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Great Film overall

If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.

Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.

There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.

What an amazing cast. I was on an Irene Papas movie binge when I came across this film. First and foremost, BRAVO to the costume and set designers, who did an exceptional job. The movie offers a dramatic countdown of Anne Boleyn's short-lived time at court as the royal consort of Henry VIII, with Irene Papas as the (deeply wronged) Queen Katerina of Aragon, Richard Burton as Henry VIII, and Geneviève Bujold as Anne. The supporting cast is equally impressive, especially if you know your old movies (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0064030/fullcredits).The film is tastefully done, where more modern renditions of the story go too far. My film group and I really loved this one. If you haven't had the opportunity to watch it, check it out.

The great cast and my love for period pieces and fascination with the Tudors were the main attractions, and while not perfect Anne of the Thousand Days is a well-done film a lot of the time. It is let down by Charles Jarrott's direction being pedestrian and lacking in style, almost indifferent; some scenes lacking dramatic oomph especially in the early scenes, not helped by some stodginess in the pacing; parts that felt dragged out like in the early scenes and rushed in others like after Henry and Anne's wedding with the fact of Anne being involved in the church's reform being barely touched upon, and Peter Jeffrey's very bland Duke of Norfolk.But Anne of the Thousand Days does look amazing, the scenery and interiors are of colourful lavishness and the handsome costumes rightly deserved the Oscar received, the attention to detail always more than evident. The cinematography is first rate as well. Anne of the Thousand Days has also a luscious- in every meaning of the word- music score(especially the love theme used to poignant effect with Anne in the Tower of London counting down the thousand days, and a very witty script. How can one not savour Henry and Anne's charming banter or lines like "you make love as you eat, with a great deal of noise and no subtlety" and "we used the incest excuse last time. We can't have a habit of it"? And we mustn't forget Anne's final speech to Henry, it may be rather prophetic and anachronistic but it is still such a powerful piece of dialogue vividly delivered by Genevieve Bujold (unfortunately it's repeated accompanying toddler Elizabeth in the courtyard and it has nowhere near the same impact, if anything it was unnecessary and clunky). Dramatically it's that scene, the confrontation between Henry and Anne, that's the highlight of the film, it blazes like fireworks and really gave me goosebumps.As for the acting it was very good, especially Genevieve Bujold as Anne Boleyn. She is very poignant as the character and gives her a strong will too, not afraid to speak her mind. Anthony Quayle's sympathetic but also subtly menacing Wolsey, John Colicos' slimy Cromwell, Irene Papas' touchingly dignified Katherine of Aragon, William Squire's equally dignified Thomas Moore and Michael Horden's agreeable Thomas Boleyn are also excellent. Richard Burton doesn't completely inhabit Henry, being not quite right physically, and he does come across as hammy on occasions, but he portrays Henry still with great gusto and intensity, his interpretation being one of a blustering king with a soul. His chemistry with Bujold is mostly convincing, sometimes early on a little soap-opera-ish but mostly it's charming and witty yet tense and affecting. Overall, Anne of the Thousand Days is a most respectable film with its best things being above very good. 7/10 Bethany Cox

Richard Burton and Genevieve Bujold both give bravura performances here, but I was particularly struck by the quality of the supporting cast in what could easily have been a film totally dominated by its two stars. John Colicos stands out as a highly intelligent Thomas Cromwell, jumping ship from the old master to the new as Wolsey's favour falters, scheming and utterly ruthless and yet human enough to betray a moment of shaken relief after successfully manipulating his monarch. Anthony Quale as Cardinal Wolsey, who makes the mistake of holding more power than the King -- and of alienating the King's mistress -- is also excellent, as is William Squire in a small part as Thomas More. Irene Papas plays a fine gaunt Spanish Queen (although ironically, the real Catherine of Aragon was praised in her youth for her fair hair, dainty stature and generally un-Spanish looks!) and Michael Hordern does well as the pandering Thomas Boleyn, who procures both his daughters for the King's pleasure. Gary Bond as the unfortunate musician Mark Smeaton (does he really sing those countertenor-style ballads himself? I see that he played the lead in "Joseph & the Technicolor Dreamcoat") creates a character out of what could have been simply a pretty-boy role, and a number of other actors lend depth to brief appearances in parts such as Lady Kingston (the wife of Anne's jailer).My main issue with the film would be the clunky dose of hindsight administered in the closing voice-over (a lingering shot of the toddling Princess Elizabeth), which undermines the impact of the ending. Anne's finally falling for Henry also seemed to come somewhat out of nowhere: he is no more likable at this point than earlier, when she rejects him scornfully, and there has been no sense of preceding love/hate tension between them; what I got was mainly scorn. One just has to take this development as read for the sake of the plot.Otherwise, a powerful and impressive production that canters through some complicated history without becoming dull.

King Henry VIII (Richard Burton) is the absolute ruler of England, handsome, athletic, lusty, loved by his people - but unable to produce a son by his wife, Katherine of Aragon (Irene Papas). Henry's wandering eye soon turns to Anne Boleyn (Genevieve Bujold), the daughter of a minor nobleman (Michael Hordern) whose older daughter, Mary (Valerie Gearon), already had a turn as the King's mistress. But Anne is determined not to follow her sister and be discarded, and when Henry's adviser Cardinal Wolsey (Anthony Quayle) breaks up her marriage to Henry Percy (Terence Wilson), Anne is infuriated. Eventually, Anne does fall for Henry - but forces him to marry her. Henry breaks with the Catholic Church and discards Katharine, but no sooner does he marry Ann than their relationship begins to sour. When Anne proves also unable to produce a son, Henry tires of her and enlists his chief minister, Thomas Cromwell (John Colicos) to do away with Anne by any means necessary."Anne of the Thousand Days" is a fine cinematic exploration of one of history's most infamous love affairs. Although featuring its share of flaws, it achieves what it sets out to do. It's an entertaining, intelligent and enjoyable period piece, lavishly mounted, handsomely photographed, and impeccably acted. It is never boring, which is quite an accomplishment in a 145 minute period film.The film gives a stirring portrait of a well-known and well-worn subject. Henry is presented as a capricious beast, given to fits of monstrous rage when roused; when he is unhappy, no one is happy. His attempts to woo Anne are both pathetic and monstrous; the idea of him breaking up Anne's engagement to have her as a plaything is simply disgusting. If we didn't know how the story ended, we might have sympathy for Henry, a spoiled brat unused to rejection and enchanted by a girl he can't have. The charm is quickly worn off by those who are sacrificed along the way - Wolsey, Thomas More (William Squire), Bishop Fisher (Joseph O'Connor), and of course the momentous break with the Catholic Church, a momentous expediency which ultimately serves only to give Henry unlimited authority. How many people must die for Henry's whims? And more than that, a whim he's going to grow tired of in a few years' time? This is the true measure of Henry's evil, his use of human lives as tools for his own personal gain, even when the gain is only temporary.As we all know, it's not going to end well, as Henry's affection for Anne runs rather shallow; she doesn't given him a male child, and he has no further use for her. Discarding his best advisers, he turns to Cromwell, a man lacking in scruples, to dispose of his wife; he moves on to his next conquest, Jane Seymour (Lesley Paterson), without a hint of regret. Richard Burton is well-cast as Henry; beyond the physical resemblance, he handles Bridget Boland and John Hale's muscular dialogue as if he were born speaking it.We are also given an uncommonly sympathetic Anne. Anne is portrayed as a headstrong girl who has the nerve to stand up to the King; an act which, in 16th Century England, was one of uncommon courage. Manipulated by her ambitious relatives into a relationship she doesn't want, denied the love of her fiancée by Henry, she vents her rage towards the King in public. Eventually, seduced by power and worn down by Henry's constant badgering, she does fall for him - but the honeymoon is over before it's even begun; the people openly despise her, the King's advisors distrust her, and worst of all, she can't produce Henry's son. Before long, she finds herself on trial for her life, a victim of her capricious and unsympathetic husband. Genevieve Bujold's performance is fiery and charismatic; I am not an Anne fan by any means, but even I was moved to sympathy during the later sections of the film, as she is targeted by her ungrateful husband for destruction. Bujold is a brilliant Anne: beautiful, passionate, and sympathetic, and she dominates the film every time she's on screen.The movie moves along at a brisk clip for the half, as Henry tries to woo Anne and affect his divorce. The film is filled with witty, intelligent banter between Henry and Anne. The dialogue is reasonably authentic, avoiding the cutesy self-awareness plaguing many other period films (cf. The Lion in Winter), the portrayal of the events accessible and entertaining. This is history for the masses, and as such, it's very well-done.However, after Anne and Henry's wedding, the movie seems to move along too quickly, skimming over many important events and points - most notably Anne's involvement in the reform of the Church, which is barely even mentioned. The film features a powerful climactic meeting between Anne and Henry in the Tower, where Anne tells Henry off in a brilliant speech, but the film is capped off with a clunk when the speech is repeated via narration at the very end (over a shot of young Princess Elizabeth toddling around the courtyard).The film is lavishly mounted, with gorgeous costumes, beautiful cinematography (by Arthur Ibbetson), and a handsome score by Georges Delerue. The movie makes an interesting companion piece to A Man for All Seasons, which it strongly resembles appearance-wise (besides sharing a common subject).The supporting cast is quite good, particularly Anthony Quayle as an unusually sympathetic Wolsey, John Colicos as the shifty fly-on-the-wall Cromwell, and William Squire as a dignified Thomas More. Some performances don't come off too well - Peter Jeffrey is an uncommonly bland Duke of Norfolk, and Irene Papas seems badly miscast as Katherine - but they're in the minority.While not a masterpiece, Anne of the Thousand Days is a very well-made and enjoyable film, a bit of crowd-pleasing historical entertainment.8/10