As another poster stated, it is good to see the Henry plays to gain a greater perspective on Richard III. I have seen quite a few Richards, and this one stands out as the best for matching the historical participants characteristics to those in the quasi-propaganda of the Bard's backstory. As an example, the historical Edward IV was an amoral hedonist as is portrayed here -- not the somewhat daffy old man of the great Cedric Hardwicke in the fifties version. Another thing that appealed was the wooing of Lady Anne with the elimination of the Prince of Wales' corpse in the background, which I always felt was an odd distraction. Also worth noting is the sly tribute to Welles' Chimes At Midnight mud during the battle of Bosworth Field. I love how Cumberbatch changes the emphasis and cadence of Richard's dialogues as well. Only complaint is that I miss the tendency to indulge in a wee bit of ham acting that the Bard lends itself so well to. Even McKellen's fascist version had some nice meaty word chewing. Though Benedict is memorable, who can ever forget Olivier as Richard -- and Richardson as Buckingham? "And has it come to this?"