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Movies / Upcoming / The Other Boleyn Girl
The Other Boleyn Girl

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The Other Boleyn Girl (2008)

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Reviews Counted:135

Fresh:56

Rotten:79

Average Rating:5.3/10

Consensus: Though it features some extravagant and entertaining moments, The Other Boleyn Girl feels more like a soap opera than historical drama.

Runtime: 1 hr 55 mins

Genre: Dramas

US Box Office: $26,814,957

Synopsis: Based on the best selling novel by Philippa Gregory, The Other Boleyn Girl is an engrossing and sensual tale of intrigue, romance, and betrayal set against the backdrop of a defining moment in... Based on the best selling novel by Philippa Gregory, The Other Boleyn Girl is an engrossing and sensual tale of intrigue, romance, and betrayal set against the backdrop of a defining moment in history. Two sisters, Anne (Natalie Portman) and Mary (Scarlett Johansson) Boleyn, are driven by their ambitious father and uncle to advance the family’s power and status by courting the affections of the King of England (Eric Bana). Leaving behind the simplicity of country life, the girls are thrust into the dangerous and thrilling world of court life – and what began as a bid to help their family develops into a ruthless rivalry between Anne and Mary for the love of the king. Initially, Mary wins King Henry’s favor and becomes his mistress, bearing him an illegitimate child. But Anne, clever, conniving, and fearless, edges aside both her sister and Henry’s wife, Queen Katherine of Aragon, in her relentless pursuit of the king. Despite Mary’s genuine feelings for Henry, her sister Anne has her sights set on the ultimate prize; Anne will not stop until she is Queen of England. As the Boleyn girls battle for the love of a king – one driven by ambition, the other by true affection – England is torn apart. Despite the dramatic consequences, the Boleyn girls ultimately find strength and loyalty in each other, and they remain forever connected by their bond as sisters.--© Sony Pictures [More]

Starring: Natalie Portman, Scarlett Johansson, Eric Bana

Starring: Natalie Portman, Scarlett Johansson, Eric Bana

Director: Justin Chadwick

Director: Justin Chadwick
Screenwriter: Peter Morgan
Producer: Alison Owen
Composer: Edward Shearmur
Studio: Columbia Pictures

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Reviews for The Other Boleyn Girl

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1 - 20 (sorted by date; Australian critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 >> >|
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A rather titillating take on a racy historical novel, this is perhaps too ambitious in intent. More time, or more pruning (perhaps they should just have focused on The Boleyn girl), would have produced a richer and more enjoyable film.

Full Review Source: Empire Magazine Australasia | comment Comment
03/20/08
Will Lawrence
Will Lawrence
Empire Magazine Australasia
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

It’s a fairly uninspired screenplay. And the same can be said for both the Boleyn girls. They are both extremely fetching in their tight bodices but unengaging as characters.

Full Review Source: At the Movies (Australia) | comment Comment
03/19/08
Margaret Pomeranz
Margaret Pomeranz
At the Movies (Australia)
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

There are a few flaws including historical inaccuracies, but the spirited jousting of Natalie Portman and Scarlett Johansson as the Boleyn Sisters tantalises and tempts us royally

Full Review Source: Urban Cinefile | comment Comment
03/06/08
Urban Cinefile Critics
Urban Cinefile Critics
Urban Cinefile
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Dreary

Full Review Source: CinePassion | comment Comment
08/27/09
Fernando F. Croce
Fernando F. Croce
CinePassion

A run-of-the-mill costume drama that made me think more about running home and Wikipedia-ing the characters than investing in the story before me.

Full Review Source: ReelzChannel.com | comment Comment
09/08/08
Heather Huntington
Heather Huntington
ReelzChannel.com

A very entertaining and involving story of family and sacrifice.

Full Review Source: Sin Magazine | comment Comment
07/22/08
Austin Kennedy
Austin Kennedy
Sin Magazine

The history may have been narratively scrunched, but it's all the true lives of some powerful and unfortunate people. Very lush.

Full Review Source: Cinerina | comment Comment
07/17/08
Karina Montgomery
Karina Montgomery
Cinerina

Portman confere peso dramático à Ana Bolena, mas Johansson e Bana parecem seguir no piloto automático. Além disso, as liberdades históricas tomadas pelo roteiro são absurdas demais para poderem ser ignoradas.

comment Comment
07/10/08
Pablo Villaca
Pablo Villaca
Cinema em Cena

The falling blade is the only element not missing the mark in this film. I wanted to call for the beheading after Act One, and spare the audience instead.

Full Review Source: Film Threat | comment Comment
06/21/08
Matthew Sorrento
Matthew Sorrento
Film Threat

The film gets a full 'This is a work of fiction' disclaimer, even noting that any resemblance to any person living or dead is unintentional. That tells you something about how much trust to put in these historical CliffsNotes.

Full Review Source: Groucho Reviews | comment Comment
06/09/08
Peter Canavese
Peter Canavese
Groucho Reviews

An all in the dysfunctional family royal romp with incestuous tendencies, this richly textured, dramatically disciplined, erotically laced and emotionally taut creation makes for weirdly kinky historical analysis, but pretty steamy pre-tabloid melodrama.

Full Review Source: NewsBlaze | comment Comment
06/09/08
Prairie Miller
Prairie Miller
NewsBlaze

If only there was some nobility among these royals.

Full Review Source: Laramie Movie Scope | comment Comment
05/28/08
Robert Roten
Robert Roten
Laramie Movie Scope

In an earlier era this would have starred Bette Davis and Miriam Hopkins and in its way, The Other Boleyn Girl is just as trashy and enjoyable.

Full Review Source: Windy City Times | comment Comment
05/22/08
Richard Knight
Richard Knight
Windy City Times

If the late Aaron Spelling had lived long enough to produce Showtime's The Tudors, the result might have been something like The Other Boleyn Girl...

Full Review Source: MSNBC | comment 1 Comment
05/01/08
Alonso Duralde
Alonso Duralde
MSNBC

With plenty of betrayal, attempted incest and beheadings crammed into this period episode of The Young and the Restless, The Other Boleyn Sister has appeal in an otherwise stiff genre.

Full Review Source: Peterborough This Week | comment Comment
04/15/08
Mike Sage
Mike Sage
Peterborough This Week

There are moments when you can see how terrific this film could have been

Full Review Source: Shadows on the Wall | comment Comment
03/21/08
Rich Cline
Rich Cline
Shadows on the Wall

Such unwieldy mechanisms only draw attention to the movie's narrative contrivances.

Full Review Source: PopMatters | comment Comment
03/21/08
Cynthia Fuchs
Cynthia Fuchs
PopMatters

Hey, wait a minute, is the movie supposed to be this funny?

Full Review Source: Philadelphia Weekly | comment 1 Comment
03/17/08
Sean Burns
Sean Burns
Philadelphia Weekly

Feels like an Oscar-bait title that somehow got its DNA mixed up with a daytime soap opera.

Full Review Source: Creative Loafing | comment Comment
03/16/08
Matt Brunson
Matt Brunson
Creative Loafing

A depressing soap opera of a film, "The Other Boleyn Girl" makes early English history, at least for women, look like Hades itself. And maybe it was. After all, a woman's reputation and worth did not depend on so much on her education, personality and goo

Full Review Source: Quad City Times (Davenport, IA) | comment Comment
03/09/08
Linda Cook
Linda Cook
Quad City Times (Davenport, IA)
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by date; Australian critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 >> >|
all

Latest News for The Other Boleyn Girl

August 23, 2008: Iconoclast.com: An all in the dysfunctional family royal romp with incestuous tendencies, this richly textured, dramatically disciplined, erotically laced and emotionally taut creation makes for weirdly kinky historical analysis. Opens in new window
More...

June 18, 2008: An all in the dysfunctional family royal romp with incestuous tendencies, this richly textured, dramatically disciplined, erotically laced and emotionally taut creation makes for weirdly kinky historical analysis, but pretty steamy pre-tabloid melodrama. Opens in new window
More...

June 09, 2008: RT on DVD: Bosomy Boleyn Girls, Jumper, John Adams
As the latest wave of Obamamania sweeps the country, look forward to HBO's Recount...or peek into the past with HBO's John Adams. Also clear your calendar for high-def Top... More...

June 05, 2008: Another Boleyn Girl On the Way? Opens in new window
Despite lukewarm reviews and middling box-office receipts, rumor has it that work has begun on a sequel to The Other Boleyn Girl. More...

See All

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