William Shakespeare's Henry V has always been a rallying cry for the British people, often staged during times of war. So it is no surprise that Winston Churchill summoned Laurence Olivier from his stint in the navy to helm a production of the play. Filmed over a short period of time in beautiful Technicolor, Oliver directed, wrote, and starred in a rousing version of the play that aired in England at the same time of the invasion of Normandy, the same lands of which King Henry conquers in the play. The film begins as a performance at the Globe Theater in 1600 and the action onstage shifts to the fields of northern France in 1415 where the courageous Henry leads his men to victory in The Battle of Agincourt during the One Hundred Years' War. Like all of Shakespeare's work, it takes a minute to get a hold on the dialogue, but after a bit, this becomes a rhythmic and rousing affair. Olivier is commanding in the lead as he passionately recites scores of beautiful and energizing prose. Up until this point, Shakespeare was thought of as too stodgy for the big screen. With "Henry V", Olivier set the bar for the future films adapted from The Bard's work.
