![]() These two aren’t just star-crossed lovers but partners. A near-two hour silent film can feel like a slog, particularly as the film doesn’t mire itself with intertitles, but it provides a serious arc for its characters. With that being said, When Knighthood Was in Flower makes every effort to chart the Mary and Brandon relationship from beginning to end from first fleeting glance to their final reconciliation. It’s understandable why these moments were changed, to heighten the spontaneous and all-consuming love between the pair, but it always bothers me. In fact, their relationship didn’t even begin until they started traveling to France – Brandon was the chaperone meant to deliver the new bride to her groom. Also, there’s no proof that Mary dressed as a boy and ran off with Brandon. The two were friends well before this their friendship was very temperamental with Henry exiling and returning Brandon to court numerous times before and after the latter’s relationship with Mary. I’m all for giving Mary the agency in this case, promoting Brandon to draw him closer to her, but it negates the years of friendship Brandon and Henry had. The key change that always bothers me is how Brandon is just some random guy that pops into town and attracts the eye of Mary who gets him a space at court. ![]() The problem is with the intention of why certain changes are made, and When Knighthood Was in Flower does everything that Disney’s The Sword and the Rose (1953) does with this story. The historical inaccuracies won’t bother anyone not named Kristen, and really one should never expect a movie to get history right. The two’s forbidden romance is soon discovered by the King, putting the young couple in grave danger. Mary refuses to marry the elderly King of France, both because of his advanced age and because she’s fallen for the commoner Charles Brandon (Forest Stanley). Mary Tudor (Davies) is the willful younger sister of King Henry VIII (Lyn Harding). The first million-dollar film, When Knighthood Was in Flower is a fun showcase for its leading lady, an overwhelming look at the willpower of early filmmakers, and one of the best film restorations available on Blu-ray. Marion Davies epic period drama, When Knighthood Was in Flower, draws on many of the stereotypical devices we often see in Mary Tudor/Brandon stories, but what it fails historically it more than makes up for in ambition. The illicit romance between King Henry VIII’s sister Mary Tudor and her relationship with Charles Brandon didn’t directly inspire Shakespeare, but the dream makers of Hollywood have always played it that way, leading to some techniques that leave me – a big Tudorphile – rolling their eyes. Since the Bard wrote it out way back when, Hollywood has loved a good Romeo and Juliet story. This post is written in conjunction with the Summer Under the Stars blogathon
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