The Tudors: Season One

When you think of the British Monarch, King Henry the Eight a vision of an extremely rotund man, regally dressed holding a huge turkey leg might come to mind. While this may be true of the man in his older years his younger years was different. Historically it was known that as a young man he cut a fine, athletic figure that greatly enjoyed many very physical sports. This turned out to be great news for the premium able network, Showtime. Historical dramas typically do well the audiences. The trouble would have been attracting younger audiences to a series about a larger, older man. So they went for the story that is rarely told, the young, virile Henry. This way Showtime could cast a younger actor in the lead and surround him with extremely beautiful young actresses; never a bad thing for ratings after all. So Showtime went to a man with a proven track record for historically bases dramas, Michael Hirst. He penned two films about Elizabeth the first both of which starred the actress Cate Blanchett in the lead. Hirst created an intricate and intense albeit short first season that will soon be available on DVD.

The basic premise of the series is stated in a voice over at the start of every episode: "You think you know a story but you only know how it ends. To get to the heart of the story you have to go back to the beginning’. There are a couple of things to remember about this statement. First a lot of history happened to Henry and his court prior to the start of this series so this is not really the start of the story. The start here better refers to the romance between Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn. Next, remember that this is a dramatization of the historical events. Many people, places and events are real but as with any historical epic a considerable amount of dramatic license has been taken. Once again go to the History or Biography channels for the facts; for a greatly entertaining series stick with Showtime. Most know about Henry VIII and his rather unique way of breaking off a marriage. There is a nod to this on the cover of the DVD which depicts young Henry VIII sitting on his throne with three women standing behind him. The picture is cropped so you can see the heaving bosoms but the heads are cut off.

It has been said that it is good to be king. This would seem especially true if you happen to take the crown at the tender age of 18 like Henry Tudor the Eighth, impeccably portrayed here by Jonathan Rhys Meyers. His family’s rise to the throne was not easy and left many in the royal court baring many grudges. His father Henry VII took the thrown from Richard III the good old fashion way, combat or in today’s terms, an extremely hostile takeover. When Henry’s older brother, the heir to the throne dies Henry is engaged to a Spanish princess, Catherine of Aragon (Maria Doyle Kennedy) who was several years his senior. She failed to give Henry a male heir producing only one living child, a daughter Mary (Blathnaid McKeown). By the time of the series Henry has grown into his role but is beset by problems both international and within his own court and house. He is portrayed as a vibrant and virile young man with a lust for sports (he usually wins) and a myriad of more than willing young ladies. It would appear that his queen’s Ladies-in-Waiting were also a vast pool of sexual partners for Henry waiting for their turn in the King’s private chambers.

Henry is constantly surrounded by the usual entourage of advisors and a few friends. His best and most loyal friends are Charles Brandon (Henry Cavill) and Anthony Knivert (Callum Blue). Both men would find their devotion to the King rewarded with elevations in their social and political positions. His closest advisor is Sir Thomas Moore (Jeremy Northam), a very intelligent and learned man and supporter of the humanist movement. He is also a devote Roman Catholic and extremely opposed to the growing protestant movement headed by Martin Luther. Helping the King navigate the treacherous waters of international diplomacy is the Papal envoy, Cardinal Thomas Wolsey (Sam Neill). As the season moves forward Wolsey’s own ambitions to become Pope adversely affects the advice he gives the King. This becomes extremely important as Henry depends on Wolsey to convince the Pope to provide dispensation for his annulment from Catherine. It seems that one young Lady-in-Waiting, Anne Boleyn (Natalie Dormer) is tired of waiting and demands to be Queen. Her father Thomas Boleyn (Nick Dunning) is desperate to increase his position in the court. First he sent his older daughter Mary (Perdita Weeks) to the King’s bed. When that didn’t work out it was Anne’s turn to seduce the young king. Although women were used as commodities back then Anne was smart. She refuses to sleep with Henry until they are wed making for a very frustrated and determined monarch. She also pushes Henry to split with the Roman Catholic Church.

There is a little trend here that should be obvious by now; everybody is out for their own agenda. Henry may be one of the powerful men in the world but he is a pawn in many games that he is unaware of. One of the biggest examples of this is the relations between France and England. Henry tries to forge a treaty between the two nations but other plans get in the way and soon they are at war. The international scene is muddied further when moves are made to capture the Pope. The King sends his sister Margaret (Gabrielle Anwar) to marry the extremely old King of Portugal. Although she is revolved by the thought of sharing her bed with such an ancient man she has to agree. Henry sends her off with Brandon who is elevated to Duke of Suffolk for his assistance. Margaret manages to stay married only a couple of days before she smothers her husband to death and takes up with Brandon. When she marries him Henry bans both from the court. Catherine openly defies the King but contesting his request for an annulment and forces a Papal envoy to open a court to decide the issue. It may be good to be king but this series shows that with great power comes not only great responsibility but a ton of headaches as well.

The characters in this series make the Sopranos’ cast into boy scouts. While Tony and his crew worry about a neighborhood or a rival gang the characters here are playing on a global scale. When they have an argument it might very well turn out into a real war. Like the Sopranos though this is an extremely well written, produced and acted series. For a show with such a large cast the audience is introduced to each member is a perfectly paced manner. This gives you the time you need to put all the characters and threads together but not at the expense of action. From the first moments of the series there is deceit, murder and a political plot afoot. There are a lot of story lines going on here but they all mesh together perfectly. This shows a side to one of the most famous kings in history from a completely new and fresh perspective. This was a time when being a royal meant a lot more than the subject of photographers and charity events. These people held real power in the world. Every aspect of their lives had consequences on the population of the world. Henry is shown as a powerful man but a man none the less. He was the ‘A-List’ celebrity of his time and that frequently pulled him into trouble. Any woman was his for the asking. No one would dare defeat in him in sport. Still, he had to manage a kingdom in a time that was full of change and disruption.

I can not think of any actor doing better in this role than Jonathan Rhys Meyers. I have been a fan of his since is appearance in the BBC production of one of my favorite set of novels, Gormanghast. Meyers plays Henry with a variety of sides. In public he is the cocky young king, demanding and expecting nothing less than being immediately obeyed. In private a different person come out. He needs to be able to trust someone but usually discovers that everyone is only out for themselves. When the ‘Sweating Sickness’ takes hold of the country Henry holes up in his chamber afraid to be near anyone. Even a king is subject to death by disease and this lack of control frightens him. As the queen Maria Doyle Kennedy is simply put incredible. She portrays a woman who is in a man’s world. She may be the Queen of England but she is first a woman. She is devoted, loving God and the church. Catherine is also popular with the people because of her open and charitable demeanor. The Queen is also not above using any means possible to save her marriage even though her husband openly flaunts his sexual exploits. Sam Neill gives great dimension to the part of the Cardinal. He plays him as a man who is in the church only as a means to personal power. One of the better performances in this stellar cast is from Natalie Dormer as Anne. She is as deadly as she is beautiful. She plays the dangerous game of sexually frustrating the king to further her family’s plans. As Anne Dormer is a schemer extraordinaire. She knows that her father is basically pimping her out for his own position but she is determined to make it worth while for herself.

Showtime along with Paramount does its usual excellent job in presenting season one of this series on DVD. The anamorphic video is reference quality as is the Dolby 5.1 soundtrack. For the extras there are featurettes focusing on the incredible task taken on by the location managers and costume designers for the series. There are also complete episodes of other Showtime series including the cutting edge ‘Californication’, ‘This American Life’ and ‘Penn & Teller’s BS’. History has never been more action packed, sexy or powerful as it is here.

Posted 12/14/07