Sometimes you just want to double-dip (Oh, I know it’s tacky)
Anne and Mary Boleyn are sisters. They grew up together, they supported each other and they kept out of each other’s way. Mary gets married to a gentleman in the country, becoming very happy with her simple life. Anne stays away from guys, not being the prettier of the two, and tends to find trouble unintentionally. When Anne gets a chance to not only help her family out, but also help herself out by becoming the mistress for the King of England, she ends up hurting him on a horse ride. While hurt, the king falls for Mary and ends up…. umm…. doing his thing. She produces a son for him, something the queen cannot do, but is shortly denounced by the king when Anne takes another crack at him. Playing with his mind and his desires, she lures him away from Mary and forces him, in her way, to send Mary and the queen packing. Will Anne end up getting her way and screwing over her sister in the process? You must watch to see.
First, the good things. I haven’t seen Natalie Portman so evil in a role. She is wicked-evil. She plays the part of the b***h perfectly. Once she gets rolling with the king, it’s amazing. On the flipside to that coin, this is the first time I’ve seen Scarlett Johansson in a likable role. Normally, she plays a ‘helpless’ daughter-esque role, but here she’s firm on her word and quite innocent. She is very much different from Portman’s character and this contrast makes each stand out so well. It is as if they play off of each other to make their roles stand out, whatever it is… it works. As for the supporting roles, David Morrissey as their uncle, pure evil. If family truly worked like this, if this was in-fact a historical representation of family back in the day, family reunions must have been one depressing event.
Alright, acting aside, the movie itself was okay to good. I think that it worked in terms of storytelling. You, the audience, could certainly keep up with what’s going on. While it’s certainly predictable, the ending does leave a bit of a shock to the system. The main problem with this film, which most novel thumping fans will tell you, is that they left out detail. You can clearly see that this movie is in fifth gear from beginning until end. There aren’t any dead periods, nothing to think about, it just quickly (very quickly) moves forward. What’s wrong with this? It’s a drama! Dramas don’t do this, their stories are created much like a nice creamy icing on a cake, slowly and with a delicate touch. Action movies move quickly (very quickly) and are sloppy, but you forgive them because they’re action movies. Action generally is a faster-paced activity than a drama. So, that’s where The Other Boleyn Girl fails, it’s way too fast for a drama. They took the valleys out of the story telling and left you with one gigantic peak that makes the story build then finish. You need more details in-between, you need more of a storyline, more plot points, you need more build to the climax. The movie cannot offer this like the novel. For that reason, the movie just feels a bit empty, too rushed.
With that said, it’s tough translating a book to film. The only movie in the last two decades that did this pretty darn accurately is the Lord of the Rings trilogy. At times, that had too much detail. Anyway, if you haven’t read the book, you’ll like the film. It brings plenty of drama, without much complication, but moves pretty fast to keep your attention intact (so many male movie goers will take this one for the team without a worry or a bore). For fans of the book, they may be slightly disappointed. As well as most of the actors/actresses came off, there still is a bit of a difference in character development from the book. As it came to my attention, Anne was much more vicious, even at the beginning of her childhood with Mary, and didn’t really turn on a dime like she did in the film.
It’s a movie you’ll want to check out, especially if you’re a fan of the book. Plus, it’s a great backstory for the movie Elizabeth.
Feel free to feel Blu…ray
Blu-ray is gorgeous. I’ve said that 1,000 times, but I’ll say it one more time, it’s simply stunning. Seeing the beauty of the period piece in high-def is something to eat up for the eye candy that it is. It also sounds beautiful, though there aren’t many opportunities for the sound to stand out as much as the video. Regardless, if you own a Blu-ray, you’ll be happy.
As for the features, here’s what you get:
– Deleted & Extended Scenes
– “To Be a Lady”: Featurette on the life of a lady and court etiquette in the 16th
Century England
– “Translating History to the Screen”: Featurette on how filmmakers brought the
best-selling book to life
– Members of the Court Biographies – Go in-depth and explore the real lives of
Anne Boleyn, King Henry VIII and others
– Camera Tests with Narration by director Justin Chadwick
– “Inside the Court” – A Picture-in-Graphics track with in-depth facts and trivia
A solid set of special features, especially the last one. I think that people might get more entertainment out of these than the actual film itself, which isn’t surprising. Most people who are interested in the film will certainly take in and appreciate the historical side of things. And the honesty the filmmakers provide on how tough it was to translate the book, maintain the historical period perfectly and then bring it to the silver screen, make the features that much better.
It’s good to be king, but not great
For the shortcoming of the translation from novel to movie, The Other Boleyn Girl is good. It might disappoint some fans of the novel, but it will certainly be interesting for everyone. The strong acting from the leading ladies will keep you interested in the storyline, but don’t expect too much in terms of depth and detail. Expect nothing but the best from the Blu-ray format though, it makes the movie that much better, as do the features.
At least worth a rent, if not purchase.