Rotten
Will Shakespeare, whose words shine on, bright and brave, Is turning o'er with laughter in his grave.
Judith Newmark, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Anonymous
Was Shakespeare a Fraud?
2011 · 2h 10m · PG-13
Drama, History, Thriller
Directed by
Roland Emmerich
Overview
Set against the backdrop of the succession of Queen Elizabeth I, and the Essex Rebellion against her, the story advances the theory that it was in fact Edward De Vere, Earl of Oxford who penned Shakespeare's plays.
Director and cast
- Roland Emmerich Director
- Jamie Campbell Bower as Young Oxford
- Rhys Ifans as Edward de Vere
- David Thewlis as William Cecil
- Joely Richardson as Princess Elizabeth Tudor
- Vanessa Redgrave as Queen Elizabeth I
- Sebastian Armesto as Ben Jonson
- Rafe Spall as William Shakespeare
- Edward Hogg as Robert Cecil
- Xavier Samuel as Earl of Southampton
- Sam Reid as Earl of Essex
Critics on Rotten Tomatoes
Top critics, in their words
46%
Tomatometer
Fresh
File this one in the category of entertaining historical fiction. There are facts here, but one must possess more than a passing familiarity with history to be able to spot them.
James Berardinelli, ReelViews
Rotten
John Orloff's screenplay could have used a rewrite by de Vere -- or whomever.
Peter Rainer, Christian Science Monitor
Fresh
Knowing that non-Masterpiece Theater audiences will grow fidgety over this sort of thing, Emmerich and Orloff throw in plenty of sword-fighting, bear-baiting, and bodice-ripping.
Alonso Duralde, TheWrap
Fresh
The digitally wrought period settings are simply gorgeous.
Amy Biancolli, Houston Chronicle
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