Henry of Navarre

Starring:Julien Boisselier, Joachim Król, Roger Casamajor, Armelle Deutsch

Synopsis:

In late 16th-century France, Catholics and Protestant Huguenots were at war. Seemingly seeking peace, the French dowager queen, Catherine de Medici summons Henry to her court to have him marry her daughter,Margot, uniting the two warring factions. However, the Catholics slaughter the Protestant wedding guests in what became known as the St. Bartholomew's Day massacre and Henry-now married-must use all his guile to both stay alive and manoeuvre for the throne...

Also known as Henri IV, Henry of Navarre is an excellent historical drama which takes account of the life of one of France’s most beloved monarchs. It has to be said that things start a bit strangely, as Henry is visited as a child by none other than Nostradamus, who has a vision about Henry’s future, marking him as The Chosen One. It all seems the stuff of bad Hollywood legend-building. However the other scenes from Henry’s childhood help define his character better – helping the farmers bring in the harvest, and paying the local girls to let him see up their skirts!

After Nostradamus’ visit, Henry’s mother takes his prophecy at face value and has her young son leading troops into battle. Henry survives, and makes too close friends in the battle’s aftermath - Théodore Agrippa d'Aubigné and Guillaume du Bartas. These two men would remain at his side until their deaths.

Hannelore Hoger plays Catherine de Medici, the real power behind the throne. A terrible, devious woman who engineers a coup over the Huguenots by arranging peace through marriage, then setting about a series of events which would see 30,000 protestants slaughtered in one night The St Bartholomew’s Day Massacre. Henry (Julien Boisselier, who plays the character with the right amount of swagger and intelligence) manages to survive the night by taking refuge with the King, who is going insane through a mix of impotent rage and fear.

Also at the heart of all this is Margot herself, a wild-child who’s slept around somewhat, and includes as her conquests one of her own brothers and Guise, a rival for the throne. Her love scenes with Henry are incredibly passionate – if you’ve ever wondered about the expression “hate-sex”, here’s a prime example!This is a sumptuous costume drama, with an excellent script which gives a vivid portrayal of 17th Century Paris. We see how courtly life changes significantly from monarch to monarch – Henry III leads a bawdy court filled with wine, women and song. His brother’s appetites are somewhat different – homosexuality, gambling and self-flagellation are the order of the day. Henry of Navarre must navigate and endure both before he finally ascends to the throne himself.

It has to be said that the more exciting moments of the film occur before Henry takes control. Henry must use his wits and courage against an extraordinary adversary in the form of Catherine de Medici and her family. Afterwards King Henry must deal with running a country and bringing Paris kicking and screaming into the 17th Century! There is still courtly intrigue to be had – there are a number of attempts on Henry’s life, and finally one is successful. Henry enters into a marriage of convenience with Marie de Medici in order to produce a male successor to the throne. The film makes it implicit that Marie, in partnership with the Vatican, was behind his assassination.

Verdict:

The arthouse film La Reine Margot also covers some of the same time-frame, and Henry of Navarre compares very favourably. An excellent mix of historical drama, violence and lashings of sex, Henry of Navarre gives a condensed history lesson into France’s civil war and beyond.

8 out of 10 (MikeOutWest)

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