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| Movie Review: The Other Boleyn Girl Alternate Title: The Scarlet B
Story: How can they make such
a disappointing film when in possession of some of history's best material
to base their film upon? The oft told story of Henry VIII and
his relationship with Ann Boleyn, whose marriage changed England
forever, is the meat of this tale. Yet what we are left with is a jumbled,
disjointed, poorly scripted, uncomfortable, costumed period piece.
The film was directed by newcomer Justin Chadwick
and written by Peter Morgan whose previous films were
knockouts (The Queen and The last King of Scotland).
It is based on the juicy, historically questionable novel by Philippa
Gregory. I am in the middle of reading the book and it is
deliciously harlequin and melodramatic. That said, if you are a big Henry VIII and Tudor fan like me, there
are some things to sink your teeth into here. There's lush costumes,
court intrigue, incest, beheadings, adultery, treason and charges of
incest. If you can get beyond the annoying camera work that has us watching
a majority of the scenes in a peek-a-boo fashion (behind curtains, doors,
through grillwork, forests and blurry windows) there are things to enjoy
in a Tudor kind of way. The last scene has us looking at a very young Elizabeth, who was the
offspring of Ann and Henry. She grows up and becomes the amazing Queen
Elizabeth and is the meat of two much better recent films starring Cate
Blanchett. Acting: Natalie Portman (Anne Boleyn)
is shrill and most likely would be diagnosed as bi-polar in today's
world. Scarlett Johansson (Mary Boleyn) plays the 'good'
sister and simply does her look, earnest staring routine that we have
seen before. Eric Bana (Henry VIII) is a fine actor
and I would think he would leave this film off of his resume. Kristin
Scott Thomas, Mark Rylance, David Morrissey, Jim Sturgess and
Ana Torrent do the best and worst with what they have
to say. Predilection: I am a Tudor groupie and am looking
forward to the new season of The Tudors on Showtime
starting on March 30, 2008. Jonathan Rhys Meyers plays
a terrific King Henry.
Critters: Beautiful horses, palace and hunting dogs
and sheep.
Food: He was a King. Food was plentiful.
Sex Spectrum: 'G' rated sex scenes - mostly close
ups of kissing.
Blatant Product Placement: This does nothing for
the continuation of today's Monarchy.
Soundtrack: Soaring and filled with violins.
Opening Titles: The three Boleyn children romping
in a golden field as their father plans their future with subtle white
type superimposed over the field.
Visual Art: The King had good taste.
Theater Audience: A handful of Henry the VIII groupies
like me.
Weather: The weather was surprisingly good for England.
Sappy Factor: 0
Quirky Meter: 0
Squirm Scale: I squirmed at the revisionist history.
Drift Factor: I started to look at my watch after
45 minutes.
Predictability Level: High if you have ever seen
any of the films produced on this topic.
Tissue Usage: 0
Oscar Worthy: No
Big Screen or Rental: Neither - unless you are a
Henry the VIII groupie. Ann's life has been adapted in different media
including novels, plays, songs, operas, TV and film. Some of the more
recent one are Anne of the Thousand Days, The Other Boleyn Girl,
The Tudors, The Six Wives of Henry VIII, and Doomed Queen Anne.
For more films on the whole Tudor clan go to this website: http://tudorhistory.org/movies/
Length: Two pain in the neck hours
LOBO HOWLS: 3
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