Anonymous

First thing to point out. When going to watch this movie I had no intention whatsoever to judge it on its historical accuracy. I simply did not and do not care. If you want a documentary on Elizabethan times then clearly you shouldn't be watching this particular film.

If, on the other hand, you want a perfectly entertaining and interesting way to spend a couple of hours then you should go and see it. I thought the story was engaging and original (if, like myself, you're not a pretentious academic). The acting was, on the whole, very accomplished. In particular, I thought Rhys Ifans gave a brilliant performance as De Vere and was perfect for the role. I did find Rafe Spall pretty annoying as Shakespeare, but perhaps I should give him the benefit of the doubt as this was probably the aim of the character.

With regards to the historical rewrite then surely if people are interested in what 'Anonymous' suggests they'll try to find out more about the subject in order to make their own mind up. Nothing wrong with that. And those taking Hollywood's version of history at face value are pretty much beyond help anyway.

Certainly one of the most memorable movies i've seen (for the right reasons) this year.

Was William Shakespeare a front for an aristocrat who did not want his name revealed as the author? This movie is about political intrigue and how theater gets caught up in a larger struggle for power. The movie offers an interesting and controversial portrayal of Queen Elizabeth I and a glimpse of life in England at the beginning of the seventeenth century. The printing press was becoming a political weapon and those who published could influence the public, maybe to the point of rebellion. Hence, the need of the government to control what was being performed on stage. The stage served the same function of television does today. It was the medium of mass entertainment, which made the playwright a critical player in the politics of the time. Now, if Shakespeare was a front, then the question is: who wrote all these plays? Maybe it doesn't matter who actually wrote the plays but then again, maybe it does matter because by knowing the author, this may lead to new interpretations of the plays. Maybe these plays were political polemics produced under the guise of historical drama. Whatever the case, one thing is for certain: these plays made an impact on society that continues to reverberate to this day.

One other point. This movie is a work of fiction and so if it is loose with certain historical facts, so what? This movie is not a documentary. Rather, it is a fictional historical drama that revolves around a controversial and even shocking plot. Whether Shakespeare is the actual author of the works attributed to him is not the point. That is a matter for debate. What is the point is whether the movie works as a movie. The story is complex, yet the movie manages to engage the audience through strong acting and by presenting a story crammed with political intrigue. Who can say for certain what was going on in England 500 years ago? It is all a matter for speculation, based upon the available historical material, all of which is subject to interpretation. The idea of English writers bickering and fighting over the authorship of plays may seem trite and far fetched, but the conflict makes for good drama, even if it is pure fiction.

Greetings again from the darkness. While it is clear that writer John Orloff and director Roland Emmerich believe that Edward De Vere, The Earl of Oxford, and not Will Shakespeare, wrote the infamous and iconic plays we have celebrated for 400 years, my advice is to watch this as a Hollywood movie and not a docu-drama. Hollywood is at its best when exaggerating, twisting and dramatizing historic events and figures.

You may be an expert on Shakespeare and even Elizabethan history, but whether you are or whether you are not, my guess is that you will find this to be interesting and thought-provoking. You may agree with the idea that Shakespeare was not the prolific and talented author, but this movie provides one possible alternative ... with no scientific proof or actual documentation. We see Rhys Ifans and Jamie Campbell Bower portray Edward De Vere as the older and younger version respectively. Both capture his passion for writing and frustration at being unable to live the life for which he was born.

Vanessa Redgrave and her real life daughter Joely Richardson portray Queen Elizabeth at the older and younger stages, and we certainly get a distinctive impression of how "the Virgin Queen" may have been mis-labeled as much as any figure in history. Many lovers and illegitimate children are mentioned and the web of secrecy would have been exhausting, given the other responsibilities of her position.

Rafe Spall portrays Will Shakespeare as what one might call The Village Idiot. The buffoonery we see from this man is an extreme that weakens the case for De Vere, rather than strengthen it. Though talented writer Ben Jonson (Sebastian Armesto) was De Vere's first choice, the lack of morals by the illiterate actor Shakespeare allows him to seize a capitalistic opportunity and soak up the audience love.

The best part of the film is the realistic look and feel of the streets, the Globe Theater and costumes. Rhys Ifans is exceptional in the role of De Vere, and the story itself plays out much like one of Shakespeare's plays. The downside is, I believe most will find the multitude of characters and time-lines and sub-plots to be quite confusing at times. Don't take a bathroom break or you'll miss new babies being born and upheavals being planned.

"The most performed playwright of all time, the author of 37 plays, 154 sonnets & several narrative poems...and yet not a single manuscript of any kind has ever been found written in Shakespeare's own hand." A movie that explores the theory that Shakespeare didn't write any of the things that he is said to. The theory is that The Earl of Oxford (Ifans) wrote them all as a stab at the new Queen (Redgrave) of England. I have said this before but I am not a Shakespeare fan at all, I just don't get him. There are a few movies of his I like but for the most part I am not a fan. Needless to say before watching this I was not that excited at all. Almost instantly the movie grabbed me and I was hooked. For those like me this is not really about Shakespeare at all, but more of a political thriller about trying to start and control a rebellion against Queen Elizabeth I in the 1600's. Weather this is true or not to me doesn't matter but the idea of writing plays as a way to begin a rebellion is a very interesting theory and makes for a very interesting movie. Overall, (from a non-Shakespeare fan) I really enjoyed this movie and recommend this. I give it a B+.

"What's in a name? That which we call a rose. By any other name would smell as sweet." - Romeo Juliet He wrote 37 plays and more than 150 sonnets. He introduced some 3000 words to the English language. But was he an illiterate buffoon? His parents were illiterate and he was likely to have received only primary education. His own wife and daughters were supposedly illiterate. For many years since early 19th century, there has been an unsettling question still ensues a debate among many scholars on the authorship of the work published under his name. Who is the real author of Hamlet, Romeo Juliet and many more of those plays that redefined the English literature during Tudor period. Although the work was published by Ben Johnson, but was it really the work of Edward de Vere, the 17th Earl of Oxford? DeVere was a playwright and a poet of the Tudor times. Also, there were many similarities existed between the characters for example Hamlet and Richard III plays and the people DeVere was close to and the events happened in his life and that are described in the plays. There are few others whom anti-Stratfordians believe to be a real writer as well such as Francis Bacon and Christopher Marlowe. The anti-Stratfordians include famous people like Mark Twain, Sigmund Freud, Helen Keller, Charlie Chaplin, Orson Wells, Malcom X, and more. Did you know Shakespeare was a grain merchant in his later years who was delinquent in paying taxes !!!!

This movie is all about story and script writing. It steers through the complicated corrupt Tudor history, entwines them in a way that is more of a mystery than investigative story. But Intriguing plot, stunningly created Tudor London, breathtaking shots.. an impressive mise-en-scene, superb costumes, convincing performances. A good watch.