qcloes09
I've seen all of the episodes of Wolf Hall so far, and I absolutely love Mark Rylance's performance! I rarely have the opportunity to see one program that shows a character from history played so well. Rylance takes us through it all with his subtle acting. At the beginning he's heart-breaking when almost all of his family dies from disease. Then we see his conniving in the background to work with the powers that be. We see him shift from quiet "toady" to a conniving, creepy and dangerous man. The series goes slowly through the politics of Henry III and Anne Boleyn with all the backstabbing in the shadows.We loved this series and hope to see it continue to the end of Thomas Cramner's life.
Maksim Nikiforovski
There are many shows and films about the Tudors. The dashing king Henry VIII, the mysteriously alluring Anne Boleyn, the Machiavellian Cromwell and the wise Thomas More. There are so many great characters from that era that one can choose any of them and tell a magnificent story. That was done in these books and it is done impeccably on the screen as well. This story focuses on Thomas Cromwell, who is portrayed as less Machiavellian and more sympathetic, but incredibly clever nonetheless. As far as history is concerned, and my knowledge thereof, I think this is the most faithful portrayal of the early Tudors period. This version surpasses the lackluster, soapy The Tudors series. One should keep in mind that although the story retells historical events, it is still a piece of art, and it based on two historical fiction books. As such there is always a point of view that the author/director takes, which is part of the artistic process. Having that in mind, certain inaccuracies can be seen in this adaptation, but they do not influence the viewing experience. Actually, this is the most accurate portrayal of Anne Boleyn seen on screen so far. Although Natalie Dormer's portrayal is regarded as the best, this one is even better.Clever dialogues, intrigues, breath-taking scenery and amazing acting can all be found in this period piece. There is no warfare, nor any especially violent scenes in this adaptation, which opts for the internal struggles of the main characters, and the intrigues of the court. If you are looking to satisfy your Game of Thrones hunger, or a history lesson on the Tudors, then this adaptation will exceed your expectations.
clanciai
Mark Rylance makes a fascinating character out of the misfortunate Thomas Cromwell, who as far as I have seen never has been done any justice or more careful impersonation on screen before. The story is well known and repeated often enough to almost the point of getting audiences fed up with it, but the characters of the drama remain inveterately of lasting and timeless interest with Henry, Wolsey and Anne Boleyn in the forefront, Henry for his dangerously psychotic capriciousness risking everyone's life in his vicinity, Wolsey for his fall and Anne Boleyn for her tragedy. To this comes the eternally important drama of Thomas More and his even more unfortunate successor Thomas Cromwell, who failed in achieving the same glory of martyrdom but instead was actually beheaded in dishonour. You could see "Wolf Hall" as a successful effort to exonerate him, as he is interestingly exposed as a victim of fate who actually had no choice but to do as he did - there was no way out of his dependence on the caprices of the King. Mark Rylance is so excellent in his portrayal, that he actually could have made a better Thomas More than Anton Lesser, who is not quite convincing as Thomas More, far too frail and almost abject, making his part almost as denigrative as the part of Cromwell is favoured. Nevertheless, the truth of this rendering of the fearsome story is probably more accurate than any earlier version. Henry is not very convincing either, though, as he is far too dashing and youngish when he should have been more sturdy and clumsy in his actual fatness - he was only this fit in his very younger days, a fault which hopelessly cripples the whole Canadian TV series with Jonathan Rhys Meyers a few years back, which is more exclusively a feast for the eyes than truthful in the least, while the best Henry VIII series remains the Granada production of 2003 with Ray Winstone and Helena Bonham Carter as Anne Boleyn - one of the best and most truthful. However, also here Anne Boleyn is made almost over-convincing with her intelligent brilliance and ambitious willfulness and for once quite awesome. Bernard Hill as her uncle Norfolk also deserves some major credit as perhaps the best actor here of them all. The greatest merit of the series however is its realism by candlelight - it is throughout photographed without artifice in light settings, which adds greatly to the general realism. In brief, yet another great and highly meritorious version of the trials of this turbulent court, adding new important aspects to understanding this troublesome and problematic chapter of history.
dregs-08923
Overall, I loved Wolf Hall. Only Damien Lewis is too fit. Portraits of the real Henry VIII show him fat, and he probably didn't bathe often. Costumes and sets were impeccable; I hope this show gets awards. I will not miss the way Anne says "Cromwell," which sounds like Krim-well with a very guttural R. What was that about? I'm only sorry we won't get the rest of the wives. We only got the beginning of Jane Seymour. Perhaps a sequel with Jane and the other three wives? Only one more execution, the others got "furloughed" and only one died young, soon after childbirth which was dangerous back then. Bravo! We want a sequel. Damien must gain 50 lb.Regards, Diane Regis