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Summary: "Once more unto the breach, dear friends."
Review: Surely there have been times in literature class when you have rolled your eyes at the latest Shakespeare reading assignment. It is true that Shakespeare on the page can be puzzling enough to make you wonder what all the fuss is about. However, when his works are translated to the stage or the screen, you can begin to appreciate the scope and drama of his works. Case in point is Kenneth Branagh's adaptation of "Henry V."Branagh's cinematic version of Henry's exploits is a grungy and savage one. Mixed among the stirring speeches are mounds of dead bodies and faces streaked with dried blood. The battles in this film are uncompromising and raw. Yet amid this chaos, one never loses track of the political intrigue unfolding behind the scenes. That is the triumph of this film - its riveting action sequences organically spring forth from the diplomatic maneuvering that prompted the conflict between England and France. They never feel like bloated Hollywood-esque action sequences tacked on to relieve your boredom. These are battles that have a purpose behind them. This is a film that remains true to the political discourse of its source material and not one that compromises substance in order to maximize its appeal. Branagh is a standout as Henry and he is well supported by a talented ensemble cast. Robbie Coltrane, Christian Bale, Judi Dench, and Paul Scofield are the more recognizable names to mainstream audiences, and Emma Thompson is enchanting as Katherine. The closing scenes of the film between Branagh and Thompson work very well and there is a genuine chemistry between the two. To watch these two performers distinguish themselves so well opposite each other is truly inspiring. To those of you who have dismissed Shakespeare after only sampling his written works, try taking a look at "Henry V." This film might help you develop a newfound appreciation for the man and his works.
Rating: 
Summary: It's the acting
Review: Searching for a simple message in Shakespeare is the pastime of lazy intellectuals and their innocent, impressionable students. Why it would be important that this movie either glorifies or vilifies "war" escapes me. It simply depicts it, in a certain time, place, and method. Feel about it what you will. But this movie is great because of the acting. Every part is filled by amazing and professional actors, not by narcissistic, preening Hollywood weenies. That, along with the language, and the mature themes can be daunting at first, but it's so thoroughly satisfying and transporting.
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Summary: Reconnect with Shakespeare
Review: I used to really dislike reading Shakespeare in school (and say what you will, I still think "Hamlet" is awful). It wasn't until I saw this film -- the first time I'd ever SEEN Shakespeare performed -- that began to understand his greatness. Granted, it's taken me about 10 viewings to fully comprehend all of the nuances of the language, but Kenneth Branagh's adaptation is absolutely outstanding. This is how Shakespeare is to be experienced (at least for me) -- with all the spectacle, realism, and grandeur that truly brings this drama to life. I do regret that there are no special features on this DVD. I would have loved a director's commentary, or perhaps a featurette on the source material. Alas.
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Summary: bare bones dvd edition of spectacular film
Review: Kenneth Branagh's directorial debut sets the bar for Shakespearean adaptations. Branagh as Henry heads a spectacular cast that includes Emma Thompson, Derek Jacobi, Ian Holm, Paul Scofield and Judi Dench. The sets and lighting are wonderful, and Branagh proves to have as perceptive an eye as an ear, with beautiful shots the norm and language rendered so as to be both beautiful and accessible. This adaptation is quite different from Laurence Olivier's interpretation, and they make interesting viewing together. This dvd edition, however, is pitiful and if I didn't adore the film I'd mark it down. One gets a trailer and subtitles available in French or Spanish. That's it.
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Summary: Passionate, Patriotic, Artful, Articulate, Inspiring....
Review: After renting this movie annually for the past several years, I have finally bought it and added it to my travel collection. One of the great things about DVD is that you can skip over parts and repeat some of the really great bits as you have time. There is no single greater rendition of the speech before the battle of Agincourt in the history of performing Shakespeare, and the over-all manner in which Kenneth Branaugh interpreted this role is sheerly out of this world. It moves one in time, in emotion, in perception, it is just the best thing, the highest quality, in the world of theater on DVD. If you don't buy and treasure this DVD, you too will lie abed and weep that you missed the battle of Agincourt. This is a world-class virtual experience not to be overlooked.
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Summary: NOW, THAT'S HOW YOU MAKE A FILM!
Review: Kenneth Branagh's adaptation of "Henry V" is the greatest Shakespearean film ever produced! The recreation of the Battle of Agincourt is exciting and dramatic, while Patrick Doyle's instrumental score is breathtaking. But the movie's crowning achievement is Branagh's exhilirating performance as the English King. This should be a part of any film collection made for serious films. The DVD is bare, but this film surely doesn't need to have tons of extras to be awesome! The movie is great as a whole! Buy this film, and remember it forever! Movie/DVD Grade: A+
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Summary: The way to introduce kids to Shakespeare? Branagh's Henry V!
Review: After seeing Henry V, my son wrote the following review: Long before the English were crazy for Harry Potter, they were crazy for another Harry - Harry the King or, more formally, Henry V. Although he died nearly six hundred years ago, Harry and his "band of brothers" live on in William Shakespeare's play, Henry V. My advice? Get to know Shakespeare (and Harry!) before an English teacher bores you with lectures and expressionless recitations from a textbook. That's no way to meet the famous playwright and the once king of England. Rather, "bestow yourself with speed" to the nearest computer and order Kenneth Branagh's version of Henry V. (You may already know Branagh from his turn as the charming fraud Gilderoy Lockhart in the movie Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.) Forget the Laurence Olivier version, which may be the Henry V your granddad knew, but --- skip it. Unlike Branagh's epic, Olivier's battle scenes seem phony, all of the best lines have been cut or delivered unconvincingly, and we never really get to know Harry the King. But Branagh's movie focuses on the king - his growth from a prince who drinks too much and runs with petty thieves to a fearless leader whose men are outnumbered five to one when they take the field at Agincourt, the scene of a brutal battle for the crown of France. The movie begins a little slowly with Henry's priests advising him what claims he has to the French throne. But by the time the troops depart for the French shores, and Harry exposes three unlikely traitors, the movie picks up the pace, moving swiftly from the exciting scene at Harfleur to the battlefield of Agincourt. Shakespeare penned Henry V nearly four hundred years ago, but his characters reach across the centuries to teach us about leadership and war. Henry V shows us the hardship, pain, and suffering of war, but it also shows us how courageous one must be to fight at all: "We are but warriors for the working day. Our gayness and our gilt are all besmirch'd with rainy marching in the painful field. But by the mass, our hearts are in the trim...." Shakespeare's language isn't easy to understand right away, but trust me: It's not all "thees" and "thous." And the action in this movie rivals that of The Lord of the Rings. Sword fights! Betrayal! Galloping steeds! Boastful Frenchmen! Brave soldiers! Some goofy humor! There's even a princess. "This story shall the good man teach his son."
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Summary: Turning the accomplishment of many years into an hour-glass
Review: There are plenty other reviews which here display enthusiasm, so I may skip the display and go straight to the (more obvious) reasons for my enthusiasm. This is partly simply what is in Shakespeare's text, but in large part Branagh's brilliance as actor/director in setting them off in such dramatic clarity: Derek Jacobi's Chorus ... the opening moment, "O for a Muse of fire!" must be a joint Jacobi/Branagh creation, and then when he throws the lights on to backstage. The fire smoldering in Branagh's voice and eyes when Henry tells Mountjoy, "We are glad the Dauphin is so pleasant with us." The entire scene in which the treachery of Scroop, Grey and Cambridge is exposed; "I will weep for thee; / For this revolt of thine, methinks, is like / Another fall of man." Brian Blessed as Exeter, throughout, but particular when in audience with the King and Dauphin. Both Henry's speeches before Harfleur; "Defy us to our worst: for, as I am a soldier, / A name that in my thoughts becomes me best, / If I begin the battery once again, / I will not leave the half-achieved Harfleur / Till in her ashes she lie buried." Katherine learning English; Emma Thompson is a breath of fresh air in all the war-funk. The grim irony, when Henry must hang Bardolph, of the punning flashback: "When thou art king, do not hang a thief." "No; THOU shalt." "Indeed, my lord, it is a most absolute and excellent horse." The whole Crispian's Day speech, of course ... "We would not die in that man's company / That fears his fellowship to die with us." "I was not angry since I came to France / Until this instant." Henry and Fluellen embracing, and the prefatory discussion of the leek. The reckoning of the fallen after the battle. All the closing scene, but particularly, "Can any of your neighbours tell, Kate?" and "Here comes your father." The whole cast is fabulous, not a weak performance in all the film. And Patrick Doyle's music; always perfectly suited to the action or mood of the scene, and well written. Simon Rattle and CBSO. This is the movie Hollywood wishes it had the talent to make. This is the talent for which Hollywood wishes all its riches might substitute. This is an ancient tale told in a half-strange tongue, which somehow you discover to be your true native language.
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Summary: Truffaut was wrong
Review: Another reviewer said "Francois Truffaut once said that it is impossible to make an anti-war film. He meant, I suppose, that war will always appear glamorous, no matter how realistically it is portrayed. This film certainly proves the truth of Truffaut's remark. Shakespeare lays bare the vain and selfish motives of the combatants; Branagh emphasizes the dirt, discomfort and brutality; yet it all seems glorious in the end." Bzzt. Wrong. Anyone who could leave this film feeling that it's not adamantly anti-war simply doesn't understand it. As virtually every other reviewer has said, the scene in which Henry wades through the carnage of the field at Agincourt fairly shouts that any such battle is a Pyrrhic victory at best: he, the perpetrator of the carnage, is appalled and aghast at what he has wrought. And lest anyone mistake the "We band of brothers" speech as a glorification of war, it is not: it is a moving -- and clearly heartfelt, given what we've seen of Branagh's Henry -- paean to solidarity in the face of insurmountable odds. The only caution I'd give anyone watching that scene is that by the end you'll be heartbroken that you can't follow him wherever he goes. Frills like "The making of..." and the other sorts of additional material that are usually on a DVD would be painting (not gilding) the lily in this case. This film would be worth owning even if it were poorly recorded: sometimes the message is much more than the medium.
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Summary: First Time Hit
Review: This entire film was made up of many "firsts". Among the many is certainly the most notable: this was Branagh's first shot at directing. The most incredible scene in the entire movie is Branagh's portrayal of the St. Crispin's Day speech - extremely moving. The actors Branagh uses are perfect for Shakespearean drama - the voices are rich and simply incredible. Lastly, the music is wonderful. Another first, this was Patrick Doyle's first film score. Doyle, an actor and musician, was on screen in other Branagh films.
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