Henry V (1989) -- film adaptation of Shakespeare's Henry the Fifth

Literary/ Cultural Context Essay

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Adapted from William Shakespeare’s Henry the Fifth. Directed by Kenneth Branagh (1989). Starring Kenneth Branagh, Richard Briers, Robbie Coltrane, Judi Dench, Ian Holm, Derek Jacobi, Paul Scofield, and Emma Thompson. Colour. 130 minutes.

As numerous commentators have observed, Kenneth Branagh’s directorial debut, Henry V, in which he also takes the lead role, inevitably invites comparison with Laurence Olivier’s 1944 film of the play in which he, too, played Henry and made his debut as a film director. Indeed, Branagh’s opening sequence, in which the Chorus speaks while walking through a deserted studio film set, clearly invokes Olivier’s opening in the Globe theatre’…

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Citation: Fraser, Duncan. "Henry V (1989) -- film adaptation of Shakespeare's Henry the Fifth". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 22 November 2017 [https://staging.litencyc.com/php/stopics.php?rec=true&UID=19509, accessed 29 March 2024.]

19509 Henry V (1989) -- film adaptation of Shakespeare's Henry the Fifth 2 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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