"Anonymous" is an interesting piece of historical fiction, and should be viewed as such. Most of the negative comments directed at this film attack it for daring to pose the theory that William Shakespeare was a fraud. And while director / producer Roland Emmerich and writer John Orloff are on the record as supporting the theory they present here, I chose to view the film simply as a "what if" scenario, a fictional story told against the backdrop of true events. And to that end, it is an immensely enjoyable film, though certainly not without flaws.
The film opens in the late sixteenth century, in the final years of Queen Elizabeth I's (Vanessa Redgrave) reign. The once powerful queen is becoming increasingly senile, and virtually all of the power in her court seems to be held by the Cecil family, William (David Thewlis) and his son, Robert (Edward Hogg). Elizabeth has no recognized heirs, and the Cecils and others have arranged that King James of Scotland (James Clyde) will be her successor. This does not sit will with many other members of the court (due to James being a Scotsman and a Catholic), particularly the Earls of Essex (Sam Reid) and of Southampton (Xavier Samuel), who begin to develop a plan to seize the throne. Edward De Vere, Earl of Oxford (Rhys Ifans) sympathizes with their cause, but rather than hope for victory in a military struggle, he believes in the power of art and words to win the minds of the people, and of Elizabeth herself. De Vere has written numerous plays with deep political subtext, though he has refrained from having them published or performed, because a man in his position simply cannot indulge in something that Robert Cecil refers to as "a cesspool of plague and heresy." So, hoping to have his political message--hidden in the guise of his plays--presented, De Vere commissions playwright Ben Jonson (Sebastian Armesto) to have the plays performed under his name. But when Jonson refuses under fear that his life will be threatened because of the plays' political subtext, an actor named William Shakespeare (Rafe Spall) takes on the task himself.
As you can tell from that lengthy plot setup, "Anonymous" is not a simple film. It is not even a linear narrative film as the events surrounding the theatre and the Elizabethan Court are intercut with the story of the younger Edward De Vere (Jamie Campbell Bower) and his relationship with the Cecils and the younger Queen Elizabeth (Joely Richardson). There is no shortage of characters, each with his or her own political, personal, and financial motives, and there is certainly no shortage of political intrigue. Orloff manages to pack a very dense story into a film of a little over two hours, so much so that I almost found myself having to play catchup, particularly at the beginning of the film as all the characters and their motivations are introduced. The film's biggest flaw is something that essentially indicates that it is nothing more than a piece of fiction; that being the idea that De Vere has been penning all of these plays over the course of his life, most of which just happen to have political subtext that causes "the mob" to rise up in what ultimately becomes the Essex Rebellion...an actual, historical attempt by the Earl of Essex to seize the throne that occurred in 1601. I suppose it could all be happy coincidence, but I found it to be pretty far-fetched. The idea that De Vere could simply scribble out Richard III at the drop of a hat is also unlikely, though is makes for great drama as the film nears its climax.
But while the fundamental premise behind this film is flawed, the execution is top-notch. Emmerich is the disaster movie director behind such films as "Independence Day," "The Day After Tomorrow," and "2012," and while I will always have a soft spot for "ID4" as it was so cheesily labeled, this is easily Emmerich's best film. Regardless of the content of his previous efforts, he has always had a keen visual style, and this is no exception. The art direction, costumes, and cinematography are all simply gorgeous as the film captures both the highest glamour and the dirtiest grime of Elizabethan London. There are a couple of questionable uses of CGI, one of which stands out like a sore thumb, the other of which however, while perhaps looking slightly too stylized, is also one of the film's most spectacular shots. The script is rich as I mentioned, packing an astounding amount of drama and intrigue into 130 minutes. The acting is quite good, and Ifans as De Vere gives an absolutely titanic performance. He is known mostly as a character actor--generally in comedies in fact--but he is utterly scene-stealing here in an absolutely Oscar nomination-worthy performance. Redgrave is also Oscar-worthy as Elizabeth; Bower is quite good as the younger De Vere, as is Armesto as Jonson. Spall plays the unlettered Shakespeare as a bit of a clueless buffoon, but one who very quickly realizes how powerful he has become.
Overall, "Anonymous" is definitely a film worth seeing. English literature and Shakespeare enthusiasts will ridicule it most likely, but even though the theory presented here can easily be proven false, it's a fascinating piece of historical fiction. And for film lovers, it's a very well-made, sumptuous period drama filled with colorful characters and a dense and compelling story...not unlike one of the bard's plays in fact.
"Anonymous" is rated PG-13 for some violence and sexual content
Running time: 130 minutes
Released domestically on October 28, 2011, by Columbia Pictures
3 stars out of 4
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