All Is True

In select theaters
May 10^th 2019

pg13

101 minutes

Engllish

U.K.

In 1613, after a devastating fire destroys the Globe Theatre during the first production of Shakespeare’s play “All is True” (“Life of Henry VIII”), a distraught Shakespeare (Kenneth Branagh) returns to Stratford. As he saw his family infrequently during his two decades working in London, his wife Anne (Judi Dench) and daughters Judith (Kathryn Wilder) and Susanna (Lydia Wilson) are surprised, but hardly pleased, to hear he now intends to stay in Stratford. Shakespeare, who is haunted by the death at age 11 of Judith’s twin brother Hamnet (Sam Ellis), attempts to ease his grief by planting a memorial garden for his son. As the film progresses, the simmering tensions in the family that have been contained during Shakespeare’s absence, gradually surface. ALL IS TRUE is a labor of love for Branagh, who has been fascinated with the life of Shakespeare since his teens. Just as Shakespeare used his brilliant imagination to create living portraits of kings and queens, Branagh and screenwriter Ben Elton present a multi-faceted and complex rendering of Shakespeare as a human being: a man with great creative strength, capable of sublime wisdom in his work, but an ordinarily flawed individual often struggling to apply those insights in his own life.

starring...

Kenneth Branagh

William Shakespeare

Judi Dench

Anne Hathaway

Ian McKellen

Henry Wriothesley

Kathryn Wilder

Judith Shakespeare

Lydia Wilson

Susannah Shakespeare

Hadley Fraser

John Hall

Director, Producer, Writer

Kenneth Branagh

Writer

Ben Elton

Cinematographer

Zac Nicholson

Music

Patrick Doyle

Editing

Úna Ní Dhonghaíle

Production Design

James Merifield

Costume Design

Michael O'Connor

Set Decoration

Hannah Spice

87% on the CINEMETER

MIL

85% - Apr 14, 2019

Kenneth Branagh is brilliant!
Milwaukee Member

An incredible film that reflects on the humans -- their actions, fears, desires.
Milwaukee Member

ATL

88% - Apr 7, 2019

An exquisite film of historical fiction. Editing pacing was superb. Display of humanity poignant. Do we live and deal with suffering OR do we suffer and mange to live. Best film this season so far.
Atlanta Member

Wonderful! And the silences say so much. Saying something about Shakespeare that while he understood women in his writing perhaps he didn’t appreciate the women in his own life. Could he have actually been that self-effacing? And could that relate to the persistent idea that someone else wrote his works.
Atlanta Member

I found the lighting to be enchanting. Mesmerizing [Note: there were MANY comments praising the cinematography.]
Atlanta Member

Taut, and how beautifully shot it is. The silhouettes, the softness of the scenes. Just beautiful and so truly theatrical.
Atlanta Member

I loved the way they wrote the film in Shakespeare’s spirit: taking a moment of truth and weaving an imaginative story. Beautifully filmed esp. lighting. Of course, great actors which kept me absorbed. I liked the methodical, thoughtful pace. Judy Dench is NEVER a distraction.
Atlanta Member

It seems like Shakespeare, like all of us, lived the same comedies and tragedies about which he wrote. The cinematography was outstanding.
Atlanta Member

74% - Apr 14, 2019

Terrific! Shakespeare became so human and real to me for the first tiime. A wonderful and sad story about family secrets and suppression fo women during that time. Kenneth Branagh hit this one out of the park!
San Francisco Member

Soul-searching and very engrossing - Judi Dench and Ian McKellen are the best part of the fil. The guest speaker and discussion were super and worth the trip! [lots of praise for Danny Scheie, our guest speaker]
San Francisco Member

McKellen's performance was an acting Master Class. [many comments praising Sir Ian….]
San Francisco Member

I really enjoyed the film, the pacing, the cinematography, the actign - and the ideas of feminism, homosexuality, Puritanism, and Shakespeare's reflections on his life and times.
San Francisco Member

Vain or not vain [Branagh's efforts here], the movie was terrific. As was the guest speaker. I felt as if I was up at Ashland [Shakespeare festival] watching a performance!
San Francisco Member

Breathtakingly beautiful scenery and acting - a little slow, but worth it!
San Francisco Member

STL

98% - Apr 14, 2019

What a beautiful film to remind us of life in the 16th century when there were only daylight and candlelight. Like Shakespeare's plays, this story had comedy and tragedy, royalty and the everyman, beauty and scandal, joy and sadness, truth and lies, love and hate, and, most of all, beautiful language and words.
St. Louis Member

What a stupendous film. It captures the heart of life. The actors were fabulous, the attention to detail visually and aesthetically outstanding, and historically a major contribution to the arts.
St. Louis Member

The entire film was a heart inspiring and heart wrenching narrative poem which presented as a visual art piece. Each scene appeared as a tableau, a feast for the visual sense, each was an homage to Shakespeare and his time. I felt Branagh was true in his efforts and his work.
St. Louis Member

A fine movie about human self deception and motivation. It unfolded very well, and captured the tragedy of gender issues of the time. Judi Dench remains a tour de force.
St. Louis Member

The most beautiful film I have seen in ages. There was no acting here, it was only us present there in their world. Authentic in all ways--the quiet, the cinematography, the social conventions.
St. Louis Member

A masterpiece, flawless. Loved John Pendergast! Very knowledgable. Give great perspective! Invite him back.
St. Louis Member

BOS

91% - Apr 7, 2019

Brilliant. Wonderfully conceived. Gorgeous cinematography
Boston Member

A stunning, very human tribute to the spirit of Shakespeare.
Boston Member

Outstanding acting, emotionally true.
Boston Member

Gripping plot. Touchingly poignant ending.
Boston Member

The beauty of the film is in the poetry of the language and the scenery.
Boston Member

Very interesting portrayal of the last years of Shakespeare’s life
Boston Member

84% - Mar 24, 2019

Beautiful! Fantastic! Best movie of the year! And Ian McKellen wins the sonnet-off, hands down.
Washington, DC Member

Wonderful film - so unexpected! Acting & cinematography were excellent. I wish there were more films like this.
Washington, DC Member

Loved the recurring visual of a dark room or place where fire and/or flames were the light. Beauty, a sign of how things looked and a metaphor for the clear and hidden aspects of life.
Washington, DC Member

This is an extraordinary film. I loved just about everything about it. So many elements of pain & beauty, of redemption & quiet rebellion mixed with long-suffering oppression and repression. Judi Dench & Kathryn Wilder were deeply moving. The music was beautifully haunting.
Washington, DC Member

A definitive shoo-in for the next Academy Awards for costume design - especially for the hats!
Washington, DC Member

It was so powerful & moving I could not stay for the discussion. I had to absorb it privately.
Washington, DC Member

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