Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Series Finale of "The Tudors" on BBC America


Recap of "The Tudors" Season 4 Episode 10 (Series Finale)In the Series Finale, Henry defeats one final political foe but faces mortality and the ghosts of his former queens, who appear for a final confrontation.



















2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I just finished watching the final episode entitled, “Death of a Monarchy.” The episode begins with a beautiful scene with a white horse, galloping towards the screen while you hear Henry’s voice.
“When we compare the present life of man on earth, with that time of which we have no knowledge, it seems to me like the swift flight of a single sparrow, through a banqueting hall on a Winter’s day. After a few moments of comfort, he vanishes from sight, into the Wintery world from which he came. Even so, man appears on earth for a little while. But, of what went before this life, and what will follow, we know nothing.”
King Henry and the Duke of Suffolk are sitting together, chatting. The King is in philosophical mood, pondering about time, and the loss of it. He quizzes the Duke about what is the most irrecoverable loss…. and informs him that time is the most irrecuperable of losses, “for it can never be redeemed.”
After those first two scenes I knew right away this episode was going to be good. I was not disappointed. The episode was well written and the acting was superb. A great musical score and amazing cinematography. I am a huge fan for montages set to music and this episode had a great one. The moment the portrait is unveiled and immediately you get this rush of what Henry is seeing in the picture…. in essence, his life flashing before his eyes…. the good, the bad, the love, the hate, the friendships and the enemies. It’s a very emotional moment and it makes you want to go back and watch the show from the beginning all over again.
Bringing back the first three wives was an added bonus. I wasn’t expecting that. By this time Henry looks embittered and tortured by his own demons. You see this dream like sequence of a young King Henry, staring off into a starry night sky, as the white horse with comes closer and closer to him. Is it death riding on a horse? This image of a young man facing his mortality is unforgettable.
And then there is the Duke of Suffolk. He dies at home with Brigitte at his side. It was gut wrenching to watch this part of the episode. To the very end, he was loyal to Henry. They had grown up together as children and he was one of the few closest to Henry to live out his life in its entirety. I like the fact Henry doesn’t die in the end, leaving him as sort of this indestructible myth in a way. Well done.
P.S. You can see this last 6 minutes on YouTube. Pretty cool.

Damon

Anthony Paradiso said...

Great comment! Thank you for your thoughts & I am happy that you enjoyed The Tudors" series, especially the last episode. I, too like how the series ended.

Anthony