England, My England: The Story of Henry Purcell

Henry Purcell (1659-1695) was one of the greatest English composers, a baroque master who produced a wealth of remarkable music—especially vocal pieces—over a relatively brief lifespan, first in the service of King Charles II and later, following the Glorious Revolution, for William and Mary. Unfortunately, as very little is known about Purcell's life, this 1995 biopic from director Tony Palmer and John Osborne (the noted playwright whose unfinished script was completed after his death) takes a highly speculative route, imagining the details of the composer's life. The story is seen through the eyes of an actor (Simon Callow) doing research during the 1960s, an era presented as a distant mirror, so to speak, of the years of social and political upheaval in which Purcell (played by Michael Ball) lived. The opulent historical period material—covering Purcell's life from his days as a precocious boy chorister through his checkered professional career and domestic difficulties—works well, despite Callow's tendency to ham it up in a second role as Charles I (and the film's weird comic depiction of King William), while the musical excerpts, in which the English Baroque Soloists and Monteverdi Choir are conducted by the knowledgeable John Eliot Gardiner, are especially fine. The 20th-century episodes, on the other hand, are both heavy-handed and trite, and the 152-minute film might have been whittled down by a good half-hour. Nonetheless, England, My England's virtues are sufficient to make this a strong optional purchase. Aud: C, P. (F. Swietek)