Restoration (1995)

I like getting DVD collections of different actors and directors. Restoration (1995) was included in a Hugh Grant collection, and while Grant is in the film, he's in a relatively minor supporting role. This is a Robert Downey, Jr. movie.

But that's fine. Sometimes "forgotten" movies need a little help to be found, and I'm glad it was included in the collection.

So the year is 1662, and Merival (Downey, Jr.) is a doctor. England has just restored the monarchy, and there's also a plague. King Charles II (Sam Neill) has a mistress, but he marries her off to Merival so that she can be close to the King without arousing any suspicion.

Unfortunately, Merival does the only thing in the situation he cannot afford to do: He falls in love with his "wife."

Eventually, Merival has a falling out with Charles II, who takes back the estate he had given him, and Merival has to return to his friend Pearce (David Thewlis) to find a job This leads him to Katharine (Meg Ryan), a patient that he treats and makes better. They fall in love, and she ends up pregnant. Anyway, Merival learns a lot about himself over the course of the events he lives through in the film.

I wasn't sure what to expect in this one, but I enjoyed the acting, and the film scores high in the wardrobe and costuming department.

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