Main Cast: Kenneth Branagh, Derek Jacobi, Brian Blessed, Ian Holm, Paul Scofield, Emma Thompson, Robbie Coltrane
Release Year: 1989
Country: UK
Run Time: 138 minutes
MPAA Rating: PG13
Plot
Kenneth Branagh makes his feature film directorial debut with this adaptation of William Shakespeare's Henry V. After the Chorus (Derek Jacobi) introduces the play, young king of England Henry V (Kenneth Branagh) begins an angry dialogue with King Charles of France (Paul Scofield). The king's son, Dauphin (Michael Maloney), insults Henry and the argument escalates into war. In flashback, Henry is seen as a young man drinking in a tavern with Falstaff (Robbie Coltrane), Bardolph (Richard Briers), Nym (Geoffery Hutchings), Pistol (Robert Stephens), and Mistress Quickly (Judi Dench). Meanwhile, Henry and his captain, Fluellen (Ian Holm), assemble an army and invade France. The French greatly outnumber the British troops, yet Henry leads them to victory in the Battle of Agincourt after delivering his famous St. Crispin's Day Speech. Throughout this struggle, Henry also courts Katherine (Emma Thompson) and eventually wins her over. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
Review
A triumphant, audacious film, Henry V marked an auspicious beginning for the career of director and star Kenneth Branagh. Somber, gray, and bearing none of the jingoistic glory of Laurence Olivier's 1944 version, Branagh's Henry is a muddy, bloody affair more interested in the complexities of the king himself than in his historic defeat of the French. As such, the film is largely composed of close-ups of its characters, rather than wide angle shots emphasizing the grandly political scale of the events at hand. The only shot of the latter nature is the remarkable 8-minute tracking sequence that follows a blood- and mud-spattered Henry across the field of Agincourt, carrying a dead boy over his shoulder and picking his way through the countless corpses. Virtuoso tracking shots aside, Henry V's strength rests on Branagh and Company's ability to make a much-told Shakespeare story seem fresh and innovative. What impresses above all else are the film's emotional inlets, from Henry's rousing, poignant St. Crispin's Day speech to Mistress Quickly (the formidable Judi Dench)'s eulogy for the dead Falstaff. A film endowed with both tremendous soul and Branagh's own assurance, Henry V is an exhilarating, sobering experience from beginning to end. ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, All Movie Guide
Michael Maloney - Dauphin; Alec McCowen - Bishop of Ely; Geraldine McEwan - Alice; Simon Shepherd - Duke of Gloucester; James Larkin - Bedford; John Sessions - Capt. MacMorris; Christian Bale - Falstaff's Boy; Michael Williams - Williams; Richard Briers - Lt. Bardolph; Geoffrey Hutchings - Cpl. Nym; Robert Stephens - Ancient Pistol; Judi Dench - Mistress Quickly; Fabian Cartwright - Cambridge; Richard Clifford - Duke of Orleans; Richard Easton - Constable of France; Richard Innocent - Duke of Burgundy; Edward Jewesbury - Sir Thomas Erpingham; Charles Kay - Archbishop of Canterbury; James Simmons - York; Stephen Simms - Scroop; Daniel Webb - Capt. Glower; Jimmy Yuill - Jamy; Patrick Doyle - Court; Christopher Ravenscroft - Mountjoy; Chris Armstrong - Soldier; Nicholas Ferguson - Warwick; Julian Gartside - Bretagne; Nigel Greaves - Duke of Berri; Colin Hurley - Grandpre; Mark Inman - Soldier; David Lloyd Meredith - Governor of Harfleur; David Parfitt - Messenger; Shaun Prendergast - Bates; Jay Villiers - Grey; Tom Whitehouse - Talbot; Calum Yuill - Child; Paul Gregory - Earl of Westmoreland
Credit
Norman Dorme - Art Director, David Parfitt - Associate Producer, Simon Rattle - Conductor, Phyllis Dalton - Costume Designer, Kenneth Branagh - Director, Michael Bradsell - Editor, Stephen Evans - Executive Producer, Patrick Doyle - Composer (Music Score), Simon Rattle - Musical Direction/Supervision, Peter Frampton - Makeup, Tim Harvey - Production Designer, Kenneth MacMillan - Cinematographer, Bruce Sharman - Producer, Ian Wingrove - Special Effects, Vic Armstrong - Stunts, Kenneth Branagh - Screenwriter, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra - Musical Performer, William Shakespeare - Play Author
The film was produced by Bruce Sharman with the British Broadcasting Corporation and Renaissance Films. Whereas the 1940s film used the Elizabethan Globe theatre as a setting in which to introduce the action, the 1989 version used a film set as the background to Chorus's opening speech. The visual and verbal styles of the film are much grittier than the Laurence Olivier film (see: Henry V), particularly with respect to the Battle of Agincourt scenes, which are strongly reminiscent of the battle scenes in the films of Akira Kurosawa, or the Battle of Shrewsbury in Orson Welles's Chimes At Midnight. The film's budget was $9 million.
One of the most surprising roles was that of Mountjoy, the French herald. Although he appears only in a few short scenes (and always wears the same royal-blue garment), he is given several memorable lines. Mountjoy was also named in Olivier's 1944 film and the 1979 BBC television version.
Reception
Henry V received near-universal critical acclaim for Branagh's Oscar-nominated performance and direction, for the accessibility of its Shakespearean language and particularly for its music by first-time composer Patrick Doyle, which was performed by the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and conducted by Simon Rattle.
