Just watched this film. And loved it. Ok, it’s fairly heavily loaded with historical inaccuracies. But, as George MacDonald Fraser remarked, in The Hollywood History of The World, ‘The main thrust of Cromwell is true, it gets a great deal of history, and the sense of history, right.’
As our pal Pat lamented, as the credits rolled, ‘What happened to British film?’ And this is an exemplar of a style of filmmaking that Britain once did quite often, and often very well. The no expense spared historical epic.
The cast is stellar, and acquit themselves very well. Richard Harris doesn’t look like Cromwell, but he plays the role with great elan. Likewise Obe Wan Kenobi, in the role of Charles I.
For the military history buffs, seeing Edgehill and Naseby recreated is great fun. And indeed, the whole costume drama aspect of the production is superb. Marston Moor – a parliamentary victory, and the biggest battle of the ECW – is left out, however.
I won’t synopsise the plot. Suffice to say that I found the two hours twenty-odd run time epic, but not overwhelming. In fact, I read online (wiki) that the first cut of the film was three and a quarter hours long. I would love to see that version. What got left on the cutting room floor?
Like any good media, on an interesting subject, this film makes me want to learn more about the real history. And that, I reckon, marks it out as a success.
