"The Other Boleyn Girl" Review & Trailer

Movie: The Other Boleyn Girl	In Theaters:	Feb. 29, 2008
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for mature thematic elements, sexual content, and some violent images	Gecko Rating:

Based on the novel by Philippa Gregory and directed by Justin Chadwick, this movie is set in the era of King Henry VIII – a time when women were treated like slaves and whored out to raise their family’s standing in the world.

There’s no better example of this than the Boleyn sisters. When King Henry’s wife, Catherine of Aragon (Ana Torrent), fails to produce a male heir, the king (Eric Bana) starts looking around for a suitable vessel. He finds it in the innocent and voluptuous Mary Boleyn (Scarlett Johansson).

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Though recently married to the nondescript William Carey (Benedict Cumberbatch), Mary’s family has no trouble pimping her out to the king. After all, it’s their only hope of moving up in the world, and their attempts to pimp out their older daughter, Anne (Natalie Portman), fail when she behaves badly on a hunting trip that endangers the king’s life.

Mary soon falls for the king and produces a baby boy. But during her pregnancy, the king starts sniffing around Anne, who strikes a deal with him: Lose Mary and annul your marriage to Catherine. Though it means breaking with the Catholic Church – a real no-no at the time — that’s just what the king does.

But Anne’s grown bitter and angry, and her family — including father Sir Thomas (Mark Rylance) and uncle, the Duke of Norfolk (David Morrissey) — are worried that her demands on the king will jeopardize their new life (including their fab new rooms in the king’s court). The girls’ mother, Lady Elizabeth (Kristin Scott Thomas), is aghast at this wheeling and dealing. (But really, does she NOT know what era she’s living in? Refusing the king is a recipe for tragedy – which makes me wonder how Anne could get away with it.) 

Caught in the middle is the girls’ brother, George (Jim Sturgess), who finds himself in a really prickly spot when Anne miscarries the king’s baby and thus, her chances to save herself and her family. Things end badly for everyone involved in this Elizabethan soap opera.

There’s no doubt that this era was wild and wooly, with heads lopped off willy-nilly and a king who had a variety of psychological issues. But everything seems a bit formulaic in this movie – people are tense, greedy, and stomp around like soldiers in battle. Characters are either good or bad, and intense scenes are punctuated by someone galloping off on a horse through the wooded landscape. That said, I did love all the poofy-sleeved costumes and intrigue, with characters conspiring in shadowy corridors while others eavesdropped.

PARENTS SHOULD KNOW: It’s a story of passion, lust, betrayal, incest, and yes, some head-lopping (seen from a distance). Characters are bedded, raped, slapped around, and will do whatever is necessary to get ahead – though much of this is implied rather than shown.

Trailer:

Images: The Other Boleyn Girl, Columbia Pictures, 2008