The Private Life of Henry VIII

The Private Life of Henry VIII

HE GAVE HIS WIVES A PAIN IN THE NECK, And did his necking with an axe. Henry, the Eighth Wonder of the World! And this picture...the wonder of all time!

NR 1933 · 97 min · ★ 6.4 · History, Drama

Renowned for his excess, King Henry VIII goes through a series of wives during his rule. With Anne Boleyn, his second betrothed, executed on charges of treason, Henry weds maid Jane Seymour, but that wedded bliss also ends in tragedy. Not one to be single for long, the tyrannical king chooses German-born Anne of Cleves, but their union lasts only months before an annulment is granted, and so Henry's reign of spousal terror continues.

Directed by Alexander Korda · Written by Lajos Biró

Your Rating

Where to Watch

Streaming

Cast

Charles Laughton Henry VIII
Robert Donat Thomas Culpeper
Franklin Dyall Thomas Cromwell
Miles Mander Wriothesley
Laurence Hanray Archbishop Cranmer
William Austin Duke of Cleves
John Loder Peynell
Claud Allister Cornell
Gibb McLaughlin The French Executioner
Sam Livesey The English Executioner
Merle Oberon Anne Boleyn
Wendy Barrie Jane Seymour

Make it a double feature

3h 14m together

The Private Life of Henry VIII

The Scarlet Pimpernel

Both from Alexander Korda.

More from Alexander KordaSee all →

The Third Man

The Third Man · 1949

MovieThrillerMystery

In postwar Vienna, Austria, Holly Martins, a writer of pulp Westerns, arrives penniless as a guest of his childhood chum Harry Lime, only to learn he has died. Martins develops a conspiracy theory after learning of a "third man" present at the time of Harry's death, running into interference from British officer Major Calloway, and falling head-over-heels for Harry's grief-stricken lover, Anna.

To Be or Not to Be

To Be or Not to Be · 1942

To Be or Not to Be

During the Nazi occupation of Poland, an acting troupe becomes embroiled in a Polish soldier's efforts to track down a German spy.

The Fallen Idol

The Fallen Idol · 1948

The Fallen Idol

MovieDramaThriller

Phillipe, the son of an ambassador in London, hero-worships his father's butler Baines. His perception of the man changes when he accidentally discovers the secret that Baines keeps and witnesses the consequences that adults' lies can cause.

The Thief of Bagdad

The Thief of Bagdad · 1940

The Thief of Bagdad

MovieAdventureFantasy

When Prince Ahmad is blinded and cast out of Bagdad by the nefarious Jaffar, he joins forces with the scrappy thief Abu to win back his royal place, as well as the heart of a beautiful princess.

That Hamilton Woman

That Hamilton Woman · 1941

That Hamilton Woman

MovieDramaHistory

The story of courtesan and dance-hall girl Emma Hamilton, including her relationships with Sir William Hamilton and Admiral Horatio Nelson and her rise and fall, set during the Napoleonic Wars.

The Four Feathers

The Four Feathers · 1939

The Four Feathers

MovieAdventureDrama

A disgraced officer risks his life to help his childhood friends in battle.

The Scarlet Pimpernel

The Scarlet Pimpernel · 1934

The Scarlet Pimpernel

MovieDramaAdventure

18th century English aristocrat Sir Percy Blakeney leads a double life. He appears to be merely the effete aristocrat, but in reality is part of an underground effort to free French nobles from Robespierre's Reign of Terror.

The Ghost Goes West

The Ghost Goes West · 1935

The Ghost Goes West

MovieRomanceComedy

Peggy Martin, daughter of a wealthy American businessman, persuades her father to buy a haunted Scottish castle from Donald Glourie. As the castle is dismantled and transported to Florida, its ghost tags along. Donald and Peggy fall in love, but the restless apparition proves to unwelcome, and they must find a way to appease the kilt-wearing spirit.

A Kid for Two Farthings

A Kid for Two Farthings · 1955

A Kid for Two Farthings

Joe is a young boy who lives with his mother, Joanna, in working-class London. The two reside above the tailor shop of Mr. Kandinsky, who likes to tell Joe stories. When Kandinsky informs Joe that a unicorn can grant wishes, the hopeful lad ends up buying a baby goat with one tiny horn, believing it to be a real unicorn. Undaunted by his rough surroundings, Joe sets about to prove that wishes can come true.

The Shop at Sly Corner

The Shop at Sly Corner · 1947

The Shop at Sly Corner

MovieDramaCrime

In Britain, a man with a shady past uses his antiquities shop as a front for smuggled diamonds but his young shop-assistant starts blackmailing him, leading to murder and to a police investigation.

Elephant Boy

Elephant Boy · 1937

MovieAdventureDrama

In India, Toomai, a young mahout, helps lead the British on a large expedition to round up wild elephants.

Dark Journey

Dark Journey · 1937

MovieThrillerWar

British double agent Madeleine Goddard meets and falls in love with German spy Baron Karl Von Marwitz during World War I.

Lydia

MovieDramaRomance

Lydia MacMillan, a wealthy woman who has never married, invites several men her own age to her home to reminisce about the times when they were young and courted her. In memory, each romance seemed splendid and destined for happiness, but in each case, Lydia realizes, the truth was less romantic, and ill-starred.

An Ideal Husband

An Ideal Husband · 1947

An Ideal Husband

MovieComedyDrama

A prominent politician is preparing to expose a financial scandal. But then a woman who has invested heavily in the shady venture threatens to uncover a damaging secret in the politician's past if he exposes the speculation as a fraud. His problem is compounded by his wife's intolerance of the slightest character flaws.

Things to Come

Things to Come · 1936

MovieDramaScience Fiction

The story of a century: a decades-long second World War leaves plague and anarchy, then a rational state rebuilds civilization and attempts space travel.

The Lion Has Wings

The Lion Has Wings · 1939

The Lion Has Wings

MovieDocumentaryWar

This early, influential propaganda film blends documentary and studio footage to show the valiant efforts of the Royal Air Force to defend the British people against the Nazis.

More Like This

Moulin Rouge

Moulin Rouge · 1952

In 1890 Paris, Moulin Rouge is a nightclub where crippled artist Toulouse-Lautrec feels like he fits in. In the following years, he meets two women who provide an opportunity for him to find true love.

A Night to Remember

A Night to Remember · 1958

A Night to Remember

MovieDramaAction

The sinking of the Titanic is presented in a highly realistic fashion in this tense British drama. The disaster is portrayed largely from the perspective of the ocean liner's second officer, Charles Lightoller. Despite numerous warnings about ice, the ship sails on, with Capt. Edward John Smith keeping it going at a steady clip. When the doomed vessel finally hits an iceberg, the crew and passengers discover that they lack enough lifeboats, and tragedy follows.

Awakenings

Awakenings · 1990

Dr. Malcolm Sayer, a shy research physician, uses an experimental drug to "awaken" the catatonic victims of a rare disease. Leonard is the first patient to receive the controversial treatment. His awakening, filled with awe and enthusiasm, proves a rebirth for Sayer too, as the exuberant patient reveals life's simple but unutterably sweet pleasures to the introverted doctor.

She Said

She Said · 2022

MovieDramaHistory

New York Times reporters Megan Twohey and Jodi Kantor break one of the most important stories in a generation — a story that helped launch the #MeToo movement and shattered decades of silence around the subject of sexual assault in Hollywood.

The Accused

The Accused · 1988

MovieCrimeDrama

Out drinking one night after a fight with her boyfriend, three men brutally rape Sarah Tobias in a bar while people watch and cheer. District Attorney Kathryn Murphy takes the case; however, she allows the rapists to receive a mild sentence. A distraught Sarah decides to seek punishment for the men who witnessed and encouraged the rape. To get justice, Sarah must take the stand and revisit the night of her attack.

Lamborghini: The Man Behind the Legend

Lamborghini: The Man Behind the Legend · 2022

Lamborghini: The Man Behind the Legend

MovieDramaHistory

Follow the launch of Lamborghini’s career as a manufacturer of tractors, a creator of military vehicles during World War II, and the designer of Lamborghini cars, which he launched in 1963 as the high-end sports car company Automobili Lamborghini.

Henry V

Henry V · 1989

In 1415, in the midst of the Hundred Years' War, the young King Henry V of England embarks on the conquest of France.

The Clearing

The Clearing · 2004

MovieDramaMystery

When affluent executive Wayne Hayes is kidnapped by a disgruntled employee and held for ransom in a forest, Wayne’s wife is forced to reckon with the FBI agents as they negotiate with the kidnapper.

Riding in Cars with Boys

Riding in Cars with Boys · 2001

Riding in Cars with Boys

MovieDramaComedy

In 1965, a young woman with dreams of becoming a writer has a son at the age of 15 and struggles to make things work with the drug-addicted father.

Nixon

MovieDramaHistory

A look at President Richard M. Nixon—a man carrying the fate of the world on his shoulders while battling the self-destructive demands from within—spanning his troubled boyhood in California to the shocking Watergate scandal that would end his Presidency.

Farinelli

Farinelli · 1994

MovieHistoryDrama

The life and career of Italian opera singer Farinelli, considered one of the greatest castrato singers of all time.

Love & Mercy

Love & Mercy · 2015

MovieDramaMusic

In the late 1960s, the Beach Boys' Brian Wilson stops touring, produces "Pet Sounds" and begins to lose his grip on reality. By the 1980s, under the sway of a controlling therapist, he finds a savior in Melinda Ledbetter.

Kinsey

Kinsey is a portrait of researcher Alfred Kinsey, driven to uncover the most private secrets of a nation. What begins for Kinsey as a scientific endeavor soon takes on an intensely personal relevance, ultimately becoming an unexpected journey into the mystery of human behavior.

Rate this film

Your ratings make Midnight smarter