Charles I: Downfall of a King (2019)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Charles I: Downfall of a King is a documentary film in three parts which premiered on British television (BBC) in 2019.

 

Here is some basic information about this film:

 

** Director: Tom Cholmondeley

** Host and presenter: Lisa Hilton

** Language: English

** Subtitles: English

** Run time: 3 x 60 minutes = 180 minutes

 

Several persons are interviewed in the film. 

 

Here are the names of the names of the participants (listed in alphabetical order):

 

** Anthony Adolph

** Justin Champion (1960-2020)

** Jessie Childs

** Jonathan Healey

** Leanda de Lisle

** Jane Ohlmeyer

** Dominic Pearce

** Joad Raymond

** Desmond Shawe-Taylor

** Charles Spencer

** Andrea Zuvich

 

Several historical moments have been reconstructed by modern actors (who act but do not speak).

 

Here are some names:

 

** Charles I (1600-1649) (the King) played by Will O’Connell

** Henrietta Maria (1600-1669) (the Queen) played by Doireann McKenna

** Lucy Hay (1599-1660) (Lady of the Bedchamber) played by Caroline Tinsley

** John Pym (1584-1643) (MP) played by Brian McCardie

** Thomas Lunsford (1610-1653) (Lieutenant of the Tower of London) played by Adrian O’Pray

 

As stated above, there are three episodes.

 

Here are the headlines:

 

Episode # 1 = Two Worlds Collide

Episode # 2 = A Nation Divided

Episode # 3 = The Final Showdown

 

The film focuses on 50 days at the end of 1641 and the beginning of 1642 which were highly significant for the development of English history.

 

There is a conflict between King Charles I and Parliament. There is also a conflict between Protestants and Catholics in England.

 

At the same time, there is a rebellion in Ireland: another conflict between Protestants and Catholics.

 

What do reviewers say about this film?

 

On IMDb it has a rating of 77 percent which corresponds to a rating of 3.9 stars on Amazon.

 

On Amazon there are at the moment 58 ratings of this product, 58 with reviews.

 

The average rating is 3.5 stars which corresponds to a rating of 70 percent.

 

Here are the details

 

5 stars = 32 percent

4 stars = 31 percent

3 stars = 11 percent

2 stars = 11 percent

1 star = 16 percent

 

A majority is positive: 63 percent offer four or five stars. A substantial minority is negative: 27 percent offer only one or two stars. A small group wants to be in the middle: 11 percent offer three stars.

 

As you can see, there are many positive reviews. I agree with some of them. It is easy to say something positive about this production.

 

What is good?

** The historical experts are well-chosen

** Key historical documents are well-chosen

** The locations are well-chosen

** The camera work is great

** The film is very informative

** Lisa Hilton is highly committed to her task

 

As you can see, a substantial minority of the reviews are negative. I agree with some of them. It is easy to say something negative about this product.

 

What is wrong?

# 1. The host and presenter Lisa Hilton appears constantly on the screen. Do we really need to see a close-up of her face so many times? This is a case of overkill.

 

Obviously, we want to see the host and presenter of the film, but we do not need to see her face so much.

 

# 2. As stated above, the film focuses on 50 days at the end of 1641 and the beginning of 1642. But the film stops in the middle of the story.

 

King Charles and Queen Henrietta have left London and they are hiding at Hampton Court. What happens next? Where is the rest of the story? How does it end?

 

There are three episodes. Many reviewers call for a fourth episode which could tell us what happens to the main characters after 1642.

 

** King Charles I was born in 1600. He lived until 1649 when he was executed. The last seven years of his life (1642-1649) are not covered. Why not?

 

Lisa Hilton begins each episode by telling us that he was executed, but how and why? When and where? She does not answer any of these questions.

 

** Queen Henrietta Maria was also born in 1600. She lived until 1669. The final years of her life (1642-1669) are not covered. Why not?

 

** The politician John Pym was born in 1584. He lived until 1643. The final year of his life (1642-1643) is not covered. Why not?

 

In short: this film covers events in 1641 and 1642 in great detail, but then it stops and the story is left hanging in the air. Lisa Hilton wants to tell a story. Why does she not continue until she gets to the end?

 

# 3. One historical expert makes an odd claim about the Irish rebellion of 1641. She says: never have so many Irish people died in such a short time.

 

This claim is not true. The Irish rebellion of 1641 cost many lives. Recent estimates say a low figure is 4,000 and a high figure is 12,000 lives.

 

But the Irish famine 1845-1852 had a much higher death toll: around one million deaths.

 

# 4. At the end of the third and final episode, Lisa Hilton makes a bold statement. She says without the conflict between King Charles I and Parliament in 1641-1642 there would be no American revolution and no French revolution.

 

This statement is neither explained in any way nor supported by any evidence.

 

If you wish to make such a bold statement, I think you should elaborate. I think you should offer some evidence to support it. But this does not happen.

 

Unfair criticism

Some of the negative reviews are unfair. Some reviewers claim the film contains numerous unfair attacks on US President Donald Trump. They are upset about it and this is why they offer a low rating.

 

This claim is unfair. Donald Trump is mentioned, this is true, but only once in a film which runs for three hours. He is not mentioned by Lisa Hilton but by one of the historical experts.

 

We can discuss if the reference to Trump is fair or not. But it is not fair to reject a documentary film about English history, which runs for three hours, just because Trump is mentioned in one sentence.

 

Conclusion

I must consider the positive and the negative elements. Having done this, I am ready to present my verdict.

 

I like this film and I want to give it a good rating, but I cannot go all the way to the top, because there are some flaws, which cannot be ignored. I have to remove one star because of these flaws.

 

This is why I think this film about the downfall of King Charles I deserves a rating of four stars (80 percent).

 

REFERENCES

 

# 1. Books

 

Charles I:

A Political Life

By Richard Cust

(2007)

 

Killers of the King:

The Men Who Dared to Execute Charles I

By Charles Spencer

(2014) (2015)

 

The White King:

Charles I, Traitor, Murderer, Martyr

By Leanda de Lisle

(2017)

 

Charles I

By Mark Perry

(2019)

 

# 2. A documentary film

 

Charles I: The Royal Martyr

** Director: Ruth Wood

** Writer: Simon Kirk 

** Narrator: Michael Leighton

** Run time: 53 minutes

** Released in 1994

 

*****

Charles I

(1600-1649)

King of England, Scotland and Ireland

1625-1649

 

*****

Henrietta Maria

(1600-1669)

Queen of England, Scotland and Ireland

1625-1649

 

*****

The British politician

John Pym

(1584-1643)

*****

Sonny Boy (2011)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sonny Boy is a Dutch historical drama (based on a true story) which premiered in 2011.

 

A German version was shown on German television (ARD) in 2022.

 

For a while, it was available on the ARD website. This review is based on the German version of the drama.

 

Here is some basic information about it:

 

** Director: Maria Peters

** Writers: Pieter van de Waterbeemd and Maria Peters

** Based on a book by Annejet van der Zijl (2004)

** Run time: 130 minutes

 

The cast includes the following:

 

** Sergio Hasselbaink as Waldemar Nods (as an adult) (1908-1945) – Rika’s second husband – the father of Sonny Boy

** Angelo Arnhem as Waldemar Nods (age 13) (1921)

** Ricky Koole as Rika van der Lans (1891-1945) – mother of Sonny Boy

** Marcel Hensema as Willem Hagenaar - Rika’s first husband

** Eliya Altena as Waldy Nods (nickname Sonny Boy) (age 6) (1929-2015)

** Daniel van Wijk as Waldy Nods (nickname Sonny Boy) (age 11-15)

** Ruben Brinkman as Cornelis “Kees” Chardon (1919-1945) – a member of the Dutch resistance movement during World War II

 

Since this drama is based on a true story, the basic facts are part of the public record. They are not a secret. This is why I feel free to mention some of them in this review.

 

While this drama is based on a true story, it is not a documentary film. It is a dramatized version of events. Not everything happened exactly as shown here. But the basic story is true.

 

In the beginning of this drama, there are two separate story lines: the first is about Waldemar Nods, while the second is about Rika van der Lans.

 

In 1928, when Waldemar and Rika meet each other, the two lines come together. They stay together for the next sixteen years.

 

In 1944, when Waldemar and Rika are arrested by the Germans, the two lines separate again, because Waldemar and Rika are sent to different locations.

 

Both lines come to an end in 1945.

 

The first line until 1928

Waldemar Nods is born in 1908 in Paramaribo, Suriname, which was at the time a Dutch colony. He is a black boy in a black family.

 

In 1921, Waldemar is a clever child who does well in school. His family plans to send him to the Netherlands so he can study at the university.

 

In 1927, at the age of 19, he sails across the Atlantic Ocean from Suriname to the Netherlands.

 

According to the plan, he is going to stay with an uncle who already lives in the Hague, but the plan does not work out. He is not really welcome.

 

In 1928, while he is looking for another place to stay, he learns that Rika van der Lans, a mother of four children, wants to rent out a room to a tenant.

 

When he meets Rika and asks if he can rent a room in her house, she says yes.

 

Now he has a place to stay.

 

The second line until 1928

Rika van der Lans is born in 1891 in a Catholic family in the Netherlands.

 

In 1911, at the age of 20, she meets a young man whose name is Willem Hagenaar.

 

They fall in love and they want to get married. But Rika’s family cannot allow this, because Willem is not Catholic, he is a Protestant.

 

Rika and Willem do not care about the objections. In 1911, they get married, and soon they have four children: Win, Jan, Henk, and Bertha.

 

By 1925 and 1926, the marriage is not going well. Rika wants to leave Willem. One days she packs up her things, takes all four children and leaves the family home. She and the children move to the Hague.

 

In 1927, Rika rents a house for herself and the children. In order to make some money to pay the rent, she decides that she will rent out a room to a tenant.

 

In 1928, a young man from Suriname shows up at her place. He has been told that she wants to rent out a room. He wants to know if he can rent this room. She looks at him and say yes. This is how Waldemar and Rika meet each other.

 

The two lines come together 1928-1944

Waldemar and Rika get along well. Waldemar and the four children also get along well. Soon Waldemar and Rika fall in love. In 1929, they have a child whose name is Waldy. But they call him Sonny Boy. 

 

Why? 

 

Where does this name come from?

 

Sonny Boy is the title of a song that is popular in 1928. The singer is Al Jolson (1886-1950). He sings the song in the film The Singing Fool.

 

The birth of Sonny Boy causes a scandal:

 

Rika is a white woman who has left her husband and who is almost 20 years older than Waldemar, who is a black man from Suriname.

 

According to the norms of the day, they are allowed to talk to each other. But they are not supposed to become a couple and certainly not supposed to have a child.

 

Win and Jan, the oldest of Rika’s four children, are so upset about this that they decide to leave the house and return to their father. The two youngest children, Henk and Bertha, remain in the house with Rika and Waldemar.

 

When Willem learns what has happened, he is furious. He travels to the Hague to complain.

 

He says Rika must hand over the two younger children (Henk and Bertha) to him, and he says he wants to have custody of all four children.

 

In the future, he says, Rika will only be allowed to see her children one time in one year. She is devastated, but she cannot do anything about this. Since he is the father, he knows the court will support his demands.

 

Waldemar and Rika stay together with Sonny Boy.

 

Willem is angry. He wants revenge. He has taken the four children away from their mother, but this is not enough for him. He does everything he can to make life difficult for Waldemar and Rika. When Rika asks him for a divorce, he says no, and for several years he continues to refuse this request.

 

In 1931, Waldemar completes his studies and he gets a job as an accountant.

 

In 1934, they move to Scheveningen on the coast where they open a guesthouse.

 

In 1937, Waldemar and Rika are married. After many years, Willem has finally allowed Rika to divorce him.

 

In 1940, the Netherlands is invaded and occupied by Nazi Germany. At first, the family is not harmed in any way. The guesthouse can continue, almost as before the war. 

 

But there is one significant change: now the guests are German officers.

 

Waldemar speaks German very well, so the German guests can communicate with him. Neither Waldemar nor Rika like the Germans, but they cannot say how they feel. They know it is dangerous to be honest in this situation.

 

In 1942, they have to move to a new address. The old house is located on the coast. But now the coast is off limits. The Germans are building the so-called Atlantic Wall which is supposed to protect Nazi Germany and the occupied areas from an Allied invasion.

 

Waldemar and Rika find a new location for their guesthouse. Since Rika is the mother of five children, she is allowed to have a large house and she can get ration coupons for a large family.

 

A member of the Dutch resistance movement Cornelis “Kees” Chardon contacts Rika and asks her if she is willing to help the resistance. They need to find a hiding place for some Dutch Jews.

 

Rika and Waldemar discuss the matter. They know it is dangerous. But they also know what it is like to be in a difficult situation. They want to help.

 

The Dutch resistance pays a small amount of money for each person they are hiding. This payment is necessary, because Waldemar and Rika have to buy extra food to feed the refugees.

 

In 1943, they are not only hiding some Dutch Jews. They are also hiding a deserter from the SS who regretted that he volunteered for this job.

 

In 1944, their luck runs out: they are betrayed. German soldiers come to the guesthouse where the hidden Jews and the SS deserter are found. Waldemar and Rika are both arrested. The Germans send them to different locations. Husband and wife are separated

 

The first line 1944-1945

Waldemar is sent to camp Neuengamme where he is relatively safe for a while. Since he knows German and since he is an accountant, he is given a job in the postal office.

 

In April 1945, the prisoners are moved out of the camp. More than 4,000 prisoner including Waldemar are placed on the cruise ship SS Cap Arcona which is anchored not far from the coast.

 

On 3 May 1945, the ship is attacked by allied forces who believe the ship is transporting German soldiers. They do not know the passengers are prisoners from German concentration camps. It is a horrible mistake.

 

When the attack begins, Waldemar realizes that the ship will be destroyed and everyone onboard will be killed. He jumps into the water and begins to swim towards the beach.

 

He is a good swimmer. He makes it. But as he walks ashore, he is seen by two German child soldiers who are guarding the beach. They shoot him and kill him.

 

Only four days later, on 7 May 1945, Germany surrenders. The next day World War II in Europe is over.

 

Waldemar does not survive the war.

 

The second line 1944-1945

Rika is sent to concentration camp located in Vught where she is placed for a while. Later she is moved to Ravensbrück.

 

In February 1945, she is taken ill and she dies. This happens only three months before the end of the war in Europe.

 

A third line appears

When we get to the end of the drama, a third story line appears. This line is about Waldy Nods whose nickname is Sonny Boy.

 

In 1944, when his parents are arrested, Waldy is not taken by the Germans. He is placed with some family members on his mother’s side.

 

Sonny boy survives the war. But for a long time, he does not know what happened to his parents.

 

He is born 1929. In 1939, when the war begins, he is 10. In 1945, when the war ends, he is 16.

 

He grows up in postwar Germany. He gets married, but his first marriage does not last long.

 

He gets married again and his second marriage lasts longer than the first.

 

He becomes a journalist who specializes in financial affairs.

 

He lives a long life. In 2004, when the book about his parents and himself is published, he is 75.

 

In 2011, when this historical drama premieres, he is 82. He dies in 2015.

 

Ratings and reviews

What do reviewers say about this historical drama?

 

On IMDb it has a rating of 67 percent, which corresponds to a rating of 3.4 stars on Amazon.

 

On Amazon there are at the moment 35 ratings of this product, 16 with reviews.

 

The average rating is 4.4 stars, which corresponds to a rating of 88 percent.

 

What do I think? In my opinion, the former rating is too low, while the latter rating is more appropriate.

 

Sonny Boy is a remarkable historical drama. The script is well-written; the actors play their roles well, and the story is often highly emotional.

 

Some scenes are uplifting and life-affirming, while other scenes will make you sad. The other scenes will make you angry and probably fill you with indignation.

 

In some fictional dramas, where the main characters are facing serious problems, love conquers all. But this drama is not fiction. It is based on a true story. In this drama, love conquers much, but not all.

 

Sadly, in this drama, the forces of evil are stronger than the forces of good. Some scenes are hard to watch.

 

Waldemar and Rika want to help the Dutch resistance movement. When asked to hide some Dutch Jews, they say yes, even though they know that they are placing themselves in great danger by doing so.

 

They have good hearts. They care for other people. They want to help. In the end, they both pay the ultimate price for their care and compassion.

 

The story of Sonny Boy and his parents – Waldemar Nods and Rika van der Lans – deserves to be told, and in this drama, it is done very well.

 

I want to go all the way to the top with this product. I think it deserves a rating of five stars (100 percent).

 

REFERENCES

 

The Boy Between Worlds by Annejet van der Zijl, an English version of the Dutch book from 2004, was published in 2019.

 

On Amazon there are at the moment more than 2,600 ratings of this product, more than 700 with reviews.

 

The average rating is 4.4 stars, which corresponds to a rating of 88 percent.

 

The allied attack on the SS Arcona in May 1945 is covered in the following book:

 

The Nazi Titanic: The Incredible Untold Story of a Doomed Ship in World War II by Robert P. Watson (2016)

 

*****

The Boy Between Worlds

by Annejet van der Zijl

(2019)

*****

 

The Dutch author

Annejet van der Zijl

(born 1962)

 

*****

On this blog

My review of

The Resistance Banker (2018)

and six other Dutch historical dramas

Posted in August 2020

 

*****