Henry IV Part II (TV 1979)
"The Second Part of King Henry the Fourth, including his death and the coronation of King Henry the Fifth" (original title)

Director:

David Giles

Writer:

William Shakespeare (play)

Stars:

Jon Finch, David Gwillim, Rob Edwards

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jon Finch	...	King Henry the Fourth
David Gwillim	...	Henry, Prince of Wales
Rob Edwards	...	Prince John of Lancaster
Martin Neil	...	Prince Humphrey of Gloucester
Roger Davenport	...	Thomas, Duke of Clarence
Bruce Purchase	...	Earl of Northumberland
David Neal	...	Scroop, Archbishop of York
Michael Miller	...	Lord Mowbray
Richard Bebb	...	Lord Hastings
John Humphry	...	Lord Bardolph
Salvin Stewart	...	Sir John Colville
David Strong	...	Travers
Carl Oatley	...	Morton
Rod Beacham	...	Earl of Warwick
David Buck	...	Earl of Westmoreland

Storyline

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Plot Keywords:

resentment toward friend | sequel | resentment toward mentor | shakespeare's henry iv part two | based on play | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

16 December 1979 (UK)

Also Known As:

Henry IV Part II

Company Credits

Production Co:

British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), Time-Life Television Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

150 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Connections

Version of Falstaff - Chimes at Midnight (1965)

User Reviews

An excellent play and a sound interpretation of it.

The movie has a really good cast that understands its lines and knows how to speak Shakespeare. From the realistic performance of the dying King Henry, to the characteristically bumbling Falstaff, to the brave and valiant Prince Hal, I thoroughly enjoyed their performances.

This version is surprisingly good as a stand-alone movie - although it is based completely on the play (a third part out of four), it manages to give the viewer an understanding of what was before it and what is to come. It helps to know the background or have read the play, but I didn't find it necessary to read along to their lines in order to understand what was happening.

I most enjoyed the scene of the death of the King and least enjoyed the idiotic messing around of Falstaff - but I have to give credit to the director; those were the very feelings I had about the play. Overall, it manages to be more than a decent interpretation of Shakespeare and a good way to spend two hours of your time.

The DVD, though, is not so great: the sound is pretty bad, the chapters are arranged annoyingly, and it occasionally flickers (not due to my player). I recommend watching the VHS, an inherently inferior format though it mostly is.