The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar is the first of four short film adaptations to be shown on Netflix based on the work of Roald Dahl, written for the screen and directed by Wes Anderson. The story, which is indeed wonderful, is about a rich, but otherwise inconsequential man, who comes across a book detailing the life of a person who trained themselves to see without using their eyes. Inspired and amazed by this, Henry Sugar then trains himself to develop unusual powers all of his own.

Unlike Anderson’s previous Dahl adaptation, The Fantastic Mr Fox, his version of Henry Sugar is so faithful that it could more accurately be described as an enactment. It would seem that almost every word of the story is included verbatim in the film, with the characters telling the story directly to camera. This might sound dull, but is far from it. To keep the narration free flowing and engaging the story is passed like a baton from one character to another, starting with Dahl himself (Ralph Fiennes) sitting in his writing shed, moving onto Henry Sugar(Benedict Cumberbatch), and then to Imdad Kahn (Ben Kingsley), the original man who could see without his eyes from whom Henry drew his inspiration. Although the words are all Dahl, the manner in which the story is told, as a series of smaller stories folded into each other, will be familiar territory for fans of Anderson’s work, especially his most recent film The French Dispatch.

Aesthetically, The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar is a marvel and is unmistakably Anderson’s work. Each frame, largely held in straight-on, static shots, is a thing of beauty – a gorgeously designed stage set within which the actors stand and move, reciting and performing Dahl’s imaginative tale. Theatricality is usually a state that cinema does all it can to avoid, but here it is a clear stylistic choice, which is so heavily leaned into as to give the piece a fascinating strangeness. There are dramatic lighting changes, sets that move around the actors, and back projection which is used in a deliberately artificial way. Anderson has done this sort of thing before, but in the past it has been a charming quirk of style. Here it is the plan for the entire film and is highly effective, making Anderson’s film the perfect jewel box within which to present one of Dahl’s most enjoyable tales.

The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar is a faithful rendition of Dahl’s delightfully odd story, beautifully adorned by a top form Wes Anderson’ making fine use of his signature style, and performed by an excellent cast of star actors.

The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar is currently on Netflix

Share on Facebook

Tweet

Follow us

Save