A king, Charles II (Neill) rules England again after the Puritan rebellion. When a young doctor named Robert Merivel (Downey) almost accidentally cures the king's ailing spaniel, he is made royal physician to the monarch's canines and begins to enjoy the high life at court. For propriety's sake, Charles orders Merivel to marry the king's favorite mistress, but the young man is NOT to bed her. Unfortunately, the doctor falls in love with his official wife and, betrayed by an effete court artist and hanger-on (Grant), he is cast out of the court. Disgraced and poor again, Merivel rediscovers his love of medicine and works among the poor with his Quaker friend John Pearce (Thewlis), becoming acquainted with and eventually the husband of a desperate Irish woman (Ryan) people take to be mad. This 1995 movie is hugely entertaining and a feast for the eyes, but in spite of great sets, costuming, and acting, is ultimately a lightweight.
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The review of this Movie prepared by David Loftus
