Was there ever a more human king than Henry VIII? “I want son! And if I can’t have a son I’ll get a divorce! And if the Bible doesn’t say what I want I’ll twist it around! And if I can’t get a divorce from the church I’ll make my own church! And if anyone says I’m doing the wrong thing I’ll have their head chopped off! And if my new wife doesn’t give me a son I’ll have her head chopped off too and get a new wife!” This character suits Jonathan Rhys Meyer’s acting style – he’s only really good at spoilt good-looking brats, which is how he plays Henry.
Season 2 covers more familiar ground – the rise of Anne Boleyn, the persecution of Sir Thomas More, Anne’s fall from grace – but it does not disgrace itself in comparison to other great works on this subject. The best episodes are the final ones, when Cromwell tortures all these guys into confessing sleeping with Anne – four executions – then Anne’s killing, which is delayed twice by the slow arrival of the expensive hangman (with Cromwell whining about the bill – this struck me as being very true), her loathsome dad only caring about his own neck. Natalie Dortmer, who I hadn’t been overly impressed with, really steps up and there’s great pay off because they’ve introduced all the characters who are killed during the season, giving their deaths some actual weight (her brother, his gay lover, an assassin).
Sometimes this feels padded, eg there are too many dream sequences (always a sign of trying to get to the end of an episode), and Henry Cavill doesn’t have much to do except pass on messages (I think they kept him on in the show because he’s so spunky). But very strong, gripping drama.
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