Review of Anne of the Thousand Days (1969) by Ben L — 18 Sep 2016

Richard Burton is just phenomenal. That's the first thing that comes to my mind when I think of this film. Such a glorious performance as Henry VIII, with depth and range that totally impresses me.

In the first act I was concerned that Genevieve Bujold was going to bring down the whole film with her performance as Anne Boleyn, but when she makes the transition and gets the taste for power this film really takes flight.

There are certainly moments that get a little hokey and over-dramatized, but I enjoyed it since this is a very melodramatic plot. The twists and turns of their relationship is great, and I love all the political maneuvering that they use against each other.

Anne of the Thousand Days is like a grand costume drama that feels like Shakespeare. Even though I had some familiarity with the story, it seemed they kept surprising me with how it would play out. All the people behind the scenes with different motives kept the story interesting and I was engaged throughout.

Naturally, as anyone who knows the story of Anne Boleyn could predict, this film does not end on the most uplifting note. Ordinarily I wouldn't love that kind of conclusion, but they managed to create a way for there to be a sense of hope in the final scenes, not an easy task.

In fact it almost ends on a cliffhanger, which is kind of unique in this style of film. I was skeptical of Anne of the Thousand Days in the beginning, but it won me over. I would recommend this film to people who enjoy a good period drama, because I thought the cast really delivered something special.