How to ruin a perfect story by adding fantasy

Rating: 4/10 (3 November 2019)

First I have to tell you that I truly love historical drama. I also don't mind if, for the sake of a more thrilling movie and an accelerated pace you take a historical tale and change it in fitting way.
However, this was not done in this movie, on no level. They ruined a perfect historical tale, which had all and could have taken a lot of inspiration from Shakespeare's work. But they just added the spirit of our current time and unnecessary changes which not just ruin the historical accuracy of the movie, but also the authentic atmosphere of Medieval times.
The dialogues were dull, even outright dumb and the language more appropriate for a modern bar than a royal court.
The French were presented as a total caricature of real people. The king was made a peace activist which constantly tried to kill and torture accidentally, while the background story of the father-son conflict and the war with the French became twisted in so many ways it hurts.
Last but not least, what some describe as the climax of the movie: The battle.
Horrible, just horrible. They tell at the start what was supposed to give them a chance, but beside some ridiculous scenes, the whole battle turns out to be some sort of mud wrestling. The true value and importance of the bowmen in the battle of Agincourt, the proper positioning and prepared defences of the English, anything of military facts was either ignored or downplayed in one big mud show.
The king going into battle without support, without body guards and anyone around him, like a modern animated action hero is completely out of the context of any battle at the time.
I'm not just criticising the lack of historical accuracy in every scene, this would be not enough. They really made it a fantasy movie which lacks even the slightest touch of reality.
Talking about the pace and suspense: Did the movie, with all the cobble up of historical and literary themes, make any lasting impression if being seen from a purely action movie perspective? Not at all. The pace was slow, the tension didn't build up and overall it is a forgettable piece of film making.
The 4 stars being deserved by the music, camera job, outfit and acting. Yes, that were all strengths of the movie, but with this pace, dialogues, mingling of the story until it was strangled and nothing worth to talk about left, ruined a great historial theme.
Kenneth Branagh movie lacked the eerie sound and the "dirty medieval feeling" somewhat. Its acting and language was to artificial in a way, since it was based on Shakespeare primarily, but still: It depicted real people, acting like humans do and presented the story in a relatable and historical more accurate way. Branaghs Henry V is on a different level than this piece which could have been great, but was, unfortunately, ruined by bad writing first and directing second.