Rating of
1/4
An off day for Werner Herzog I guess?
Indyfreak - wrote on 11/10/17
A strangely disjointed and mostly uninteresting biopic which is a shame because the historical figure at the center sounds like an interesting person in real life. The famed desert explorer Gertrude Bell deserves more than 'QUEEN OF THE DESERT' which presents her as a fussy and shallow busybody that shags every man she encounters.
Little is paid attention to the contributions she made as a trained historian and archaeologist, from Oxford no less! They do remember enough to explain how she was involved in the political turmoil that engulfed the Middle East after World War One. But it's not enough.
Aside from Robert Pattinson as T.E. Lawrence, most of the cast is wasted. Lead actress Nicole Kidman is simply boring as Gertrude Bell. James Franco is badly miscast as a British civil servant.
What is shocking about this is that Werner Herzog directed this sloppy piece of Oscar bait.