Firebrand
A decadent and dangerous dynasty is brought to life in Karim Aïnouz’ fiery Tudor drama.
The lady doth protest: Jude Law and Alicia Vikander
Photo by Larry Horricks, Image courtesy of Roadside Attractions
The fate of Henry VIII’s wives is oft remembered via the schoolchildren's rhyme “Divorced, Beheaded, Died: Divorced, Beheaded, Survived.” Yet when it comes to Tudor history and lore, the beheading of Anne Boleyn tends to take centre stage. Elizabeth Fremantle’s 2012 historical fiction novel Queen’s Gambit recenters the attention on the resolve and fervour of the time’s survivor, Katherine Parr. A mere 18 months after beheading his fifth wife — the seventeen-year old Catherine Howard — King Henry married the twice-widowed 31-year old Parr. Having broken with the Catholic church a decade prior, England’s new church was still in its infancy. At the time of their marriage, the country was in a state of instability, in part due to what seemed a return to conservatism. The frequent changes in religious law created confusion and divided the people. Where Fremantle’s book covers longer swathes of time, director Karim Aïnouz wisely worked with screenwriters Henrietta and Jessica Ashworth to hone the story down to a period beginning a year into Henry’s sixth and final marriage. With much of history relatively unknown and told by those in the position to write it, Firebrand’s opening titles remind us that, “We must draw our own, often wild, conclusions.” A requisite opening crawl for those clinging to their history books.
The year is 1544. Queen consort Katherine (Alicia Vikander), who became the first woman in England to publish an original work under her own name, has been appointed regent while Henry (Jude Law) is away on a military campaign in France. The court has fled London in protection from outbreaks of plague. For the first time, Katherine has brought Henry's three children, Mary, Elizabeth, and Edward, under one roof. Torn between her duty to produce an heir and growing beliefs among those deemed radicals, Katherine hopes to steer the kingdom toward life. When Henry returns and charges her childhood best friend with treason, Katherine finds herself caged in an increasingly dangerous palace where she must attempt to outwit, outplay, and outlast those who threaten her. Largely an intimate drama about surviving an abusive relationship, the Brazilian Aïnouz approaches the material from a fresh, outside perspective, crafting a film that’s richly drawn and Shakespearean in mood.
A Baroque painting brought to life, Firebrand is given the same qualities of light and shade that define its subjects. Alicia Vikander and Jude Law are utterly delicious as Parr and Henry. Where Vikander finds great freedom and subtlety within Katherine’s imposed and necessary (for survival’s sake) restraint, Law embraces all the debauchery and frustration of a man who has lived second to God coming to terms with his own mortality. Though the court wears their positions in elaborate dress, they feel truly lived in, as does the world that Aïnouz has created alongside director of photography Hélène Louvart, production designer Helen Scott, and costume designer Michael O’Connor. There is a darkness that looms among this life of pageantry in the midst of the beautiful pastoral English countryside. In an environment where speculation and rumour can lead to ruin, language becomes keenly important. Intention, tone, as well as what is said and unsaid, all play a vital role in navigating court politics. From Henry’s use of the royal ‘we’ and past tense, the dialogue of the Ashworth sisters’ script is intentionally venomed.
Sound also decorates with resounding dread. The ominous score does feel occasionally overwrought, but it certainly sets a tone. From the screeching birds in the soundscape to the presence of birds on screen throughout, Aïnouz cages in the audience. When the court sings the English folk ballad The Three Ravens, it serves as another forewarning which mirrors the film’s opening shot. The across the board attention to detail, from the handmade costumes, to the jangle of a belt, to filming entirely on location in Derbyshire’s Haddon Hall, sets the historical fable ablaze. Haddon Hall has incidentally added another IMDb credit to its long onscreen career, having also appeared in the Tudor drama The Other Boleyn Girl, Lady Jane, The Princess Bride, Elizabeth, Pride and Prejudice (2004), Jane Eyre (2010), Mary Queen of Scots (2018), The King, and 1924’s Dorothy Vernon of Haddon Hall starring Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks.
CHAD KENNERK
Cast: Alicia Vikander, Jude Law, Eddie Marsan, Sam Riley, Erin Doherty, Amr Waked, Simon Russell Beale, Patsy Ferran, Mina Andala, Junia Rees, Ruby Bentall, Bryony Hannah, Mia Threapleton, Patrick Buckley.
Dir Karim Aïnouz, Pro Gabrielle Tana, Carolyn Marks Blackwood, Screenplay Henrietta Ashworth and Jessica Ashworth, from the novel Queen’s Gambit by Elizabeth Fremantle, Ph Hélène Louvart, Pro Des Helen Scott, Ed Heike Parplies, Music Dickon Hinchliffe, Costumes Michael O’Connor, Sound Rob Turner and Paul Carter.
MBK Productions/FilmNation Entertainment/Brouhaha Entertainment/Magnolia Mae Films-Roadside Attractions/Vertical Entertainment/Metfilm.
121 mins. UK. 2023. US Rel: 14 June 2024. UK Rel: 6 September 2024. Cert. 15.
