There’s a new Elizabeth Taylor in town, and it’s Helena Bonham Carter. Months after everyone turned Lindsay Lohan’s stab at Elizabeth Taylor into an internet meme, we now have a new biopic for our viewing pleasure. From the looks of it, this biopic titled Burton & Taylor will be a bit better than Lohan’s Liz & Dick .
Helena Bonham Carter plays Elizabeth Taylor, and going by the promotional image she surprisingly has the look down. Playing her partner Richard Burton is Dominic West, who’s known for his roles on television series’ The Wire , and The Hour .
The made for TV movie will air on BBC Four, which seems to be a tad bit classier than the Lifetime channel, but then again you never know how this one might turn out. All we really have to go on is the trailer that was just released.
Going by the trailer the melodramatics are there, but the acting seems to be up a few notches. The most surprising thing about Burton & Taylo r is how committed Helena Bonham Carter is, even though on inspection she still looks a bit like herself. Despite that the mannerisms of Elizabeth Taylor are all there.
Burton & Taylor is penned by William Ivory of Made In Dagenham , and directed by Richard Laxton, who has the upcoming Effie Gray with Dakota Fanning and Emma Thompson.
Seeing as the film totals at 90-minutes, it leaves open the question on whether or not this film will take place between decades, or just focus on one specific time in Taylor and Burton’s lives. Going by the trailer, which shows many battles inside of a backstage room, we’re betting that it takes place during the time the two thespians starred on Broadway for “Private Lives” in 1983.
If you’re up for another view into Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton’s affairs, Burton & Taylor will air later this year. So far we have no word on when it will come out in the United States.