Wolf Hall

Based on the Booker Prize winning novels Wolf Hall and Bring Up the Bodies by Hilary Mantel, this BBC historical drama stars Mark Rylance as Thomas Cromwell, advisor and legal counsel first to Cardinal Wolsey (Jonathan Pryce) and then to King Henry VIII (Damian Lewis). Cromwell, a lawyer, was not born to power but has earned the respect of Henry for his intelligence and his loyalty to Wolsey, a combination generally not seen in the aristocracy. Wolf Hall has the look of a grand costume drama but its focus is on the nuance and detail of the way that power is negotiated behind the scenes. Big drama is here to be sure—this is the reign of Henry VIII, who had six wives and controversially birthed the Church of England, after all—but this series is focused on the unflappable, practically unemotional Cromwell as he works to annul Henry's childless marriage to Catherine of Aragon (Joanne Whalley) and then prosecute Henry's second wife, Anne Boleyn (Claire Foy), for adultery. Rylance, a star of the British stage, is superb; watching him hold the center of this gorgeous period piece is a lesson in thespian control, precision, and deep-rooted habitation of a role: his quiet assurance and guarded emotions are in sharp contrast to the flamboyant personality and explosive emotional turns of Lewis's Henry. Although it ends before the story is over—the third book in Mantel's trilogy, The Mirror and the Light, has not yet been published—this is a riveting historical drama about power in the Tudor era. Extras include behind-the-scenes featurettes, and cast and crew interviews. Highly recommended. (S. Axmaker)