Wolf Hall: The Mirror and The Light – Episode 6 Light

“Valentines, sorceries, purple doublets. Any jury would laugh you out of the court. But then there won’t be a jury, will there?” – Thomas Cromwell

No jury. No trial. Only an interrogation team, perfectly convinced about Thomas Cromwell being a traitor, asking ridiculous questions. And an Act of Attainder which Cromwell himself also used against others.

Upon arresting him, Kingston brings Cromwell to the Tower, to the very room that Cromwell himself built for Anne Boleyn before her coronation. It is also the same room the late queen spent her days before her execution. Now, in  his solitary confinement, it is inevitable for Cromwell to reflect on his past. And characters from that past, varying from Anne Boleyn to Cardinal Wolsey to Dorothea to the French executioner haunt his dreams. Continue reading “Wolf Hall: The Mirror and The Light – Episode 6 Light”

Anniversary of Bastogne

 

battle of the bulge, bastogne, band of brothers
Source: http://yalebooksblog.co.uk/2014/12/22/held-bastogne-2-americans-strike-back/

This week marks the 80th anniversary of the Siege at Bastogne, a pivotal confrontation in Battle of the Bulge, which saw the Allied forces assert their most courageous and bloody defense against the last big push by Nazi forces in WWII.

The Bastogne episode of Band of Brothers was arguably the most emotionally intense and beautifully filmed of the series. It was like watching a dream sequence through a filter of constant snow, a bitter cold that you could almost feel in your bones as you’re watching. Like an opera of bodies, bent over, running for cover, crouching near trees, or frozen solid to the ground. You could watch all the action without sound and still feel it viscerally.

Did anyone see the new Star Wars? The sight of the salt planet with the blood red soil under the thin layer of salt brought immediately to this viewer’s mind the red against white of the smoke grenades the soldiers in Band of Brothers set off to obscure their positions from the Germans. Such a visually poignant and memorable cinematic effect.

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Lamenting Nicholas Brody

Prologue: This is a LONG, RAW, and EMOTIONAL piece that I had written on December 21, 2013, almost a week after Nicholas Brody died on Homeland. Just because it is long, raw and emotional, I thought I would not share it on Fan Fun with Damian Lewis. On the other hand, this is the first ever piece that I wrote about Nicholas Brody — so, in some way, this is the piece that started it all! So, why not share it with fans that love that amazing character as much as I do? Just so you know, I am at a much better place now 🙂 But I still can’t let him go… Continue reading “Lamenting Nicholas Brody”

The King’s Painter: Hans Holbein The Younger in Wolf Hall

“He’s a genius – all the information is in his paintings.” – Joanna Eatwell, Costume Designer, Wolf Hall

I had written about the authenticity of the costumes in Wolf Hall  as well as how much the series’ brilliant costume designer Joanna Eatwell values Hans Holbein the Younger’s work in achieving this authenticity here back in 2015.

It turns out that Eatwell digged into the paintings of Holbein for research. From Lucy Worsley’s interview with Eatwell in 2015:

He’s a genius – all the information is in his paintings.

He not only painted members of the court, he also painted merchants and even some of Henry’s courtiers and staff, so we have a complete cross-section which is incredibly important for a piece like this.

Eatwell argues, in an audio interview with the BBC Academy, Holbein is a “master in his craft” and his paintings are realistic but also propaganda. The paintings make a statement about the person in the painting which she calls the “photoshop” of the times.

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Wolf Hall: The Mirror and The Light – Episode 5 Mirror

“Have you not read it in The Book Called Henry which I wrote for you? Never say what the King will not do. – Thomas Cromwell

In the penultimate episode of Wolf Hall: The Mirror and The Light, everything that could go wrong goes wrong for Cromwell, reminding us what the Imperial Ambassador Chapuys tells him in Episode 1 Wreckage:

“For when all is said, you are a blacksmith’s son. Your whole life depends on the next beat of Henry’s heart and your future on his smile or frown.”

We have seen Cromwell guiding the King’s thoughts in the direction that he prefers for a long time. However, as his tasks pile up, Cromwell is not able to spend as much time with the king as he would like. He is well aware of his vulnerability: that he has more enemies than friends in the court and there is a lot of conversation going on without him especially after Gardiner’s return from France. And the fever that keeps Cromwell away from Henry for some time gives Gardiner enough time to get closer to the King and poison him against Cromwell. Continue reading “Wolf Hall: The Mirror and The Light – Episode 5 Mirror”