The Other Boleyn Girl
Directed by Justin Chadwick
Starring Natalie Portman, Scarlett Johansson, Eric Bana
So what’s with all the sudden interest in the Tudors? Is there something in our current female psyche that makes us yearn for a time when we had no voice, no rights and no purpose but to make babies? And sons, at that, if you didn’t want to be cast aside or preferred to keep your pretty head attached to your shoulders.
Let me start by admitting my bias. I love historical fiction, especially the kind written by Philippa Gregory, the author of The Other Boleyn Girl. There’s so much dialogue and vivid imagery in the novel that I felt part of the Court of King Henry VIII, although a very lowly part, I’m sure. Plus, I’ve always had a fascination with Anne Boleyn, who managed in her short career to destroy the Catholic Church in England, bring a king to his knees and give birth to the most amazing female monarch, Elizabeth I.
The film, however, is based on a lesser known story: that of Anne’s sister, Mary (played by Scarlett Johansson). Mary is a shy and naïve girl, very different from the sultry temptress that Natalie Portman portrays as Anne. Without giving away too much of the plot, it’s a story of two women (well, three if you count the disposed Queen, Kathryn of Aragon, played by Ana Torrent) and how their relationship with the sensuous Henry (played by Eric Bana) blossoms and wanes.
Cate Blanchett, in her film roles as Elizabeth, has magnificently portrayed the Elizabethan court; in The Other Bolyean Girl, we witness the back story, namely what a vixen Elizabeth’s mother was. Her aunt Mary, however, is hardly mentioned in the Elizabethan tales. For Mary’s tale is commonplace: she was one of many virgins set before the king to whet his appetite. These virgins were the hors d’oeuvres – tasty trifles for Henry to nibble at. Interestingly enough, it’s Mary who gives birth to the son that Henry needs so desperately that he’s willing to go against the ultimate authority of the time, the Pope, in order to ensure that his reign can continue. You see, women mattered little in this place and time. They had no rights, so they had to use the only weapon readily available: their own bodies. And Anne takes full advantage of her best asset by making sure Henry doesn’t (or so we’re led to believe); she leads him on just so far.
The film is beautifully shot and is a feast for the eyes with exquisite costumes that the two sisters flaunt to the fullest. Ultimately, however, the movie didn’t hold my attention in the same way as the current HBO series The Tudors does. There’s something too formulaic about the way the sisters are portrayed in the movie. Or maybe Bana’s Henry just isn’t sexy enough. Of course, the same can’t be said about the Irish actor Jonathan Rhys Meyers whose magnetic blue gaze dominates the small screen.
