I always thought that it was a travesty that Nigel Hawthorne's The Madness of King George lost the Academy Award to Tom Hanks's Forrest Gump in 1994, but now I know the real travesty: Nigel Davenport wasn't honored with any accolade or nomination for 1979's Prince Regent. Davenport was asked to do far more and he did it far better, for a longer duration, and fifteen years earlier. He endured leeches on his face, wept and screamed in agony when doctors tried to cure him, and climbed into a piano before wetting himself. The second Nigel should have smelled the coffee and realized he didn't stand a chance.
As the title character, Peter Egan was so believable, I felt someone had gone back in time and filmed the real prince. He was regal, privileged, and clearly had grown up inside a little bubble. Self indulgent, self centered, and yet he had deep feelings and managed to still be likable. In one scene, he collapses in tears, and we see that he's a man in grief, not just a prince.
Masterfully written, impeccably acted, and with some of the greatest makeup effects of the decade, Prince Regent is not to be missed. It has a bit of a slow start in the first half hour, but the rest of the eight hours make up for it. Even though we all generally know what happens (poor Nigel is indeed mad and does not reign forever) the plot moves swiftly and holds our interest. It has raised the bar of historical pieces so high, the next one I watch will undoubtedly find itself under censure.
DLM Warning: If you suffer from vertigo or dizzy spells, like my mom does, this movie might not be your friend. At the very end of the first episode, the carriage takes a tumble and the camera tilts for a few seconds, and that will make you sick. In other words, "Don't Look, Mom!"
