Helena Bonham Carter -- Anne Boleyn - interview

[SilverLocket95]

I could just listen to her talk all day! She's so intelligent and witty and beautiful a true role model and a fantastic actress!

[mchicxoo]

She's in my top three favorite onscreen Anne Boleyns, right after Natalie Dormer and Genivieve Bujold.

[ladylake2004]

any one know where i can see this ?

[krista37090]

Henry was crazy, he gave her only 2 years to have a son.

[Zoisy]

intelligent, smart and gorgous actress- go HBC!

[sugabayer]

Anne was centuries ahead of her time. It probably cost her her life though.

[lovettlove4todd]

dont like her dress it makes her look weird but love her eneyway :}

[MaximeBellatrix]

And history, and Helena!

great!!

[KaraBoleyn21]

"and found Jane Seymour, who's, you know, a wimp"

hahahaha I have a new respect for HBC, very true words :)

[LucyLovettLestrange]

@KaraBoleyn21 I heard Catherine Howard was as well. Supposedly when she was about to be executed, she panicked and ran around screaming, the executioner had to chase her down is what I've heard. Supposedly if you go to Hampton Court in England, you can hear her ghostly screaming. Have you heard that?

[TheRentFan]

@LucyLovettLestrange Catherine Howard was still very much a child when she married Henry. She was not like Jane Seymour, who at least was brought up to understand how dangerous the court could be. Jane was a wimp in the sense that she let the men decide EVERYTHING for her and never voiced her own opinion, while Catherine was just a 10 year old in a 17 year old's body. I don't really blame her for running.

[01Caroline]

I would think that Helena Bonham Carter would do well with Anne Boleyn's character because she can play dark charaters well... She's a versatile actress. 5 Stars.

[LucyLovettLestrange]

@01Caroline Could you have seen her as Anne Boleyn in The Other Boleyn Girl? That would be incredible!

[ofcelticblood]

Escapetodarkness - Anne Boleyn did not sleep with her brother. Those were trumped up charges to get her neck on the block. Research the history of Henry VIII and his wives. (I have for over ten years in this field) and so much that is in the movies and "general knowledge" is bs. AB was intellegent, assertive and witty. At AB's trial she was accused of having affairs with 5 different men. All charges could never be proved.

[Escapetodarkness]

I like that she skips over the fact that in her desperation to have a son, she had sex on multiple occasions with her brother who, from all accounts, was gay and had many partners and when Anne Boleyn was beheaded, her brother and all of his partners were hung, drawn, and quartered. Minor detail.

[boogieC13]

her voice makes me soo..........entranced <3

[GOLD2103]

she is such a beautiful woman！~

[xxBellaLovettxx]

I luv Helena in this but I read that because she was pregnant with Billy it restricted her role a lot but she still was great!

xx

[ShaunnaWindsor]

helena and anne are two of my favourite things.

[AriaInTheSky]

Helena is one of my favorite actresses. I remember "Lady Jane"....

[ekateri28]

I LOVE Helena. She is quirky and strange but unique. I like it when she refers to Jane Seymour as a 'wimp'. Yeah Anne was a bitch alright. Assertive women are called bitches these days. Jane was more discreet especially coming after Anne. I don't think she wanted to end up like her either!

[AriaInTheSky]

Exactly! All actresses seem to be the same nowadays, but Helena breaks from that and becomes something different, which gives her my respect and devotion.

[LucyLovettLestrange]

@AriaInTheSky Yeah! She acts normal! She's very aware that she is rich and famous ( she was actually born into a wealthy family) but she doesn't care! She actually said that "Living a glamourous lifestyle didn't seem very rewarding." Go HBC! Agree with me?

[AriaInTheSky]

@LucyLovettLestrange AMEN!

[LucyLovettLestrange]

@AriaInTheSky High five!! I used to admire Kate Winslet but she lost my respect by deliberetly flaunting her relationship with Leonardo Dicaprio by doing Revolutionary Road. HBC has never once waved it in everybody's face that she works with Johnny Depp. ( No offense if you like Kate Winslet, but she always took airs on her self that she did Titanic with Leonardo DiCaprio)

[AriaInTheSky]

@LucyLovettLestrange Kate isn't my favourite. HBC wins forever! hehe

[LucyLovettLestrange]

@AriaInTheSky I know, (HBC is) mine as well. I'm just saying HBC doesn't do things for attention. I like her because HBC acts normal.

[Jenniferhos]

I wish you could post the clips from Henry the eighth , you posted a few and I love them. Can you post more?

[mischevious3]

the whole movie is on here just type in Henry XIII part 1 and it should come up this is a movie not a series at least not of my knowledge

[marcN19]

She describes the period almost as clearly as David Starkey.

[iiTory]

Does anyone know the movie se was in and jim carry ?!?

[AWickedMind]

She seems to have understood Anne a lot better than the makers of the movie.

[dollyrots3csi]

she looks great in that outfit, but it looks like it hurts. I mean, ladies, imagine your boobs being squashed like that.

[HelenaIsMyGoddess]

Good lord she is FANTASTIC!!! I ♥ HER she is ABSOLUTELY the BEST damn actress in the ENTIRE world!! XD lolz I LOVE her laugh its soo adorable!

[xsexyminxyx]

lawl yeah i love helena XD she was a great anne boleyn, and i think if this film had a longer run like showtime "the tudors" she could of matched natalie dormer. both of them were brilliant anne boleyn's dontcha think XD

[seraphdarknon]

This shot makes her torso look huge, like she's wearing a suit of armor. lol. I'm sure it looks great in full view, tho. Her breasts look great in this dress though.

[katkongo]

You do know that she was pregnant at the time that this interview was filmed, seraphdarknon?

[seraphdarknon]

Uhh yes. I do. I was just commenting on the dress.

[EHMNB]

She is so great as Anne Boleyn! She's great whatever she do, in my opinion <3

[zoofirock]

first cousin of  florence nightingale of derbyshire

[CourteneyCoxFan94]

I love her she is just awesome!!! GO HELENA!! I Love her even though she says um and ah alot cuz she is one of my favorite actresses EVER!!! xD

5 stars and favorited.

I CAN UNDERSTAND WHY SHE SAYS UM AND AH ALOT CUZ I WOULDNT BE ABLE TO THINK EITHER. Plus she is probably pregnant here.

[BubblyBethie]

I love this woman she is one of my favourite actresses and to answer "She ums and ahhs alot" That was because she was pregnant at the time and you cant really think straight. lol

[Londzo12]

wow, i had no idea what the heck she was saying, but in since it was helena bonham carter i watched the whole thing twice. hehe go helena! BEST ACTRESS EVER

[MrsCullenHale]

she says uhm and uh alot...lol

[4Minutes2SaveTheWorl]

i think she's like that coz i have an idea she's pregnant here and it's hard for her to think. x

[lilmizzspac]

shes funny and so smart! i luv her!!!

[MisstressFurter]

Ahahaha. Why is every other word out of her mouth 'um'? lol. ♥ Love 'er to death. . .but come on. .. she's better at answering interviews than that!

[Lilgirl8x]

Big words :D i want to be her soooo much!!

[lamb92]

omg how beautiful can this woman get!!! helena is absolutly gorgeous!....tim is a VERY lucky man =)

[cooro987]

Poor thing. They always make her wear corsets. Its so hard to breath I feel bad for her. Poor thing.:(

[zrtproductions]

its her dress. if you look at how her body looks,im gonna almost guarentee that for acuracy she is wearing a corset.

[gallieman]

i don't think she is wearing a corset. if you ar watching the movie you most look good at her profile. you wil see what i mean.

xxxxxxx lola

[Bellatrix04]

You're right she did that in Sweeney Todd either. It looks beautiful but it's more important that she can breath. I'm sorry for her. But she still looks gorgeous and have a beautiful voice!!

[operastar1994]

I feel so bad for her she is lke a cant breath cant bteath aww

[BELLATRIXxDAUGHTER]

she cant breathe at all can she?!?!? Poor thing!!

[Free411]

i dont want to sound or come off bad but every time she takes a breath her boobs go up. and it looks like she cant breathe very well

[lethalenigma]

My god that costume looks painful. Jesus.

For something so constricting she sure does play the part fantastically.

[lollzpopz22]

She was pregnant at the time so they had to tighten the dress a lot. No wonder she can't breathe

[Rebeida]

the poor thing is struggling to breathe by the end of this video!

[londonchick2]

haha Jane is a wimp!

[queenme222]

is this her adution

[mollybell313]

are you serious?

[yourfaceandmum]

my my you are dumb

[lamb92]

omgg bless her she cant breath in that thing! and WOW! i wish i had her boobs!!

[johnnydeppishott123]

lmao me 2

[seramyu2005]

mine are almost her size ;)

[iloveyoutoo825]

I really like her take on Anne-very similar to mine. Better than that Other Boleyn Girl/Alison Weir drivel out there...

[iloveyoutoo825]

I really like her take on Anne-very similar to mine. Better than that Other Boleyn Girl/Alison Weir drivel out there...

[zarasxc]

do u see her boobies coming up and down as she breaths in and breaths out:D! big knockers!

[daiu1ro]

poor thing!

[zarasxc]

do u see her boobies coming up and down as she breaths in and breaths out:D! big knockers!

[bowiefan4life]

ummmm ew. did any of us really need that comment?

[maryfabuk]

I think shes a great actress although the film of Henry 8th she starred in with Ray Winstone was absolute crap! They made Henry into a London mobster with his dolly bird in Anne!! lol

[melmoluvsbeatles2010]

i love helena

she has a great vocabulary haha!

[lollzpopz22]

think Helena was relly good in this role - surprised that she could talk as much as she did in those dresses lol! To be honest like Helena in all of her films because she shows a sifferent person every time!! Go Helena!!!

[chilipeppersrule08]

helena is awesome.

end of.

(=

[lizzienuss88]

I love Helena! I think she plays this part so well :-) Was she pregnant while they were filming this? Because they filmed in 2003 and she gave birth to Billy in Oct 2003. -Might explain her strange torso shape!

[lollzpopz22]

Yes that's why she can't breathe in the dress. You notice when you look closely also that she rubs her stomach a lot aswell which is what she did in Sweeney Todd interviews while pregnant too

[DTentGurl]

I like Helena...But I believe that Henry VIII Was no match to his father Henry VII

[boleynpoto]

i thought that helena was perfect 4 anne boleyn except her face is sort of square and annes was more long. BUT PERFECT!!!

[bittersweetone]

She sounds like a really intelligent person, even if she stumbles a bit. She speaks wicked fast, maybe that's why she stumbles when she doesn't find the words.

And this is just a side note- it is really freaky when her chest heaves up and down...

[bastardstakemyname]

she does sound really intelligent

About the chest - It's the dress, I wore one antd the same thing happened - It's because you can't breathe so when you do its in great gasping breathes

[Willow698]

I know! I wore a corset for a Halloween party and could barely move because it laced so tight. I ended up sitting most of it out because it was so easy to get winded. I wonder how the women ever did it lol

[bastardstakemyname]

I know! I'd die if i had to live then...maybe not - men in tights...hmmm

[sjfriend]

erm ah er erm ahhh, ermm

other than all that she gave quite a good point of view

[lizzienuss88]

Bless her she does that quite a bit, and says "you know" a lot. X-)I love Helena <3

[LEAMO89]

i'm totally in love with helena

[koalastephanie]

She is amazing, she is my No.1 favorite actress ever. I love you Helena.

[ekateri28]

Helena was very good as Anne Boleyn. She had those 'goggle eyes' that contemporaries wrote about her. Bravo! What the heck, she is English.

[srlotfi]

I'm sorry but women were not hung drawn and quartered... it was burning or beheading...she's off her rocker on that one.

[littlemisssunnydale]

Lol; I had to do some editing with this interview! Overall I found her take on Anne Boleyn intriguing and rather sympathetic and she seems to have identified that Anne was quite distinct from contemporary women. But some her comments are off (note the fact that I had to insert the thing about Mary Boleyn's children!)

[AmaterasuTao]

Well he already have a male illegitimate heir, I don't think he wanted another open one. It may be debateable but many people, especially in England, think Henry had those kids.

[littlemisssunnydale]

There was no impediment to Henry recognising another illegitimate chid. If anything it would have been in his interest to recognise another illegitimate son as he could have used this to highlight how he could not have son in a 'corrupt union' but not with his wife thus using this to highlight the invalidity of his marriage to Katherine. The fact that Henry did not recognise Henry Carey indicates that the paternity was in doubt and that Mary was not just sleeping with Henry.

[littlemisssunnydale]

Also Henry ultimately provided for all his children even the ones he viewed as illegitimate (like his daughters Mary and Elizabeth). It seems out of character that he would not provide for the Careys if they were his. On top of that Henry was not interested in making Anne his wife by the time Henry Carey was born so it wasn't as if he was not recognising him out of loyalty to his relationship with Anne.

[AmaterasuTao]

This is true, but it would have been complicated to have two bastard heirs when what he really wanted was a legitimate son. Also, Mary didn't have the same spirit as Anne so I doubt she would have pushed Henry to legitimize the throne. Even so after Anne I doubt he would have wanted anything to do with Mary's children out of bitterness towards their aunt.

[littlemisssunnydale]

But where is the complication? Kings could and did acknowledge more than one bastard and Henry ultimately believed that he had only one legitimate child - his son Edward and two illegitimate daughters. The fact that Henry did not acknowledge the Careys either points to the idea that they were not his or that Mary was not only sleeping with Henry and so the paternity was questionable which again casrs doubt on whether they were his children.

[AmaterasuTao]

Mary, Elizabeth and Edward could all be argued to be legal children because he was married to Katherine, Jane and Anne. Mary was just a mistress and not that important of one. He already had one true bastard son so why would he want another one?

Besides I'm sure Henry knew that all three of them all could find legal ties to the throne anyway.

[littlemisssunnydale]

Elizabeth and Mary were ultimately illegitimate but granted a right to succeed.

Again though there was no impediment to Henry recognising the Carey children as he was not adverse to recognising bastards and providing for them, nor did he not recognise them due to Anne Boleyn (as the birth of the Carey children predates when Henry seriously considered Anne Boleyn as a potential wife.)

[AmaterasuTao]

I don't consider Elizabeth and Mary illegitimate. That was just Henry and his ambition calling them so, they were legal children and deep down Henry knew that. Plus, people supported Elizabeth and Mary, politically, and Anne did "adopt" Henry Carey for a time and Mary Boleyn ultimately left court anyway and he relationship with the king as a mistress wasn't that important to him.

[littlemisssunnydale]

n the eyes of the English law they were illegitimate, even though Mary in particularly had her supporters (in the eyes of the Catholic Church she was legitimate but in England she was not). Elizabeth never claimed she was legitimate but Mary actually declared her parents' marriage to be valid on her accession (it was one of the first things she did as Queen). But that was in 1553.

[littlemisssunnydale]

As for Henry Carey -- in England it was frequently customary for children from the nobility, particularly young boys whose fathers had died, to be raised elsewhere. In the case of Mary her finances were poor and her son was expected to be raised in another household. Anne helped Mary out a lot; she made sure Mary was provided for and instead of Carey being sent to a household of someone outside the family she offered to financial assist his upbringing.

...

[littlemisssunnydale]

One of the reasons why Anne was so shocked at Mary's reckless decision to marry a man of poor reputation was because Anne had helped Mary and even asked the king to help her out. Mary's actions were viewed as throwing this support back in her face. To her credit, Anne continued to help Henry Carey. Unfortunately though this help has been twisted by Philippa Gregory in her awful book on Mary Boleyn.

[AmaterasuTao]

Im guessing you are speaking of the presentation of Anne in the book

[littlemisssunnydale]

I thought the book was complete trash and did no one any justice. Gregory is IMO, a very poor writer who must paint figures in black and white. Her perception of Mary Boleyn is quite amusing; nowhere did she mention Mary's infamous reputation and she overlooked the fact that Mary did not even ensure that her disgrace would not affect her children. She decided to depict Anne as the baddie instead in order to make Mary seem more angelic. And to insinuate that Anne and George were lovers? Grrr...

[AmaterasuTao]

Well I think of the book as a complete work of fiction. And as that I enjoyed it.

But as someone who loves Anne, I noticed all the times she was cherry-picking her history. Mary was a well known slut in the French court.

As for Anne I doubt she was that much of a bitch towards her sister. The idea of her willing having sex with her brother is ridiculous.

[littlemisssunnydale]

I read the book as a piece of fiction also and still ended up hated it (I think Gregory is appalling in her presentation of characters. She frequently adopts a black/white approach and ultimately does no justice to the actual figures she is representation). Whilst a writer of fiction is ultimately writing fiction they also have to bear in mind that they are dealing with actual people who have existed, so to portray them in such a fashion is absurd and too simplistic.

[AmaterasuTao]

I can see your points and I understand why you feel the way you do about the book and to an extent I did as well.

But I just tried not to think of them all as actual people and just characters of a book. Because otherwise its hard to enjoy it.

[littlemisssunnydale]

But the problem (or perhaps just the reality) is that these are ultimately real people, and to depict them in such a silly, unbalanced and unfair fashion is absurd. And on top of that Gregory had the audacity to claim she based her book on works by certain historians (like Warnicke's biography on Anne) even though her novel bears no resemblance to such material.

[littlemisssunnydale]

Historical fiction can rarely be just fiction. As long as it uses real figures and real events it must in some way strive to achieve a decent and respectable level of accuracy. If the author in question does not want to achieve this then they why bother writing about actual people - just use fictional characters instead.

[AmaterasuTao]

Well I agree with you and do be fair to her she does have historically accurate events in the book. Even though her characterization is not 100% acurate

[littlemisssunnydale]

Hmmm, which parts did she get right? She got the basic gist of the story (i.e. Mary was mistress then not mistress, Henry broke from Church in Rome, married Anne, then Anne was executed). But really all piece of historical fiction/TV productions/film on this period cover such basics. Nothing special there.

[AmaterasuTao]

Facts like her marriage, Katherine of Aragon's personality and trial, how she died, etc. Basic small things. I mean the basic gist of the story is still important.

[littlemisssunnydale]

It is important, however it is not impressive. Even those who knew extremely little about this period will probably know the gist of the story. Ultimately Gregory did nothing special and just read a few books on this period (and managed to misinterpret the theories of one and offended the historian in question). But at the same time she decided to portray people in such a simplistic fashion that she spoilt the novel.

[AmaterasuTao]

Well someone who is very knowledgeable of the era and the characters wouldn't find it that good. Those who don't know about it will enjoy it because, unlike you, they wont care about the changes she made. And I can assure you not alot of people know about Henry VIII other than that he killed his wife.

Gregory, IMO, made a book of fiction that is enjoyable if you don't know about the era, or don't care about the historical changes.

But thats just me ^_^

[littlemisssunnydale]

With respect, although I might know more about this period than some other people (and I do think there are many people at there who know a lot about this period) this doesn't diminish the fact that overall the information Gregory provides is not amazing and is certainly not remarkable for a writer of historical fiction (I've read fiction that has excelled in its use of historical facts and has really impressed me). And such work doesn't distort the figures, unlike Gregory's work.

[AmaterasuTao]

Well someone who is very knowledgeable of the era and the characters wouldn't find it that good. Those who don't know about it will enjoy it because, unlike you, they wont care about the changes she made. And I can assure you not alot of people know about Henry VIII other than that he killed his wife.

Gregory, IMO, made a book of fiction that is enjoyable if you don't know about the era, or don't care about the historical changes.

But thats just me ^_^

[AmaterasuTao]

Well The Little Mermaid is BASED on the original tale and yet bears no resemblance to the real story at all.

Yes she wasn't fair to the real characters, but I don't think she was trying to make it a fully accurate novel. I think she was trying to make an entertaining novel.

[littlemisssunnydale]

But entertainment is in the depiction of people as black and white individuals? Again my concern is not just with accuracy; it is with her writing style and the way she portrays the characters. Her characters are not complex; Mary Boleyn is so saintly it is almost funny, and Anne Boleyn is soon vindictive it is rather pathetic. This is not a sign of good writing. The fact she also distorts the work of Retha Warnicke is also perturbing (and I don't blame Warnicke for being pissed off).

[AmaterasuTao]

Well I think it is entertaining and its success proves that people like it.

I agree with all your points on Mary and Anne. Mary is a little angel and Anne is the devil on wheels, but its other elements that make it interesting. The back and forth between sisters, how the families push them, and I thought that Anne (in the book) had reasons to feel as she did.

[littlemisssunnydale]

Unfortunately popularity does not necessarily mean quality. In the case of TOBG, its glitz with no substance.

Anne Boleyn's story will always be interesting. It is just that it can be portrayed respectably and still be fascinating. Gregory overlooked this point.

[AmaterasuTao]

Well your right it doesn't always mean quality. But I enjoyed the book despite it not being accurate.

[kittyconvention]

If Dr. Warnicke is angry, she should not appear on the DVD. It implies support for the work.

[littlemisssunnydale]

Certainly it was foolish of her to have done so, although she is not the first historian to have done a segment on a piece of drivel. Check out Dale Hoak on the God awful document, The Madness of King Henry VIII and David Loades was on a highly flawed documentary on Mary I. Gregory has made it clear though that she views recent portrayal of Anne Boleyn to be detrimental.

[kittyconvention]

Good point! I understand, too, that participants in these things cannot always control the way things eventually come out to the public, and all their contributions can and will be edited at the whim of the director and/or producer. I just felt it was mixed message, so I wish Dr W had not done it.

Just curious-what did you dislike about Helena's portrayal of AB? I thought it was one of the more sympathetic and even portrayals I've seen recently. You've made me want to give this a chance.

[littlemisssunnydale]

I also think it would have been much better had she not done it, however it is possible that she was just asked to talk about the Boleyns and not intending to discuss the book so in this context she was just providing info.

I dislike this portrayal of Anne because it covered so little on her. I felt Carter was miscast and was provided with a poor script full of silly elements, e.g. Henry raping Anne, Henry and Annes relationship instantly becoming degenerating after the birth of Elizabeth.

[AmaterasuTao]

I think she just means in general, because if Anne was a man that would have most likely been her fate

[kilasandra]

It's interesting, I've rad a lot of literature on this period. I even have a history book that I got in the 6th grade that presents Anne Boleyn in a very unflattering light. They seem to enjoy portraying her as a scheming power hungry shrew all the time. The only thing I ever saw that portrayed her sympathetically was the movie "Anne of the Thousand Days".

[boleyn1536]

helena was gr8 as anne boleyn

[schoolgurl87]

dude where did u find helena as anne boleyn i wanna see a full clip if u can get it

[brihene]

I love her laugh! She's amazing.

[darthmira]

That "dress" makes her look like the Tin Man!

[littlemisssunnydale]

Lol!

[noellemarie20]

HAHA! thanks for ruining this for me! lol. now i cant pay attention to what shes saying. i keep thinking that shes gonna need some oil

[darthmira]

Lol, didn't mean to, I was TRYING to watch, because I love her and Anne Boleyn, but her whole chest just is stuck!

[noellemarie20]

haha i know!