Rating of
2.5/4
good story, mediocre story-telling
Tino - wrote on 05/22/08
The Other Boleyn Girl is a period piece to say the very least. It flaunts the decor of both scenery and characters every chance it gets. The concepts and character choices may seem ridiculous now, but during this era, they were very relevant. There is pretty good acting here, especially from Portman and Sturgess. It is an excellent story, that can be brutal, heartful, and hard to watch. That is where the film fails. The problem is not in the story, but in the direction. The story-telling is choppy, with some unconvincing plot devices. For example, less than half-way into the two-hour film, Portman's character Anne, is banished to France for an indefinite amount of time. Months apparently pass by in maybe 5 minutes, without any visual displays of time, then Anne is brought back home, a changed woman. It's a few less-then-believable things like this that bring the story of power gained then lost that wants to be like a Renaissance version of Raging Bull and There Will Be Blood, but it definitely falls short of these landmarks of human greed, lust, and horrific ambition.
