La vida privada de Enrique VIII

Charles Laughton is quite simply one of the best actors to ever grace the earth. EVER. He proves his range once again as he portrays Henry VIII. Now, I've never seen Henry VIII, but I swore I was looking at him. To me, Laughton is that convincing. Compare this confident, powerful character to his 'Ruggles', in "Ruggles of Red Gap". A total wimp. A complete 180. Then there's Capt. Bligh. From sissy to nasty. The freaks: Quasimodo, Dr. Moreau, Nero, et.al. To say this man can play any sort of role is putting it mildly. Name one other actor with more range. I personally can't.

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.

During his reign, Henry the Eighth had six wives. The first of these was Catherine of Aragon but her story is of no particular interest as she was a decent and respectable woman – so Henry only divorced her. However his next wife was a different matter altogether and we join the story on the day of Anne Boleyn is getting her neck ready for the executioner's block. Henry is a boisterous king who, no matter how bad his many marriage experiences, cannot seem to avoid getting married again; as he himself says, 'the things I do for England'!

When I taped this film I had never heard of it but before watching it was told that it was a great moneymaker of the time in the US. I wasn't sure if this was a very historic film or a fun film but the opening credit title made me realize it would be a sort of humorous historical piece – it is practically the sort of title card that appears before many Laurel & Hardy shorts! True to form the film takes liberties with history but does so to the benefit of the film, making it very funny and rather larger than life (not that hard a subject given Henry's life!) but not to the point where it is just a comedy – no, it is better written than that. Instead it manages to present this big boisterous life in a balanced way – when events are funny, they are funny but on the flipside it also lets us see that Henry is lonely, trapped by affairs of state and rather a big child at times. It is hard to describe but this film managed to run a gauntlet of emotions in a way that I was pretty impressed by. The very good writing has prevented it dating at all and it is just as enjoyable as it was then – in fact I can't think of a film that I have been more pleasantly surprised by for quite a while – how ironic that it is over 70 years old!

Outside of the script and direction, a massive reason that this film works is a great performance from Laughton. His Henry is fantastically lively and energetic without ever going completely OTT. He manages to deliver his funny lines with great timing and awareness but also delivers a real character who we can feel for – he conveys real hurt and loneliness with just looks at times, and his tearful breakdown is actually quite moving. He is given good support from many small roles who are given good parts – even the observers at the executions have great lines! The 39 Steps' Robert Donat gives good support in a straighter and less showy role and the various member of Henry's court are reliable. However the film belongs to Laughton and he runs it, realising the script's potential and then some.

Overall I came to this film not sure what to expect and I was very surprised by just how enjoyable and well rounded it was. Historians may be irritated by a rather generous interpretation of history but the basics are all there and the writer's touch has only really added colour and a sense of fun to the story. The script is packed with material that is funny and telling at different points and it is delivered with real confidence and ability by Laughton in a performance that dominates the film and is a major reason I enjoyed it as much as I did.

Charles Laughton stars in "The Private Life of Henry VIII" from 1933, produced by Alexander Korda. Others in the cast include Robert Donat, Merle Oberon, Wendy Barrie, Elsa Lanchester, Everley Gregg, and Binnie Barnes.

In many parts, this is a humorous look at the eccentric Henry as he goes through his many marriages. However, the film starts with the execution of Anne Boleyn (Oberon). She's beautiful and very sympathetic in her role.

We see Henry eating, belching, throwing chicken bones, and generally being boisterous. Desperate for a son, he marries Jane Seymour next, and though she gives him a son, Seymour dies.

The best part of the film is the unconsummated marriage of Anne of Cleves and Henry. Rather than have sex, the two play cards, Anne taking him for quite a bit of money. She really didn't want to be married to him, and vice versa, so they agree to a divorce after about six months.

Binnie Barnes plays the ambitious Katherine Howard, who cheats on Henry with Thomas Culpepper (Donat), a member of the court

Finally, Henry comes up against a formidable opponent, his wife Katharine Parr (Gregg), who fusses over his diet.

Through it all, there's something lovable about Henry, where in real life, he was, shall we say, a difficult man, going against his Catholic faith so he could get rid of wives, and believing in the right of kings. Laughton plays Henry as a big, energetic baby, and he's fabulous. Yet he manages to have poignant moments as well.

Wonderful film - it really should have been called The Marriages of Henry VIII.

The reasons to watch this are A. Laughton's marvelous performance. He captures the bombast and lust for life of King Henry, and he also captures Henry raging against the dying of the light - his own aging - in a very poignant way. And he certainly looks like him. Then there is B. The fabulous cast, often before they are famous in America, such as Merle Oberon and Robert Donat, who wins the Best Actor award six years later as Mr. Chips.

As for the facts? I never expect dead on accuracy in historical dramas, BUT this one completely misses the mark. Catherine of Aragon, married to Henry for 18 years and the inability of Henry to obtain a divorce from her causing the founding of the Church of England, and she is given just a title card at the beginning, described as being "of no importance". The film picks up at the execution of Anne Boleyn (Oberon), Henry's second wife. Anne of Cleves, Henry's fourth wife with whom he probably never consummated his marriage because he found her ugly and ungraceful, is supposedly the centerpiece of his life! Now I realize this was done because she is played by Elsa Lanchester, and she and Laughton were married - and the two have marvelous chemistry and comic timing - but the film so misrepresents their relationship it is mind boggling.

And Katherine Howard, wife number five, was a 17 year old girl when Henry married her, not a grown woman sitting around for years waiting for Henry to dispose of wives until he got around to her.

What really puzzles me is that this film was made in Britain, so I'm surprised they played so fast and loose with the facts. It would be like making a film in America about George Washington in which Marie Antoinette was the great love of his life, and that her beheading brought on his decline and death. But then history is so poorly taught in this country perhaps the public would buy it.