Passable but not great rendition based on the life and loves of the famous and lecherous king Henry VIII . A tour de force for Ray Winstone as the robust 16th century ruthless king who loved and killed wives . In 1526 Henry tosses aside his current wife the Spanish Catherine of Aragon played by the Spanish Assumpta Serna. Firstly , Catherine married Arthur , Henry VIII older brother, but Arthur died 6 months later , and Catherine then married Henry . As Henry falls for the young and devastatingly beautiful Anne Boleyn , Helena Bonham Carter . But after the birth of princess Elizabeth , Henry tires of Anne and wishes to marry another, Jane Seymour : Emily Fox . So he decides to rid himself of her presence .Anne was judged and accused of adultery with his brother and four commoners .11 days later Henry married Jane who died 12 days after giving birth to a son , later Edward VI. For political reasons , Henry next selection was Anne of Cleves whom he married by proxy in 154o. She was not to his taste , however , and the marriage was annulled by Parliament 6 months later . Catherine Howard had the misfortune to be Henry' s fifth wife but she was charged with having committed adultery before the marriage. Catherine Parr married and tended the ailing lecher in his last years .Soon after Henry death in 1547 , she married a former lover and died in childbirth.This is a lavish historical spectacle lustily portraying the life and lovers of notorious British Monarch , and shot in Soap style . Ray Winstone's acting as the amoral and womanizer king garned him awesome reviews .Including outstanding performances by the entire cast , such as Emily Blunt as Catherine Howard , Clare Holman as wife Catherine Parr , David Suchet as Cardinal Wolsey, Danny Webb as Thomas Cromwell , Michael Moloney as Thomas Cranmer , Charles Dance as Duke Buckingham and Sean Bean as the rebel Robert Aske. The series was well directed by Pete Travis . He is a good craftsman who has made a lot of films and TV series as Fearless , Falcon, The Jury , Cold Feet , Omagh , Vantage point and Dredd.Henry VIII life has been adapted several times, as TV as Cinema , for example : The private life of Henry VIII by Alexander Korda with Charles Laughton, Merle Oberon , Elsa Lanchaster , Robert Donat ; Anne of the thousand days by Charles Jarrot with Richard Burton, Genevieve Bujold , Vanedsa Redgrave ; The other Boleyn girl with Natalie Portman , Scarlett Johansson , Eric Bana , Jim Sturgess . And series as the starred by Keith Mitchell, Charlotte Rampling , directed by Warris Hussein and the successful starred by Jonathan Rhys Meyers produced by Michael Hirst .

Fatally flawed by miscasting of Title Character. Ray Winstone, may be very good playing an Eastender drunk. But Henry Vlll for all his many flaws, was a well educated, well read good looking King. This henry comes across as a small time, crude, cockney thug. I imagine that anyone who would watch this , would do so because they have some knowledge of history. I despise Henry Vlll , he murdered wives, friends, anyone who got in his way, and he did so with the power of an absolute monarch. But this miscasting is so bad that it is offensive, and one wonders who chose Winstone to play the character, whoever it was they should suffer the same fate of many of Henry's victims.

I love Ray Winstone, but I did not like this TV series/movie. For starters, historical dramas do not create a good atmosphere when the actors have modern haircuts.The producers were not able to tell this very intense story without relying on heavy handed TV show type of pyrotechnics. It is obvious that they take the audience for fools.Ray's coarse accent is usually a blessing. But not here.In fact, almost none of the actors were commanding and compelling to watch.I could not finish it.

I think this was a great made for TV series, but it was divided into only 2 parts when I felt it could have been a lot longer. It first aired on BBC television in England and then made its way to PBS KCET on Channel 28 here in America. Ray Winstone heads a cast of primarily noted British actors portraying in very modern mood the life and times of Henry the 8th and Tudor England. There is nothing really wrong with the series but I felt that such a panoramic story could have been a lot longer and broken up into several episodes. I felt it was very rushed, especially at the end. His marriages to the 6 women was all done very fast and the film didn't explore his relationship with them or their characters too deeply. The focus seemed to be on Katherine of Aragon and Anne Boylen. One thing viewers have found frustrating is the anachronistic use of language. There are moments when the dialogue gets very modern and loses the formality and Shakespearean style. Also, Ray Winstone speaks in a common vernacular called Cockney, when as a King, he was able to speak lofty English and even Latin. But such inaccuracies are dismissed as we are swept by the intensity of the dramatic material and the way the actors bring it to life.Anne Boylen was played by Helena Bonham Carter. Her scenes with Ray Winstone are quite dynamic. The actress in the role of Queen Katherine of Aragon is quite powerful, even more so than the bland Helena Bonham, who portrays Anne as a fickle lady who at first didn't want anything to do with Henry but later revels in her position as Queen. Though her innocent looks did effectively portray the wronged queen (I never believed that Anne Boylen did any of the "sins" she was accused falsely of). Above all, this is a vehicle for Ray Winstone as Henry the 8th. His portrayal is laser-sharp and towards the end he does start to look EXACTLY like the overweight, arrogant and cruel king. I wish the series had been longer, like the previously filmed "Forsyte Saga" on Masterpiece Theatre. Also, I wish somehow they had used more popular and famous British actors such as Judi Dench, who has already portrayed royal figures- Queen Elizabeth and Queen Victoria. But the series is gorgeous to look at. Though the ending was very rushed, I like the final words of the narrator that elevates Queen Elizabeth as the only true great result of Henry's troublesome life. Elizabeth was born of Anne Boylen and Henry the 8th. Warning: the film contains adult material including violence and graphic sex. Its suitable for mature audiences only.