The Other Boleyn Girl - A Review

Right off the bat I'll say this: Worst. Historical. Film. Ever.

This could easily take an award for being able to screw up a Tudor-inspired film in almost every way possible. The stories were all wrong, the characters were all wrong; the only thing I thought they did well were the costumes. That's about it. 

The film begins with Anne Boleyn, Mary Boleyn, and George Boleyn as children running in a field while their parents, Sir Thomas and Lady Elizabeth, discuss their daughters' marriage prospects with the Carey family. Already the beginning has screwed up. Based on historical evidences, there was never any indication that Anne Boleyn was a potential wife for William Carey. True enough Mary did marry William, but as the film goes on, it gives off the indication that Mary was the innocent, younger sister of Anne. The truth was far different: not only was it more likely that she was actually the elder sister, her reputation before she married was as the "very great whore," in the King of France's words. Instead, the film makes it seem as though Mary was inexperienced with matters of the world, and desirous for a simple life in the countryside as a gentlewoman. Meanwhile, Catherine of Aragon's last miscarriage is depicted as being around the same time as Mary's marriage to William - which is also false. Catherine's last known pregnancy ended with a miscarriage of a girl, not a boy, and was in 1518, not in 1520. These are only the smallest of historical transgressions with this film, but it's not a good start at all.

Not long after Mary's marriage, Sir Thomas and the Duke of Norfolk propose that Anne become King Henry's new mistress, believing she could gain a title out of it. Due to a mistake on Anne's part, Mary is instead recruited as Henry's mistress, soon falling pregnant with his child. This was not wholly inaccurate in that she was Henry's mistress, and she did fall pregnant around this time. However, there's little known about when her affair with Henry began and how long it went on for. While she embarks on this affair, Anne elopes with a courtier, Henry Percy, and consummates the marriage. When her family finds out, the marriage is supposedly dissolved and she is banished to France as a punishment. Okay, first of all, she never married him. She was secretly engaged to him around the same time Mary was with Henry, but the engagement was broken off by Cardinal Wolsey. No known sexual affairs were reported. Secondly, she was never banished to France; she was merely sent home to Hever Castle. She did live in France as a young teenager, where she developed an interest in the arts, music, writing and religious philosophy. If the film-makers had done any research at all, the idea of "banishing" Anne to France would have been more of a reward than anything since it was a hub of philosophical/theological debate and learning - something Anne would have loved. As for Mary's pregnancy, she was not pregnant with a boy at this point, but a girl.

Anne enlightening the English court of the French.

Anne's return from France to the English court was depicted as a means to ensure Henry would remain loyal to the Boleyn family. She is charged with the duty to keep Henry's focus on Mary during her pregnancy so that the family will maintain a steady rise in prominence and popularity. Instead, she attracts his attention and snidely rejects his advances in the guise of protecting her sister, which she knows is actually luring him closer to her. This was not totally inaccurate. While in reality she was not charged with helping her sister, as Henry did not pursue Anne until around 1528, she did reject his advances in some ways when she did attract his attention. Anne Boleyn was famous for being one of the very few women who refused to be his official mistress, being very protective of her virtue. There have been rumours that she had been sexually active, either with English courtiers before her marriage to Henry or with French courtiers knowing the sexual nature of the French court, but she had generally been regarded as a virtuous woman in that regard. Where the film went wrong on this was how Henry reacted. Initially he seemed entranced by her rejections, and wanting more of her, which was accurate; but when Catherine of Aragon was removed from palace and he broke with the Catholic Church, her rejection on the grounds that they were not yet married resulted in Henry raping Anne. This was one of the worst inaccuracies in the entire film. There is absolutely no evidence whatsoever that their first sexual encounter was a rape. While you might ask, "Why would there be evidence in the first place?", it is simply that Henry treated Anne like the Queen he thought her to be even before they were married, showering her constantly with gifts, and this continued long after they were married.

Queen Anne Boleyn was another problem. While the film at least got it right that she was indeed pregnant when she was crowned, it was shown as a very depressing public wedding. The coronation itself was one of magnificence, and it shouldn't have been understated in the slightest. Instead, at the grand feast and celebration of her ascension as Queen, a very slow dance was played while the public screamed "witch!" at her. Whether this actually happened in reality is unknown, but I won't lie - I wouldn't be surprised if they did. It's definitely far more realistic than HBO's The Tudors depicting William Brereton attempting to assassinate her during the journey for the coronation. When Anne gave birth to Elizabeth, the explanation given was that she was named for Henry's mother, which actually was rather true. Historians speculate that the future Queen Elizabeth I was named for either of her grandmothers as they were both named "Elizabeth." The disappointment was very much accurate for both characters. I reckon this was the only historically accurate moment in the film where I can't find any faults at all. Mary Boleyn was likely there for Elizabeth's birth (there's little reason why she wouldn't be), Anne was impatient to know the gender of her child, and Henry - while disappointed - was confident that a healthy daughter was a sign she could have a healthy son.

Anne Boleyn about to be condemned.

Anne's downfall was extremely ridiculous. While she did suffer a couple of miscarriages after Elizabeth's birth, although the film depicts only one, there is no evidence she considered committing incest with her brother, George, in order to bear the King a son. It wouldn't have crossed the mind of this great virtuous woman who protected her virginity so strongly until she was certain she would be the next Queen of England. She even swore on damnation of her soul in her last confession that she had never been unfaithful to her husband. There were accusations of incest and adultery against her at the time, but while the council was unanimous in their decision to condemn her, it was agreed around court gossip that the accusations did not hold much water. The film shows Mary going to Henry in an attempt to plead for Anne's life, and he temporarily agrees. This never happened. Mary re-married after the death of her husband to a simple soldier, William Stafford, but this was during Anne's reign, and when she revealed it to her family (after getting pregnant too), she was banished from the court and never allowed to see her family. Instead, the film makes it seem as though she left the court of her own free will, and only married William after Anne's death.

Speaking of, Anne's execution was...just bizarre. I can't even totally call it historically inaccurate simply because it was just complex. For one, her speech was very different to what is commonly used in historical dramas as detailed by Tudor chronicler, Edward Hall. Historian Antonia Fraser found an alternative source for Anne's execution speech, which was what was used in this film. I originally thought that was another screw-up, but this speech was reported by Sir Thomas Wriothesley, a lawyer and courtier at the Tudor court. It was interesting to see a different speech being used, but I do prefer the more common one. As for Anne's behaviour on the scaffold, she was seen as a sobbing mess in the film, quite unlike the real Anne Boleyn's personality. While Anne was known for being temperamental, every source I have read and every other depiction of Anne has shown her to have been very calm at her execution, if not joyful. The Constable of the Tower, Sir William Kingston, reported that he had "seen many men and also women executed, and that they have been in great sorrow, and to [his] knowledge this lady has much joy in death." Instead, we get Natalie Portman crying almost inconsolably on the scaffold as she awaits her impending death.

The weird thing is that this film was what got me into historical films and TV shows in the first place. I didn't care about the accuracies at the time (what 11-year old would?), so it was easier to watch it at the time. I can't damn it completely. But the film is just awful almost every level. The only thing it got right were the costumes. Most Tudor-based films/TV shows I've seen have butchered the costumes in some way, but this one actually did it justice. Anne did wear the French rounded hoods, which she was reputed to have loved. The unmarried women wore their hair down and it was visible; when they were married, it would be hidden from view. The gowns were glamorous but not overdone. Other than that, the film was a walking disaster.