The Other Boleyn Girl
Rating: 3.5/5
Starring: Scarlett Johansson, Natalie Portman, Erik Bana
Directed by: Justin Chadwick
Release Date: February 29, 2008
Capitalizing on America’s love affair with English period pieces, Hollywood once again journeys back in time with an intriguing yet unexceptional adaptation of Philippa Gregory’s best-selling novel, “The Other Boleyn Girl.”
From a long line of Tudor dramatizations, this latest installment has all the necessary ingredients for a gripping adaption: a beautiful A-list cast, a twisted plotline of court intrigue, and an era which lends easily to stunning costumes and sets. Nevertheless, the film just manages to surpass the maturity level of a highly-stylized chick flick.
“The Other Boleyn Girl” has neither the immediacy and epic scope of Cate Blanchett’s “Elizabeth,” the wit and poetry of “Shakespeare In Love,” nor the intricate political scheming of Showtime’s sensational, if not oversexed, “The Tudors.” There is no single element that feels particularly lacking, but rather a combination of second-rate dialogue, clichéd portrayals slightly reminiscent of daytime soaps, and a certain lack of subtlety in the telling of the story.
“The Other Boleyn Girl” refers to Mary Boleyn, the commonly-overlooked sister of Anne Boleyn, King Henry VIII’s famous second wife whom he beheaded. The film provides a glimpse of this turbulent era spanning from the late stages of Henry’s marriage to Catherine of Aragon to his marriage to Anne Boleyn to her execution, through the eyes of Mary.
Given an uninspired script, Scarlett Johansson and Natalie Portman manage to deliver relatively convincing performances of the two rival sisters. Through no fault of her own, Johansson’s plain and na’ve Mary inevitably becomes outshined by Portman’s shrewd and calculating Anne. Portman’s ability to switch between the ambitious social climber and a queen humbled by fear for her life is impressive. In fact, the film’s most profound moment occurs near the end when she kneels down trembling with terror, awaiting certain death. (Apologies for the spoiler but Anne Boleyn’s death is old news by now.) As for Henry VIII, though some may complain about Erik Bana’s lack of resemblance to the king, he adequately brings out the vanity and fickleness of a ruler who was, for better or worse, a superstar of his time.
Perhaps the film’s greatest weakness is its frequent and abrupt time shifts. These lapses detract from the story’s credibility and leave little room to explore the dynamics of court and the relationships between characters. Within minutes, Henry falls in love with Anne, divorces his queen and marries and crowns Anne. At times, the film skips from scene to scene as if only to advance the plot; by the second hour, it becomes clear that the writers were trying to cover as much of the book as possible, with the result that everything is passable but nothing is spectacular.
Nevertheless, for fans of the Tudor Age, “The Other Boleyn Girl” provides a window into a truly chaotic period of English history, one in which the King’s romantic whims became entwined with state policy. Do not let this review give the impression that the film is less than mediocre. It is an entertaining picture and an intriguing sketch of the Tudor court in its own right. The observant viewer will also find that half the cast of minor characters from “Atonement” is in this movie.
Unfortunately, for a tale with such potential and actors of this caliber, the sophistication and intensity one would expect are simply not there.