Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #2882 in DVD
• Released on: 2002-06-17
• Rating: Parental Guidance
• Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: Anamorphic, PAL, Widescreen
• Original language: English, French
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 131 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
Very few first-time film directors would have been capable of making such a triumphant adaptation of Henry V; but a still-youthful Kenneth Branagh's years of stage experience paid off handsomely and his 1989 version qualifies as a genuine masterpiece, the kind of film that comes along once in a decade. He eschews the theatricality of Laurence Olivier's stirring, fondly remembered 1945 adaptation to establish his own rules: Branagh plays it down and dirty, seeing the Bard's play through revisionist eyes, framing it as an anti-war story in contrast to Olivier's patriotic spectacle. Branagh gives us harsh close-ups of muddied, bloody men, and of himself as Henry, his hardened mouth and wilful eyes revealing much about the personal cost of war. Not that the director-star doesn't provide lighter moments: his scenes introducing the French Princess Katherine (Emma Thompson) trying to learn English quickly from her maid are delightful.

What may be the crowning glory of Branagh's adaptation comes when the dazed leader wanders across the battlefield, not even sure who has won. As King Hal carries a dead boy (a young Christian Bale) over the hacked bodies of both the English and French, a panorama of blood and mud and death greet the viewer as Branagh opens up the scene and Patrick Doyle's rousing hymn "Non nobis, Domine" provides marvellous counterpoint (like the director, the composer was another filmic first-timer). A more potent expression of the price of victory could scarcely be imagined. --Rochelle O'Gorman, Amazon.com

Special Features
16:9 Anamorphic Wide Screen
English
Region 2
Dolby Digital Stereo English
Dolby Digital Stereo
Scene Selection
Trailer
None

Synopsis
Kenneth Branagh makes his directorial debut and also plays the title role in HENRY V, an ambitious film that began a resurgence of interest in films of Shakespeare's plays. Henry is a young king seeking a way to make his mark on history. He gets his chance when he learns he can make a legal claim to the throne of France. He does, and arrives in France with a small army that soon meets with violent resistance from the French. The film follows Henry and his men through the brutality of 15th-century warfare as the ragtag band confronts heavy opposition and their own destinies on a rainy French battlefield. The film expertly balances the thrilling heroics of the battle sequences with the painful and complex reactions of men who are sometimes unsure of the justice of their cause. True to Shakespeare's original text, an unnamed Chorus (Derek Jacobi) appears periodically, filling in details and offering a running commentary on the action. Featuring a cast that includes Ian Holm, Paul Scofield, Judi Dench, Emma Thompson, Robbie Coltrane, Christian Bale and many other screen stars, HENRY V is a rousing, fascinating film about the power of courage and the price of glory.

Customer Reviews

Earthy, touching and real
Branagh's Henry V is very conscious of Olivier before him in the heroic mould. This time the budget does not permit a full scale cavalry charge and armies thousands strong at Harfleur and Agincourt. But then, Shakespeare himself had to represent these battles with fewer resources even than Branagh. In Branagh's case (as in Shakespeare's) the answer was to focus on the inidviduals. He conveys the visceral fear of battle against a superior enemy very well. We are touched by Mistress Quickly's farewell to Falstaff, and Nym/Bardolph/Pistol/Boy's farewell to the Boar's Head to which none will return unchanged. Branagh's production never forgets the gritty reality of personal grief, fear and tragedy (viz the hanging of poor old Bardolph), but still allows us the jingoistic buzz of the Agincourt scorecard 10,000 French to 29 English. Branagh's Henry V is on a much smaller canvas than Olivier's, but Shakespeare's was smaller still. Good job.

The anti-war war film
I adore this film. The acting is outstanding, particularly that of Kenneth Brannagh. The way Brannagh has adapted Shakespeare is a little bit risky, particularly when he imports a bit of another play (Henry IV) to explain how the king has "broken the heart" of Sir John Falstaff - but some explanation had to be made. He also cuts out some other stuff that a 20th century audience might not find very appealing in this King whom Shakespeare wants to practically canonise: like the king's order for all French prisoners' throats to be cut at Agincourt (act IV scene 7). I think the alterations are acceptable. He leaves out one bit of gruesome dialogue I'd rather he had left in, when Henry makes a little speech to the French herald to emphasize the fact that he will not be ransomed and the only profit they'll get out of him are his "joints" (act IV scene 3). He goes on to say that any English corpses left on the field will kill twice over because "the sun shall greet them", they'll rot and choke the air, "killing in replapse of mortality". Neat!
Shakespeare's king is an ambivalent figure, and Brannagh brings this out well, although not in quite the same way as does Shakespeare. I particularly like the scene after the battle, when Henry carries a dead boy off the field, through the scene of carnage where the muddy puddles are red with blood, passing a group of three French princes, one dead, kneeling in a way that refers to a pieta.
Shakespeare/Brannagh's Henry seeks war, but sees it as his duty. The reasons he has for seeing war as his duty relate to a particular kind of naked patriotism that does not appeal to me, but that does not detract from the attractiveness of the character: it gives a sense of "otherness", of time having moved on: and actually you get the feeling that Henry himself has "moved on" by the end of the film. There's a sensitive portrayal of human behaviour in the face of death. And on the eve of Agincourt, Henry has an ethical discussion with some of his soldiers: if soldiers kill on the orders of the king while doubting the justice of his cause, do they stand exempt from blame?
Oh, I do like this film!

Oh, for a muse of fire...
For a first effort at feature-film direction, now-veteran director/writer/actor Kenneth Branagh provided an astonishing introduction to his many talents in filmmaking with his 1989 production, 'Henry V'. There is a gritty realism brought to the screen in this production that combines in dynamic and interesting ways with the Shakespearean dialogue and situations. The battle scenes are some of the best in cinema for depicting the kind of royal and knightly battles. A special commendation goes to cinematographer Kenneth MacMillan, art directors Martin Childs, Norman Dorme, John King, and costume designer Phyllis Dalton for combining elements of stage and screen together to complement the story perfectly without overpowering it. Indeed, the picture won the Oscar for Best Costumes; Branagh was nominated for Best Leading Actor and Best Director. The film and crew were nominated for and won many other awards as well.

One of the problems of Shakespeare on the silver screen is that the situations, settings, and acting often ends up somewhat contrived. That rarely happens here, because of this remarkable team.

The principle writing credit of course goes to William Shakespeare, but as is always the case, the play is recast to make the film medium more natural for the story. Kenneth Branagh is the one credited here, and has shown himself several times after this film as a master of adapting Shakespeare faithfully to the screen.

The play itself is one of Shakespeare's history plays -- remember the broad three categories of Shakespeare: history, drama (some say tragedy), and comedy. Like most of the history plays, there is creative license taken with the actual history, as it is invariably adapted to make the present regime look good, credible and more legitimate. This explains why Richard III in Shakespeare is far more villainous than in actual life; in Henry V, the country had a great and (for the period) uncontroversial hero - the last king of England to be acknowledged the dominant power in Britain and in France, succeeding in unwinnable situations, and, as befits a good historical hero, dies young before he has the chance to destroy his image. The play has always been popular in times of national crisis - see Olivier's production of Henry V during World War II depicting the king as a national saviour against continental foes.

The action of the play and film turns on the legitimacy of Henry's rule in France (an issue still for Elizabethan audiences, as Elizabeth was crowned with supposed rights to France). The French are depicted as haughty and disdainful of the young king (interesting how some things don't change), and the battle lines are drawn. The film here sets the stage for a far more ambiguous justification for war than is often depicted in the play, leaving the viewer wondering if, for all the glory of the battles, was there a real point, or was it legalistic/diplomatic trickery?

There is also the interesting scene with the conspirators against the king, unmasked as the forces are about to depart for France. Cambridge, Scrope and Grey are exposed, but the dialogue and acting hints as a more intimate relationship with Henry V - possibly this references obliquely the rumours of homosexuality, or at least bisexuality, in the historical Henry.

The players are excellent here, from Branagh himself as Henry V, and Brian Blessed his strong right arm Exeter. Paul Scofield (Thomas More in 'A Man for All Seasons') plays the ancient French king, Charles VI, and his son the Dauphin is played by Michael Maloney. This is, on the whole, a rather 'young' film, as Branagh himself was not yet 30 at the time of production, and most of his aides and friends in the play are similarly young, save for a few senior advisors. Emma Thompson, a staple in Branagh's films, plays the only significant female role, the princess Katherine, to whom Henry will be wed. Her part is almost entirely in French. Her maid, Alice, is played by Geraldine McEwan (perhaps best known from 'Mapp & Lucia').

The famous speeches here are preserved; Branagh does a fantastic job with his spirit-raising monologue for the troops prior to the battle of Agincourt, on Crispin Crispian day. The speech on horseback in the early seige of Harfleur, 'once more into the breech!' is also remarkable. The lines delivered by all the actors are done with care and precision - Exeter's report to Henry at the opening ('tennis balls', said with great sneer) and to the French party ('scorn', said with so much scorn the word need not be spoken) are but a few examples of this.

The film expands upon the play's use of Falstaff's companions as a comic relief, by incorporating what would be flash-back scenes from events in the Henry IV play cycle, premonitions of events currently in the play. Robbie Coltrane turns in a good performance as Falstaff; look for Judi Dench in a minor role as the Mistress, and a very young Christian Bale as the boy.

The music for the film is triumphant, foreboding and dark. This is a wonderful score produced by Patrick Doyle, known for work on other Branagh films such as 'Dead Again' and 'Much Ado about Nothing', as well as other films such as 'Indochine' and literature-based films like 'Gosford Park' and 'Great Expectations'.

Derek Jacobi, veteran Shakespearean, portrays 'Chorus', the narrator of the action, one who casts the right spirit from beginning to end, and appears throughout. There are few Shakespearean asides done by the actors here (a few under-the-breath comments that might qualify), but Jacobi's role is always directly to camera, directly to us as the spectators. The ending portrayed by Chorus is both victorious and tragic, much as the cycle of history must be.

This is a glorious film.