The Private Life of Henry VIII. (1933)

Director:

Alexander Korda

Writers:

Lajos Biró (story) and
Lajos Biró (dialogue)

Release Date:

21 September 1933 (USA)

Genre:

Biography | Drama | History

Tagline:

HE GAVE HIS WIVES A PAIN IN THE NECK And did his necking with an axe. Henry, the Eighth Wonder of the World! And this picture...the wonder of all time!

Plot:

Tells how King Henry VIII came to marry five more times after his divorce from his first wife.

Plot Keywords:

King Henry VIII | Anne Boleyn | Beautiful Woman | 1540s | 16th Century

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 1 nomination

Cast

Charles Laughton	...	King Henry VIII
Robert Donat	...	Thomas Culpeper
Franklin Dyall	...	Thomas Cromwell
Miles Mander	...	Wriothesley
Laurence Hanray	...	Archbishop Thomas Cranmer (as Lawrence Hanray)
William Austin	...	Duke of Cleves
John Loder	...	Thomas Peynell
Claud Allister	...	Cornell (as Claude Allister)
Gibb McLaughlin	...	The French executioner
Sam Livesey	...	The English executioner
Merle Oberon	...	Anne Boleyn
Wendy Barrie	...	Jane Seymour
Elsa Lanchester	...	Anne of Cleves
Binnie Barnes	...	Katherine Howard
Everley Gregg	...	Katherine Parr

Runtime:

USA:97 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System Noiseless Recording)

Certification:

Australia:PG | West Germany:16 | Sweden:15 | UK:A

Filming Locations:

British and Dominions Studios, Elstree, Hertfordshire, England, UK

Company:

London Film Productions

Trivia:

Elsa Lanchester, playing Anne of Cleves, refers to Henry VIII, as a "Bluebeard" however the 1st historical mention of Bluebeard dates to 1697, 150 years after the rule of Henry VIII ended.

Quotes:

Thomas Culpeper: I never should have come, Kate. We can't go on like this.
Katherine Howard: I know, it's dreadful, seeing each other every day and never being alone together...
Thomas Culpeper: Oh, it's not that, it's... it's being torn in half between you and the King.
Katherine Howard: But, Tom, we belong to each other!
Thomas Culpeper: No. We belong to him.

Movie Connections:

Featured in The Ultimate Film (2004) (TV)

Charles Laughton as the Tudor king

Alexander Korda's film about Henry VIII was a worthy Oscar winner - the first time a British film was so recognised. Seen now it is a dated piece of work but Charles Laughton has the heart and soul of the king down to perfection - grumbling, belching, ripping meat of the bones with his bare hands, leering at the women of his court, and - when the situation allows it - giving the part a fair amount of pathos.

Oddly, the film begins with the execution of Anne Boleyn (Merle Oberon). We don't see the first wife, Katherine of Aragon, at all. Wendy Barrie is Jane Seymour, the one true love of Henry's life - for her he changed his initialled monogram from an entwined H and A (for Anne) to H and J. Catherine Howard is played by Binnie Barnes - she's a bit too flighty for my liking and not an accurate reading of Catherine as history renders her. Robert Donat has a thankless part as Culpeper, who Catherine sets her sights on. And as Catherine Parr, the last Queen to Henry and the one to outlast him, Everley Gregg is amusing and touching.

The scene-stealer as usual though is the real-life Mrs Laughton, Elsa Lanchester, playing the plain, card-dealing, Anne of Cleves. She puts this part across with little effort, wheedling money from her new husband in lieu of the expected fruits of their wedding night. These scenes are a great source of comedy as the two pros play off each other.

'The Private Life of Henry VIII' is a good play, and just when you think you know how the part is going to go, it surprises you as all good acting should. Laughton would do other good work for Korda (including Rembrandt a few years later) but this is one of his best remembered roles for British cinema.