8 stars for acting, alone

Rating: 8/10 (4 January 2019)

Both Natalie Portman and Scarlett Johansson were phenomenal in their roles. The flaw of this production lies only in the idea and subsequent attempt of compressing an extremely significant and complex era - yes, era - into a two-hour span. It felt as if I was watching 'Cliffs Notes' on Anne Boleyn's relationship with King Henry VIII, the Roman Catholic Church, the English court and the English people. How painful and disconcerting. I found my brain trying to pull all the background information that I have gleaned over the span of my life surrounding this story and with, at times, some breakthrough moments when I was genuinely moved by the acting of many of the cast members.