The King (2019) Movie Summary

The movie talks about prince Henry the fifth also called hal whose the eldest among his brothers and the legal heir of his father’s throne.

Since he hates his father’s ways of ruling and his greed to expand England and take over other countries by launching wars with most European countries, he would prefer not to succeed, spending his days whoring around and drinking with his friend John, Hal’s father summons him informing Hal that his younger brother will inherit the throne instead of him.

Thomas (Hal’s younger brother) is sent to fight Hotspur who rebel’s after the king refused to return back his cousin, but Hal arrives at the scene and be the one who kills Hotspur stealing the glory as Thomas sees it, shortly after Thomas dies in a war causing Hal to be the only heir of the throne, and ends up being crowned after his father’s death.

Hal is determined not to be like his father, aiming for peace, while his actions being seen as weakness. Hal’s sister (the queen of Denmark) warns him from the nobles as they have their own interests and will never fully reveal their true intentions.

Hal interrogates a captured assassin who claims to have been sent by King Charles of France to assassinate him, then hal declared war against France after William the chief of Justice’s advice, And appoints John as his chief military strategist.

While the English army prepares for the war the French Dauphin follows them and tries to provoke Hal, and as the English army sees the huge number of French army they’re going to face, Dorset advices Hal to retreat while John suggests to continue as it’s going to rain tonight which going to cause a muddy battlefield, and the French forces are going to be weighed down by their heavy Armour and horses which the English army is not going to use.

John’s plan works and the English army wins while John dies in the battle. Hal then orders the execution of all French prisoners for fear that they might regroup.

After Hal’s victory King Charles of France surrenders and offers the hand of his daughter Catherine.

Hal returns to England with his new wife, then she confronts him about why he invaded France and denied that the French assassin was sent by her father or the insult done by her brother.

Hal realizes that all of this was William’s doings. And as Hal confronts him he admits shamelessly saying that peace comes only through victory, then hal gets angry and kills him, then returns to Catherine asking her to always speak the truth to him.