83
Metascore
17 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 100TV Guide MagazineTV Guide MagazineStraightforward, energetic, updated Bard. 28-year-old star-director-adapter Kenneth Branagh's spellbinding version of Shakespeare's Henry isn't superior to Olivier's 1944 version - it's different, and complementary to it.
- 90TimeRichard CorlissTimeRichard CorlissBig and pretty, vigorous, thoughtful, this Hamlet expands the story with helpful flashbacks.
- 90Washington PostHal HinsonWashington PostHal HinsonMost astounding, though, is the power of the film's leading actor. While Branagh's direction is forthright and articulate, his acting is brash and flamboyant.
- 88Chicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertChicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertWhat works best in the film is the over-all vision. Branagh is able to see himself as a king, and so we can see him as one.
- 88Boston GlobeJay CarrBoston GlobeJay CarrOne of the things that make [Branagh's] Henry V so thrilling is his audacity in trying to turn it into an antiwar play - a view that would have astounded Shakespeare. Astonishingly, he pretty much brings it off, emerging with steadily growing power as the young king who isn't afraid to bloody his hands. [15 Dec 1989]
- 80Chicago ReaderJonathan RosenbaumChicago ReaderJonathan RosenbaumThe cast - including Derek Jacobi as the modern-dress chorus, Paul Scofield, Judi Dench, Ian Holm, Emma Thompson, and Robbie Coltrane in an effective cameo as Falstaff - is uniformly fine without any grandstanding.
- 80EmpireEmpireBranagh's Henry V must, however, be counted a success - it might never be as famous as Olivier's, but it should carry considerable clout for years to come.
- 80The New York TimesVincent CanbyThe New York TimesVincent CanbyMr. Branagh has made a fine, rousing new English film adaptation of Shakespeare's ''Henry V,'' a movie that need not apologize to Laurence Olivier's 1944 classic.
- 80VarietyVarietyHenry V is a stirring, gritty and enjoyable pic which offers a plethora of fine performances from some of the U.K.'s brightest talents.
- An alert, rousing interpretation of "Henry V," Branagh beats down the doors of high art and drags the sleeping bard into the light of modern day.