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Henry V

Play trailer Poster for Henry V 1946,  2h 17m,  Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist 100% 26 Reviews Tomatometer 74% 2,500+ Ratings Popcornmeter
100% Tomatometer 26 Reviews 74% Popcornmeter 2,500+ Ratings
Olivier's masterful, sweeping rendition of Shakespeare, filmed in rich color and ingeniously including a typical performance at the Globe Theatre as it might have been seen 400 years ago. The film earned Olivier a special Oscar for outstanding achievement as actor, producer and director.
Henry V

What to Know

Critics Consensus

A patriotic booster, Laurence Olivier's directorial debut and star turn as Henry V result in a sharply realized and resonant take on Shakespeare's deeply British warrior king.

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Critics Reviews

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Manny Farber The New Republic Aug 31, 2012
While definitely athletic, pageant-minded and somewhat recognizable after all of the war dramas that have come out since Elizabethan times, no movie has given a more poignant impression of men in battle or been so cutting about the waste and folly of war. Go to Full Review
James Agee TIME Magazine Aug 29, 2012
The movies have produced one of their rare great works of art. Go to Full Review
Jonathan Rosenbaum Chicago Reader Jul 9, 2008
One can pick plenty of bones with Laurence Olivier's direction of the Shakespeare play, but this 1945 film is still a powerful production from many standpoints. Go to Full Review
Fannie Hurst Modern Screen Jun 15, 2023
"With winged heels, like English Mercuries," the beauty of the Olivier version of Henry the Fifth soars to what comes close to perfect achievement. Go to Full Review
Dennis Schwartz Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews Sep 2, 2020
A+
Overwhelming production of the William Shakespeare epic historical play. Go to Full Review
Clyde Gilmour Maclean's Magazine Nov 14, 2019
Like a cobwebbed bottle of the finest old wine, it has been improved rather than spoiled by time. Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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Hagrid S Feb 3, 2018 All the set pieces, costumes, and locations make it seem very genuine as if you were really there. I kind of felt like I was really in that theater. The way the play is filmed is brilliant. They did it so that it didn't feel at all like your watching a play. You're quickly reminded though, once you see the audience. Some of the dialogue is so Shakespearean, that I can't grasp it that well. The joke kind of go right through me but at least the acting and the movements are on point. Great battle sequences. Even though it's a good movie, I can't help but feel that it's pretentious as well. I understand they're trying to keep true to the whole Shakespearean thing but jeez. See more
Kylo S Aug 22, 2017 While I can't understand Shakespearean as much as the next person, I was still enamoured by this play in a movie. It was confusing, but also amusing and I felt all kinds of excitement by various scenes. The sets, actors, music, editing and look. These are all things that made Shakespeare ahead of his time, but it's thanks to modern technology that these things and his vision can be brought to life and now I can see why English Scholars and teachers consider him the master of storytelling. See more
Kylo S Mar 26, 2017 Beautifully directed and spectacularly realized, this represents early Shakespeare film adaptations at a high point in creativity, though the intentional difference between stage effect and real effect isn't has big as it could be here. See more
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Henry V

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Movie Info

Synopsis Olivier's masterful, sweeping rendition of Shakespeare, filmed in rich color and ingeniously including a typical performance at the Globe Theatre as it might have been seen 400 years ago. The film earned Olivier a special Oscar for outstanding achievement as actor, producer and director.
Director
Laurence Olivier
Producer
Laurence Olivier, Dallas Bower
Screenwriter
Laurence Olivier, Dallas Bower, Alan Dent
Distributor
United Artists
Production Co
Two Cities Films Ltd.
Genre
Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Jun 17, 1946, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
Mar 2, 2017
Runtime
2h 17m
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