Anonymous

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Anonymous

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Anonymous

Rhys Ifans, Ed Hogg, Vanessa Redgrave, Sebastian Armesto, Joely Richardson

Set in the political snake-pit of Elizabethan England, Anonymous speculates on an issue that has for centuries intrigued academics and brilliant minds such as Mark Twain, Charles Dickens, and Sigmund ... read more read more...Freud, namely: who actually created the body of work credited to William Shakespeare? Experts have debated, books have been written, and scholars have devoted their lives to protecting or debunking theories surrounding the authorship of the most renowned works in English literature. Anonymous poses one possible answer, focusing on a time when scandalous political intrigue, illicit romances in the Royal Court, and the schemes of greedy nobles lusting for the power of the throne were brought to light in the most unlikely of places: the London stage. -- (C) Sony Pictures

Id: 11141467

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Anonymous Recent Reviews
  • blacksheepboy
    February 28, 2012
    blacksheepboy
    Emmerich loses all credibility trying to make us buy his theory at any cost. The premise is intriguing but the weak script is full of unnecessary soap-opera twists that make the plot even less believable. A mediocre movie that is also badly directed and edited, though with a grea... read moret costume design.
  • jjnxn
    February 8, 2012
    jjnxn
    Ponderous
  • xXGiNoBiLiPRXx
    February 1, 2012
    xXGiNoBiLiPRXx
    Was Shakespeare a Fraud?

    Don't waste your time! This movie is really bad and boring. I usually don't fall asleep watching movies but this one hit the spot. The story is just so ridiculous and slow you can't even start to like it in any way. One of the worst movies I have ever s... read moreeen and that's saying alot.

    A political thriller advancing the theory that it was in fact Edward De Vere, Earl of Oxford who penned Shakespeare's plays; set against the backdrop of the succession of Queen Elizabeth I, and the Essex Rebellion against her.
  • imrealgod
    January 28, 2012
    imrealgod
    Apparently, historical accuracy is not given as much significance as the entertainment quotient. They've rather presented it as a tragic play wherein the playwright himself is a character falling victim to political tactics.

    I wasn't aware of this conspiracy theory myself until ... read moreI came across the movie. And I can hardly find it of much use to further the arguments. Watch it as a drama, and that's it. If you're looking for a lesson in history here, I don't opine this to be the right book. As for me, the movie was a mediocre drama, and I know not and care little as to whether the real author is Edward de Vere or William Shakespeare. (Besides, what's in name, right?) Thankfully, I knew what to expect here (which might have saved me from disappointment). But yeah, the time jumps was an irritating issue. The rating gets the benefit of (my) circumstances. Of course, I'm not going to elaborate on that.
  • fb733768972
    November 11, 2011
    fb733768972
    "Anonymous" is a film that takes place during the time when William Shakespeare was in the midst of writing and performing in his most well-known plays, or so it seemed. We learn (supposedly) that he had others working on his plays for him and paying him to perform in them, givin... read moreg him all the credit, for the soul reason that he knows what he is doing, not because he knows how to properly write. The story, although dragged out and dull, is extremely intriguing and a very fun ride to take through the ancient times. What goes without saying though, is that the set pieces and scenery that went into the making of this film are gorgeous to look at, and saves the dull scenes from becoming overly boring. The acting is top-notch, the idea is fresh, the historical facts are correct, but the fact that the main story is overshadowed by many side plots, will force the audience to lose interest very quickly. The screenplay is very "Shakespeare Influenced" even though we are forced to believe that he technically didn't write anything. Overall, I enjoyed watching the movie, but the fact I had to follow many plots points when I was only interested in the main one that was being pushed to the side, bored me quite a bit. Still, I applaud Emmerich's take on history and I let the film do what it wanted to do! I recommend this film to people who have read and are familiar with shakespearean plays, but unfortunately that is the only crowd who will find this film interesting. It's average, but it's fun!
  • fb510944557
    November 10, 2011
    fb510944557
    What a dumb movie. It takes the most interesting of conspiracy theories and uses a stupid explanation - Shakespeare was a drunkard who wrote his name on a play and called it his. I'm sure it had to be a bit more complex than that, if it actually happened. The film gets less and l... read moreess convincing as it goes on, it falls to ridiculous character cliche's, and of all things, loses sight of the plays as the focus! I went to see if Shakespeare did or did not write the plays that had his name on them, not to see if an heir to a loose of a Queen Elizabeth can be found. That's not what I paid to see, Roland. Why would anyone greenlight this project, this historical fiction, directed by the guy who gave us Godzilla and The Day After Tomorrow? And *shudder*, 2012. God. Really? And the flashbacks...don't even get me started on the flashbacks and flash forwards. There were at least 50 during this movie, and at least 5 of them happen in the first 10 minutes. Learn to tell a story and tell it. Thats all.
  • fb1038944442
    November 9, 2011
    fb1038944442
    I adore anything by or about Shakespeare, but I did not enjoy this overblown film, told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing. If you see it, do it for the visual CG recreations of 16th century London, the classy, commanding and wasted perfromances of Vanessa R... read moreedgrave and daughter Joely Richardson as Queen Elizabeth I, young and old, and the spot on breakthough performance by Rafe Spall as opportunistic, stupid, debauched William Shakespeare.

    Blockbuster director Roland Emerich has handled all aesthetics and pacing with perfect compentence, but the script by John Orloff is surprisingly flat and uninvolving. What annoyed me the most was the irrelevance of the supposed central conspiracy of attributing the plays of the Earl of Oxford to the idiot from Stratford named Shakespeare. This was really a sideshow to an absurd story of Tudor succession to the throne after Queen Elizabeth's passing, which concocted an incomprehensible brew of incestual sex, religious factiionalism and personal ambition.

    After a day of thinking about it, I don't see how the story of the plays impacts on the succession story. They are mutually exclusive and I wonder why anyone should care about either. This film fails to make us care about who wrote the plays or whether King James or the Queen's illigitimate child should inherit the throne. Yes, I've ruined it for you about the illigitimate children. My bad.

    Rhys Ifans' central performance as the true writer of the plays, the Earl of Oxford, is passably forgettable, as are almost all other performances, except for the ones mentioned above and the cameo by Derek Jacobi as a prologue. If you don't have any interest in Shakespeare lore, you will be mightily bored. Shakespeare was the soul of the age, but 'Anonymous' is not even the soul of fall 2011.

    As for the authorship debate, I'm open to hearing about alternatives to the shlemiel from Stratford, but this film makes an lame, unconvincing case for Oxford. Apparently, the Earl of Oxford died before the last 7 plays in the canon were even written. That said, I'm sentimentally attached to the quiet glove maker from the provinces bad grammar school education and all.
  • fb100001050230219
    November 5, 2011
    fb100001050230219
    I don't think ''Anonymous'' does a truly great job of convincing us of its theory that Shakespeare never wrote the poems or plays we believe he wrote and the story does become muddled at times. However, Roland Emmerich has stepped up and delivered a film far better than his previ... read moreous films, though that's not saying too much. Rhys Ifans is terrific as Edward de Vere, as is Vanessa Redgrave. The film is engaging throughout in my view and Emmerich's visual style is gorgeous. It may seem a little forgiving, but if the story isn't entirely convincing, the performances, costumes, cinematography and pacing are.
  • fb1341085175
    November 2, 2011
    fb1341085175
    Considering director's Roland Emmerich's track record of directing pretty much nothing but pieces of Hollywood special effects emptiness, it might become tempting to think that the film was directed by a ghost director in the same way it approaches its subject - it's quite well p... read moreroduced and really well acted, and whilst the premisse is quite intriguing, it never really delivers in terms of narrative and fails to create much of an impression.
  • fb100000440772572
    April 2, 2012
    fb100000440772572
    Anonymous is a provocative drama that presents quite an intriguing story. Based on an obscure theory, the film presupposes that Shakespeare was an impostor and that his works originated from an English nobleman. Rhys Ifans and Joely Richardson give strong performances, but the ... read morematerial is a bit heavy and hard to follow. In fact the second half of the film gets especially convoluted, making this story all the more preposterous. Yet, despite its flaws Anonymous is an entertaining and compelling piece of speculative fiction.
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