READ THIS FIRST: This is a 12-inch Diameter Laserdisc, which is NOT the same as DVD and cannot be played on a DVD player!

Laserdisc Title: "RESTORATION"
Edition: Letterbox Edition (Single Disc)
Directed By: Michael Hoffman
Starring: Robert Downey, Jr., Sam Neill, Meg Ryan, David Thewlis, Polly Walker
Special Features:---none---
Production / Year: 1994 Miramax Films
Running Time: 118 Minutes / Color
Audio Format: Digital Sound, Dolby Surround, Stereo, CX Encoded
Video Format: LTBX (1.85:1), NTSC, CLV (Extended Play)
Miscellaneous Features: Rated R, Closed Captioned
Distributed By: Image Entertainment
Catalog / Spine Number: 5964AS

Cosmetic Condition:
Disc (s): Excellent - Hardly noticeable to very minor hairline surface swirls, if any
Jacket: Excellent - Normal shelf wear, few creases, slightly worn-out corners or edges but no signs of spines splitting

Synopsis:
An aspiring young doctor, Robert Merivel found himself in the service of King Charles II and saves the life of someone close to the King. Merivel is invited to join the King's court and lives the high life provided to someone of his position. That all changes when Merivel is ordered to marry his King's mistress. The situation becomes worse when Merivel finds himself falling in love with his new wife. Eventually, the King finds out and relieves Merivel of his position and wealth. His fall from grace leaves Merivel where he first started and he rediscovers his love for true medicine.A fantastic premise is utterly blown in this film by director Michael Hoffman and screenwriter Rupert Walters (the two collaborated previously on the winning Some Girls). Robert Downey Jr. plays Robert Merivel, King Charles II's (Sam Neill) spirited young physician in 17th-century England. The king offers to set Merivel up for life in exchange for one small favor: marry the royal mistress (Polly Walker) to provide his highness some cover for his philandering. But Merivel blows it by falling in love with the woman, and he is cast out of his pampered paradise to reinvent himself as a serious man helping victims of the plague beyond the palace's walls. It's a superb notion, and the film looks just terrific, particularly Charles's court, where scientific and artistic innovation flourishes. But somehow the story completely falls apart once Merivel goes on his quest for salvation. The scenes aren't there, the characters are underdeveloped, the drama is clunky. The whole enterprise feels as if an editor tried to salvage a major failure and barely came up with something coherent.I have enjoyed watching this film several times and one of these days I am going to have to read Tremain's novel. I suspect that the screenplay by Rupert Walters is being extremely faithful, but I would also think that Tremain has all sorts of marvelous period details that I would enjoy. Another thing that impresses me about Michael Hoffman's film is that it has Ian McKellen and Meg Ryan in what are essentially small, but pivotal, roles. "Restoration" is a film where you just go along for the ride, enjoy the pretty pictures, and be surprised at the end to discover how far you have come from where you started.

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