker could have played opposite and a different screenplay, it would have been better all the way around. I agree with you about Angus Macfayden's Burton really is the best that I've seen. Plus, he resembles Richard Burton, unlike the other two. Sherylin Fenn as Elizabeth was pretty good too. If you like Lucille Ball, there is a 2003 TV movie called "Lucy". It starred Rachel York as Lucy and I thought that they had her looking a lot like Lucy, but she really got the voice down. I admire that so much because I think that it's hard to do that. Danny Pino played Desi Arnez. He didn't look much like Desi, not as beefy, but again, nailed the voice. It's on Netflix and I did stream it last year. I don't see that it's on Netflix right now, but it could come back. You sound as if you like to watch movies based on real people and enjoy when the work is done pretty close to the real life person. Again, thanks for commenting and have a great week.

Leolady Seattle

[–] MsGemini 10 years ago

Thanks MsGemini for commenting to my post. I think that if the Helena BC and Grant Bowker could have played opposite and a different screenplay, it would have been better all the way around. I agree with you about Angus Macfayden's Burton really is the best that I've seen. Plus, he resembles Richard Burton, unlike the other two. Sherylin Fenn as Elizabeth was pretty good too. If you like Lucille Ball, there is a 2003 TV movie called "Lucy". It starred Rachel York as Lucy and I thought that they had her looking a lot like Lucy, but she really got the voice down. I admire that so much because I think that it's hard to do that. Danny Pino played Desi Arnez. He didn't look much like Desi, not as beefy, but again, nailed the voice. It's on Netflix and I did stream it last year. I don't see that it's on Netflix right now, but it could come back. You sound as if you like to watch movies based on real people and enjoy when the work is done pretty close to the real life person. Again, thanks for commenting and have a great week.

You're more than welcome, jdandtex-338-717921. Thank you for responding to my comment. Yes, Macfayden totally killed it as Burton he had wonderful mannerisms and I loved his dialogue. I enjoyed Fenn as Taylor, too. Their movie is definitely my favorite. I didn't see the Lucille Ball one. Thanks for the suggestion, but I'm not a fan of her and Desi. I have seen Halle Berry in the Dorothy Dandridge cable tv movie and Leo DiCaprio in the Howard Hughes biopic and really enjoyed them both. Did you see either of those? You're right: I do enjoy a well-done, factual biopic.

The most powerful weapon on Earth is the human soul on fire.--- Ferdinand Foch

[–] jdandtex-338-717921 10 years ago

Hi MsGemini,

It's been awhile, but I have seen Halle Berry as Dorothy Dandridge. She was amazing. She always is. And Leo DiCaprio. How that man has not won an Oscar yet is beyond me because he deserved it for playing Howard Hughes. One of my favorite, if not favorite, actresses is Cate Blanchett. I loved her in "Aviator" too when she played Katherine Hepburn. She deserved the Oscar that she won for that role. Have you seen Daniel Day-Lewis in "Lincoln". I was spellbound with his performance.

Leolady Seattle

[–] MsGemini 10 years ago

Hi MsGemini,

It's been awhile, but I have seen Halle Berry as Dorothy Dandridge. She was amazing. She always is. And Leo DiCaprio. How that man has not won an Oscar yet is beyond me because he deserved it for playing Howard Hughes. One of my favorite, if not favorite, actresses is Cate Blanchett. I loved her in "Aviator" too when she played Katherine Hepburn. She deserved the Oscar that she won for that role. Have you seen Daniel Day-Lewis in "Lincoln". I was spellbound with his performance.

Hey jdandtex-338-717921!

I agree. Berry was fantastic. The fact that DiCaprio has not be awarded an Oscar mystifies me. He was amazing in several roles: The Aviator, The Departed, Django Unchained... Blanchett was excellent as Hepburn. The voice and the mannerisms were perfect. I LOVE Daniel Day-Lewis. No, I haven't seen him in Lincoln yet, but I recently saw him in There Will Be Blood for about the fifth time. Captivating performance. His performance in Lincoln was that good?? I'll have to put that movie at the top of my Netflix queue.

The most powerful weapon on Earth is the human soul on fire.--- Ferdinand Foch

[–] jdandtex-338-717921 10 years ago

Hey MsGemini,

Yes, definitely add "Lincoln" to your queue. It is a long film. It helped me to understand the politics at the time too. Much better than reading about it in school. Daniel D-L, to be cliché, really made Lincoln a real person. Before seeing this, I always felt that Lincoln was a remote person.

Cate B. was wonderful in "Elizabeth". One of my favorite periods of history is the Tudor age. She made Elizabeth a vulnerable young woman who ended up being an extremely strong ruler, with wise advisors. Cate was robbed of that Oscar, but I'm so glad that she won this year.

I just finished streaming "All is Lost" on Netflix. Pretty intense. If you haven't seen it, I recommend it. Robert Redford is the only person in it and carries the movie. I had to stop it a few times just to catch my breath. I also just watched "The Clearing" with him and Helen Mirren. Another good movie. Then there's Helen M. portraying Elizabeth II. Amazing performance. She's another favorite of mine.

So, on a last note, I saw "Guardians of the Galaxy" this past weekend end. If you like movies that don't take themselves seriously, see this one. Funny, action adventure, tugs at the heartstrings and wonderful special effects.

Ok, one more last note. Check out "Undertaking Betty" with Alfred Molina (one of the underrated actors) and Brenda Blethyn. It's a funny Brit (actually Welsh) bit of a dark comedy.

There you go. Hope that I haven't typed your ear off. Have a nice night!

Leolady Seattle

[–] MsGemini 10 years ago

Hey MsGemini,

Yes, definitely add "Lincoln" to your queue. It is a long film. It helped me to understand the politics at the time too. Much better than reading about it in school. Daniel D-L, to be cliché, really made Lincoln a real person. Before seeing this, I always felt that Lincoln was a remote person.

Cate B. was wonderful in "Elizabeth". One of my favorite periods of history is the Tudor age. She made Elizabeth a vulnerable young woman who ended up being an extremely strong ruler, with wise advisors. Cate was robbed of that Oscar, but I'm so glad that she won this year.

I just finished streaming "All is Lost" on Netflix. Pretty intense. If you haven't seen it, I recommend it. Robert Redford is the only person in it and carries the movie. I had to stop it a few times just to catch my breath. I also just watched "The Clearing" with him and Helen Mirren. Another good movie. Then there's Helen M. portraying Elizabeth II. Amazing performance. She's another favorite of mine.

So, on a last note, I saw "Guardians of the Galaxy" this past weekend end. If you like movies that don't take themselves seriously, see this one. Funny, action adventure, tugs at the heartstrings and wonderful special effects.

Ok, one more last note. Check out "Undertaking Betty" with Alfred Molina (one of the underrated actors) and Brenda Blethyn. It's a funny Brit (actually Welsh) bit of a dark comedy.

There you go. Hope that I haven't typed your ear off. Have a nice night!

Hi jdandtex-338-717921,

I remember seeing Blanchett in Elizabeth years ago and being incredibly impressed with her. Hmmmm... Not much of a Robert Redford fan, but I do like intense films so, we'll see. I did add The Clearing to my queue though as I really like Helen Mirren. I saw GotG as well. I thought it was a fun, however I still prefer superhero movies like The Avengers, The new X-Men movies, The Wolverine movies, and Captain America. Undertaking Betty? I'll have to look at a synopsis of that one. Thanks for the suggestions. Have a great day. Oh, on a side note, we have totally veered away from Burton and Taylor! LOL!

The most powerful weapon on Earth is the human soul on fire.--- Ferdinand Foch

[–] jdandtex-338-717921 10 years ago

Hey MsGemini,

Yes, we certainly have strayed from the original topic, but that's what's fun, the change of topic and we get suggestions to boot. I was brought up on movies. I don't see as many these days as I used to. There aren't a lot that piques my interest. I have Netflix and I have been checking some out from the library too. I did see a couple of indies recently that I enjoyed. "Belle" and "Words and Pictures". I also saw Woody Allen's Latest, "Magic in the Moonlight". For me, it's hit or miss with him. This one was a miss in my opinion.

I'm going to be visiting friends next week and I'm taking "Undertaking Betty" and a Canadian indie with me called "Sabah". It was in a way the Islamic version of "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" without all of the laughs, but very charming.

I always end up watching movies the are a few years or decades old. I just watched "The Pumpkin Eater" last night. It is 50 years old. Ann Bancroft was in it and she was one of the best. It was pretty long and I don't know if I would have put up with what her husband was up to.

Have you seen "Cloud"? It came out a couple of years ago. It's really a trip. It's about six different stories going on at the same time, past, present and future.

Well, you have a great evening and keep enjoying those movies!

Leolady

[–] MsGemini 10 years ago

Hey MsGemini,

Yes, we certainly have strayed from the original topic, but that's what's fun, the change of topic and we get suggestions to boot. I was brought up on movies. I don't see as many these days as I used to. There aren't a lot that piques my interest. I have Netflix and I have been checking some out from the library too. I did see a couple of indies recently that I enjoyed. "Belle" and "Words and Pictures". I also saw Woody Allen's Latest, "Magic in the Moonlight". For me, it's hit or miss with him. This one was a miss in my opinion.

I'm going to be visiting friends next week and I'm taking "Undertaking Betty" and a Canadian indie with me called "Sabah". It was in a way the Islamic version of "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" without all of the laughs, but very charming.

I always end up watching movies the are a few years or decades old. I just watched "The Pumpkin Eater" last night. It is 50 years old. Ann Bancroft was in it and she was one of the best. It was pretty long and I don't know if I would have put up with what her husband was up to.

Have you seen "Cloud"? It came out a couple of years ago. It's really a trip. It's about six different stories going on at the same time, past, present and future.

Well, you have a great evening and keep enjoying those movies!

Hey jdandtex-338-717921,

Sorry for the late reply. My IMDb notifications aren't always timely and reliable. I recently saw three foreign films that were really good: Incendies, The Secret In Their Eyes, and Evil (also called Ondskan; a Swedish film--- it was fantastic!).

I'm not a huge Woody Allen fan. He's mostly miss with me. I've given up on him. I've tried to watch half a dozen of his movies, but have only successfully completed two: Vicky Cristina Barcelona and Whatever Works. I don't plan on seeing any more.

I did see Cloud Atlas starring Tom Hanks and Halle Berry sometime last year. Is that what you're talking about? I thought it was pretty engrossing. Speaking of old movies, I saw His Girl Friday the other day for about the 50th time! Great film. I hope you enjoyed your friends and movies.

Sometimes people are beautiful.
Not in looks.
Not in what they say.
Just in what they are.--- Markus Zusak

[–] jdandtex-338-717921 10 years ago

Ola MsGemini,

Yes, I did mean "Cloud Atlas". It's pretty trippy, but I liked it. I was surprised that it wasn't up for a few Oscars.

I only saw one movie last week with my friends. It's an older political thriller, "Enemy of the State" with Will Smith and Gene Hackman. I told them to try "State of Play" with Russell Crowe. I like those kind of movies where you have to keep guessing who did it or why is it being done.

I never had the desire to see "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" when it came out, but saw a clip and thought that I would try it. I'll get it tomorrow from Netflix.

I'm going to a small community theater on Saturday and see "A Midsummer Night's Dream". I saw a couple of productions last years and the do a really good job. There are or 4 or 5 that I want to see this season.

One of the channels that I get is running a Rita Hayworth marathon today and I've watched a couple. I like a lot of the movies from the 30's and 40's. The 40's had the best women's clothing.

Well, until next time! Take care!

Leolady

[–] MsGemini 10 years ago

Hi jdandtex-338-717921!

I saw Enemy and State, but I liked State much more. I really enjoyed, Crowe, Affleck, and Wright.

The original GWTDT was just twisted perfection. Loved it. The remake was good, but if they remake more I won't see them. The original trilogy was just too good. Why settle for less?

I thought RH did a great job in Gilda! I like old movies, too. I've recently discovered Cary Grant and Katherine Hepburn in Bringing Up Baby. Fantastic film!

(in my best Damely British voice) Enjoy your trip to the theatre!

Sometimes people are beautiful.
Not in looks.
Not in what they say.
Just in what they are.~~~ Markus Zusak

[–] jdandtex-338-717921 10 years ago

Hello MsGemini,

Wow, this week has gone by so fast.

"A Midsummer Night's Dream" last Saturday was very good. The woman playing one of the leads is going to be in another play at another theater next month. All of the actors did very well, but this woman was so talented. Her facial expressions and her look was nothing less than stunning. I was actually sitting in front of her mother and brother and did get a chance to meet her after the play. A very sweet person. Her friend was there and she is going to be in the next production, "Dial M for Murder". I've already bought my ticket for next month. In Feb., I'm going to see their version of "The Great Gatsby".

I watched TGWTDT, but I could not get beyond the part where the cat had been mutilated. It just made me mad. I have a cat and scenes like that really bother me. Plus, I just could not feel for any of the characters except for Lisbeth after what was done to her. Well, she got her revenge and I thought in a very interesting way.

I did get a Netflix movie yesterday. It was a movie that I saw like 40 years ago when I was in my late teens. I remember loving it at the time. It's "Love and Pain and the Whole Damn Thing" with the wonderful Maggie Smith. Well, I watched last night and it wasn't as quite as good as I had remembered it.
Does that happen to you too, seeing a movie that you haven't seen for a long time and it's not how you remembered it?

I'm in the middle of streaming "The Duchess". I've seen it before and I'm enjoying it again. I'm not a huge Keira Knightly fan, but she's good in this. Ralph Fiennes does a good job too. He must be because he's such dolt that I would just like to shake some sense into him. Some characters and indeed, some people could use a good shake.

Ola' for now.

Enjoy your day/evening!

Leolady 😅

[–] WarpedRecord 9 years ago

Grant Bowler certainly delivered the only standout performance in performance in the two versions, but both feel very flat underwritten and disappointing considering the history involved here. I gave both films 6/10, but I actually found "Liz & Dick" much more entertaining that "Burton and Taylor," even though neither is particularly good.

I guess I can understand Helena's decision to play Taylor with the beauty mark on the opposite side of her face because she did nothing otherwise to resemble Liz, either physically or emotionally. I expected better from her here, but I didn't get it.

[–] jdandtex-338-717921 9 years ago

Hi WarpedRecord,

I totally agree with you on Grant Bowler's performance. I did think that Helena B-C did capture Liz's voice much better than Lindsey Lohan did. Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton were such mega stars and persona's for their time. I really think that their story deserved better scripts, performances and handlings than two made for TV movies. I did really enjoy 1995's Liz: The Elizabeth Taylor Story with Sherilyn Fenn and Angus Macfadyen. There were by far the best and had the most resemblance, especially Macfadyen.

Thanks for replying and have a Happy New Year!

Leolady Seattle

[–] WarpedRecord 9 years ago

Hello, Leolady:

I shall seek out the 1995 film because it sounds much better than these two, which I suspect were rushed into production, perhaps in competition with each other? Like probably a lot of people, I saw the Lindsay Lohan version based more on lurid curiosity about Lohan rather than Liz. Helena Bonham-Carter is a competent actress, but it didn't seem like she was reaching much in her role as Liz, perhaps because she saw it as a futile effort. She did look gorgeous in the volatile restaurant scene, though.

Happy New Year to you as well. I'm sure if Liz and Dick were still with us, they'd be celebrating in their own inimitable fashion.

[–] jdandtex-338-717921 9 years ago

Hi Again WarpedRecord,

Absolutely, give it a try. I goes into a little more detail of her life and includes her time in Hollywood and her other marriages. It was a 2 part mini series, if I remember right. I just checked Netflix and they don't have it. Amazon wants $28 for a copy and it's a Region 2 which, I believe, is Europe. Too expensive even if it were Region 1. You may find it at your local library. I've found movies at mine that Netflix doesn't offer and I wouldn't want to purchase from Amazon, Ebay, etc.

Good luck and I do hope that you will be able to find a copy.

Leolady Seattle

[–] WarpedRecord 9 years ago

Hi, Leolady:

I'm a major patron of my local public library, which is where I found this film (and that one as well). I shall seek out "Liz: The Elizabeth Taylor Story." I don't see it in their searchable database at the moment, but things pop up at various branches all the time. The library has become my major source of recent movies now that most of my local video stores have closed down, and we have a lot of prime titles: international films, Criterion Collection titles and Warner Archive releases.