Henry the Fifth - The Myth.

Rating: 9/10 (2 November 2019)

Wow! This is a brave and controversial movie. It takes Shakespeare's Henry IV (in part), Henry V (in part), a pinch (a really tiny pinch) of history and throws it all into a pot. The pot is shaken vigourously and out comes Henry V: The Myth. The timeline is messier than Bohemian Rhapsody - and that was a mess - and the screenplay plays hard and loose with the truth, but the end result is so captivating and so utterly entertaining that I could not help but love it - once I had realised that it had no basis in fact but for a couple of names.
Written by Joel Edgerton and David Michôd, the director, they throw history and the truth out of the window and just go for pure, sincere entertainment. Edgerton, bravely or foolishly, even takes on the icon that is Sir John Falstaff and is triumphant, giving Falstaff the role of glue between king and commoners. His accent wanders and is not historically accurate, but I really didn't care - this was no Russel Crowe as Robin Hood via the Beatles, George Best and Jim Bowen. The performances are, without exception, spot on, but credit goes to Sean Harris as William, Chief Justice (a role inflated greatly from the original) who plays the role with powerful understatement and innate menace, much in the mode of Mark Rylance as Cromwell in Wolfe Hall. It is, dare I say it, almost Oscar-worthy. Also worth noting is Robert Pattinson in his scene-stealing cameo as the Dauphin. He is perfectly accented and suitably cyclothymic in the role and adds a tremendous amount to what could have been a throwaway role. The screenplay did, of course, allow for this, but he really takes it to another level.
I think this is the important lesson to be taken from the film. It is very much a team effort. Nobody hogs the limelight, nobody's ego is on show. The director has presented an ensemble piece that is both intimate and epic. The music provides a sturdy emotional core. The camerawork is as good as it gets. The costumes and production values are given full reign.
I don't like to give films a high score generally because it raises expectations and can lead to an equally strong counter-feeling, but in this case, I will take the risk.
Great film. I think I might buy the Blu-ray when it appears, it's that good.