Stars: Michael Ball, Simon Callow, Corin Redgrave, Letitia Dean, John Shrapnel, Robert Stephens

Director: Tony Palmer

Summary: A dramatisation of the life and times of Henry Purcell. Little is known about the enigmatic composer, but director Tony Palmer makes up for this by contextualising his story in late 17th Century England, and allows Purcell's music to do most of the talking.

This British biopic attempts to chronicle the life of 17th-century tunesmith Henry Purcell. The filmmakers have had to do much speculating about Britain's first great composer, as little is known about his life back then. It is known that Purcell had been a chorister as a child and then became the court composer for three kings: Charles, James, and William. Before his death at age 37, Purcell penned over 1,000 songs and sired a few children, most of whom died at birth. While little is actually known of Purcell, the film successfully recreates the tumultuous era in which he lived. Running parallel to Purcell's story is a subplot set in the 1960s, when English society and values seemed to be rapidly eroding, much as they were in the composer's time. The story concerns a playwright's attempts to research the life of Purcell for his next play. In the last part of the film, several lavish musical numbers from Purcell's vast repertoire are presented.

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Aspect Ratio:	16:9
Main Language:	English
Region:	Region 2
Special Features:	Bonus C D
Subtitles:	Spanish, Italian, German, English
Year:	1995
Release Date:	August 31, 2009
Runtime:	153 minutes
Certification:
Catalogue Number:	5186551332
Keywords:	English, Henry, England, My, Drama, Historical, Purcell, Biopic, Dramatisation
Genre:	Drama