Who Is Branagh's Henry V?

O for a muse of fire that would light up such a dark and passionate adaptation of Shakespeare’s Henry V that could defy every single expectation of its audience! Kenneth Branagh has done it again. It’s hard to believe that this 1989 film was Branagh first experience in directing. The film has a smooth tone that flows well and embodies Branagh’s directorial concept of showing all the implications that war can have. In many ways, Branagh seems to take inspiration from Laurence Olivier’s 1949 version, but he makes his own twits to the text and, instead of having a play within a play, the audience hears this epic story from an omnipresent presence, the chorus, which guides us through the events as if we were experience a dream. Henry V plays the story of Prince Henry, who has just taken over England’s throne after the death of his

His performance is so charged with emotions and twists and it is, honestly, what keeps our attention throughout the movie. His “the king is but a man” speech was my favorite. His Henry was defending himself in the speech, declaring his rights to make mistakes as well, and it makes the conflict between him and the soldiers realistic. Something that Olivier couldn’t quite achieve in his speech. Branagh’s Henry is easier to relate to because we know that he doesn’t like this war. When he carries the boy’s corpse across the field, looking at all of his fallen soldiers, we understand that he truly recognizes these deaths and he wants to make sure that he remembers this moment, what it took to bring peace to his country, for as long as he lives. The scene with Katherine also speaks to us about his intentions. Branagh expressions are open and to the point. We believe that he cares about the princess and wants to convince her to marry him, but, at the same time, he doesn’t want her to be scared of him by being too pushy. He succeeds and we are happy to see