{"id":1490,"date":"2011-10-29T15:36:32","date_gmt":"2011-10-29T15:36:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/filmgaze.com\/blog\/?p=1490"},"modified":"2011-10-29T15:36:51","modified_gmt":"2011-10-29T15:36:51","slug":"lff-2011-anonymous","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filmgaze.com\/blog\/comedy\/lff-2011-anonymous\/","title":{"rendered":"LFF 2011: Anonymous***"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>To be or not to be, that is certainly the subjective question of whether director Roland Emmerich<\/a>\u2019s new film will excite or disgust. Indeed, with the covering of one of our greatest playwright\u2019s name\u2019s in his hometown of Stratford-upon-Avon in protest of Anonymous<\/em><\/a>, William Shakespeare might be thrilled at the reignited interest in him.<\/p>\n

In writer John Orloff<\/a> and Emmerich\u2019s version of Elizabethan events, the playwright (played by Rafe Spall<\/a>) is actually an illiterate fool, a scheming charlatan who grabs the opportunity for easy fame \u2013 and to make money (it could be argued, like a former-day version of a reality TV contestant) \u2013 by laying claim to a series of plays written by Anonymous that delight the crowds at the local theatre. Unbeknown to all, these were actually penned by Edward De Vere, Earl of Oxford (Rhys Ifans<\/a>), to silence \u2018the voices\u2019 in his head. But as a member of the Royal Court, he is unable to be open about his creativity, or face disgrace. Meanwhile, the English throne, headed by theatre-loving Elizabeth I (played by both Joely Richardson<\/a> and her real-life mother Vanessa Redgrave<\/a>), is being manipulated by the Cecil Family of father William (David Thewlis<\/a>) and later, by his son, Robert (Edward Hogg<\/a>), so that a Scottish successor can take over.<\/p>\n

Depending on how much you hold the bard dear to your heart, what must not be forgotten is this is an entertaining piece of imaginary work in itself \u2013 as suggested by the opening prologue by Derek Jacobi<\/a>. The fact that there has always been speculation about the origins of Shakespeare\u2019s works only goes to fuel how fitting the mystery is for cinematic purposes. Everyone likes to question history\u2019s great mysteries when there is an ounce of doubt, from who shot JFK to the death of Princess Diana. So, without sounding flippant, the emphasis here is on \u2018imaginary work\u2019, and the film-makers certainly grab our attention.<\/p>\n

This film is equally about the Royal Court power struggles, as it is the Shakespeare parts, and it is the former that is the film\u2019s true momentum \u2013 not whether aristocrat De Vere will be found out. Hence, if period-based deception, temptation and pure decadence appeal, Emmerich\u2019s rich \u2018Old Masters\u2019-style cinematography and sumptuous settings \u2013 some of which scream CGI \u2013 are a delight to behold.<\/p>\n

Nevertheless, any upset at the \u2018raw deal\u2019 Shakespeare is getting in this, is not the question mark over the plays\u2019 true author, but how the film-makers portray our great bard as an utter clown. Spall is certainly amusing, raising sniggers and having a ball in the role \u2013 if only employed to make Ifans look wise and credible as De Vere. But some might feel a little perturbed in the scene when Shakespeare asks De Vere whether \u2018published\u2019 means \u2018in a book\u2019? That said comedy makes a fool out of anyone, and this scene is little more \u2018offensive\u2019 than a TV comedy sketch, in all honesty, with Spall as Shakespeare as a parody of one of his own literary fools that provide the comical aspect in often a turbulent time.<\/p>\n

These moments are also counterbalanced by the film\u2019s celebration of the works in general, and there are some magical re-enactments of The Rose and The Globe theatres that make you yearn for a good Shakespearean evening out. The other delight is watching fine British acting at play, and the added surprise of Ifans in a serious role as de Vere that makes for a rousing spectacle, not too deft as to be unfitting for the whole gay affair, but with just enough deadpan theatrics to yet again remind you that you are watching a well-directed and staged interpretation of the reality.<\/p>\n

Without going down the long, arduous road of comparing historical facts to add to the scholarly and fan-based denouncement of Anonymous<\/em>, there are some extraordinary claims made that don\u2019t add up after researching the characters. However, as we are prompted in the film\u2019s lines to place our trust in the power of the words \u2013 these being merely another opinion to add to the rest of history\u2019s sceptics, the overall sentiment after watching this is one of awe of the work in question, and that can only be a good thing.<\/p>\n

3\/5 stars<\/strong><\/p>\n

By @FilmGazer<\/p>\n

Follow on Twitter<\/a><\/p>\n

**WATCH THE TRAILER HERE<\/a>**<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

To be or not to be, that is certainly the subjective question of whether director Roland Emmerich\u2019s new film will excite or disgust. Indeed, with the covering of one of our greatest playwright\u2019s name\u2019s in his hometown of Stratford-upon-Avon in protest of Anonymous, William Shakespeare might be thrilled at the reignited interest in him. In … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “LFF 2011: Anonymous***”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1593,1,10,9],"tags":[1621,376,820,1626,374,1625,1622,1623,1624,1257,1627,405,67],"class_list":["post-1490","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-bfi-lff-2011","category-comedy","category-drama","category-fantasy","tag-anonymous","tag-david-thewlis","tag-derek-jacobi","tag-edward-hogg","tag-jamie-campbell-bower","tag-joely-richardson","tag-john-orloff","tag-rafe-spall","tag-rhys-ifans","tag-roland-emmerich","tag-sam-reid","tag-vanessa-redgrave","tag-xavier-samuel"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmgaze.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1490","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmgaze.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmgaze.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmgaze.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmgaze.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1490"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/filmgaze.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1490\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1496,"href":"https:\/\/filmgaze.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1490\/revisions\/1496"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmgaze.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1490"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmgaze.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1490"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmgaze.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1490"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}