Henry V (S01E04)

Who could have guessed that an adaptation of Henry V would suffer from a lack internal tension? Who knew that the series, which was adorned by its cast, would be betrayed by the actors in their new roles? Definitely not me. Paterson Joseph's amateurish bugging out of his eyes as York is as ridiculous as can be, but even so, his amateurism is completely overshadowed by the tragedy of Edward Akrout's performance; there are no decent words to describe it. One might understand it in the early days of the silent film era, but to play a serious dramatic role in the twenty-first century, stylizing himself into a powder-pale villain who constantly casts hateful, glaring glances - that’s really too much. To crown it all, Richard Griffiths’ absolute lack of diction and uncertain speech completely failed to convey his lines. If he were evaluated at school he would have received a disapproving "you didn't please me, nor will I please you" from his teacher. In this mess it is not surprising that the routine direction ruins even such potentially rewarding scenes, such as the St. Christopher's Day speech before the Battle of Agincourt, and renders them unnoticeable. In addition, the appalling, pathetic-sounding soft trumpets often play as a musical undertone, leaving you waiting as the English standard slowly falls to the ground... The result is not bad, the original is too good for that, and the actors (led by those from last time) are too good, but here the only scenes that really work are those of studying and speaking amorously in the Frenglish of the time. (05/21/2013)