Pleased to get both Parts I & 2, Henry VI on a single DVD, 240 mins - just! - with good quality picture and sound. Viewed both parts at one sitting last night having spent the afternoon genning-up on the trilogy; its narrative of disorder, violence and pathos - a stretch of 49 years, bearing in mind that Henry V died in 1422 when his son was 9 months old and young Henry was later murdered by his Yorkist cousin in 1471. Useful to consult a family chart on the House of Lancaster and the House of York for a sense of context.
An ironic touch as my HD/DVD recording started as the credits for Dad's Army were rolling and the cast were marching with fixed bayonets, a huge contrast with the savagery of hand-to-hand combat in Henry VI!
Of course, Shakespeare uses dramatic licence in the trilogy with a subtext indicating a strong warning of all that ensues when the authority of a rightfully crowned and anointed monarch is challenged - and the consequences when a divided nation dehumanise each other. At its very heart is the human tragedy of a pious but unworldly King and the grim fate that awaits both Henry himself and so many of his countrymen. An astute director, Dominic Cooke, has a firm grip on the trilogy, a first class cast and technical back-up to ensure that the plays exceed the bar level of modern technology to place a firm marker for a fresh approach in direction, clearly indicating a new approach to a wide canvas in classical theatre. I repeat my opening comments, 'downright explosively,tensely good'.
I admired the standard of performance throughout but Benedict Cumberbatch has already reached international star status - thrilling from the first shot when we see a sihouette of him limping into view in an alleyway, to the final shot, in Part II, with a sweaty face covered with his mottled hair, like a growing vine and between we glimpse two eyes spitting fire and malignancy. I've yet to see Antony Sher's, RSC Richard III excelled, or David Warner's radiant saintliness matched as Henry VI, RSC in the 70s, but I've taken Sher's 1985 memoir, Year of the King, off the shelves to digest his comments and details on rehearsing and playing Richard III triumphantly at Stratford and the West End. Ian McKellen, too, at the NT, late 80s. Mr Cumberbatch is on your tails, gentlemen!
An ironic touch as my HD/DVD recording started as the credits for Dad's Army were rolling and the cast were marching with fixed bayonets, a huge contrast with the savagery of hand-to-hand combat in Henry VI!
Of course, Shakespeare uses dramatic licence in the trilogy with a subtext indicating a strong warning of all that ensues when the authority of a rightfully crowned and anointed monarch is challenged - and the consequences when a divided nation dehumanise each other. At its very heart is the human tragedy of a pious but unworldly King and the grim fate that awaits both Henry himself and so many of his countrymen. An astute director, Dominic Cooke, has a firm grip on the trilogy, a first class cast and technical back-up to ensure that the plays exceed the bar level of modern technology to place a firm marker for a fresh approach in direction, clearly indicating a new approach to a wide canvas in classical theatre. I repeat my opening comments, 'downright explosively,tensely good'.
I admired the standard of performance throughout but Benedict Cumberbatch has already reached international star status - thrilling from the first shot when we see a sihouette of him limping into view in an alleyway, to the final shot, in Part II, with a sweaty face covered with his mottled hair, like a growing vine and between we glimpse two eyes spitting fire and malignancy. I've yet to see Antony Sher's, RSC Richard III excelled, or David Warner's radiant saintliness matched as Henry VI, RSC in the 70s, but I've taken Sher's 1985 memoir, Year of the King, off the shelves to digest his comments and details on rehearsing and playing Richard III triumphantly at Stratford and the West End. Ian McKellen, too, at the NT, late 80s. Mr Cumberbatch is on your tails, gentlemen!
although I may not be explaining myself well with the word 'Hammy'... Too late to refine the thought now. He just doesn't convince me in the serious stuff. At all.... 
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