A second film trailer for Roland Emmerich's film, Anonymous, was posted on YouTube August 5, 2011. Emmerich's historical thriller about the Shakespeare authorship controversy is scheduled for wide-release in the U.S. October 28, 2011. A preview will be screened on Sept. 7, 2011 in downtown Portland, Oregon as part of the Shakespeare Authorship Research Centre's annual conference September 6-9, 2011. Anonymous will also be featured at the Toronto International Film Festival to be held September 8-18, 2011.
Emmerich's film has Stratfordians aflutter, fearing examination of the traditional attribution of Shakespeare's plays may damage the brand. Instead of welcoming interest in Shakespeare's life and times, they are boarding up the windows against a flood of inquiry. The previously taboo topic of Shakespeare authorship is now allowed in the hallowed halls of Stratford-on-Avon so that a rear guard action against apostasy can be mounted. Paul Edmondson, Head of Research and Knowledge for the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, said in an August 2, 2011 blog post , "Our concern is that the new film will stir up the questions again."
. . . So, we are hosting an Authorship Campaign which will continue to make clear the case for Shakespeare of Stratford. One part of our response will be 60 Minutes with Shakespeare: 60 scholars, 60 questions, 60 seconds each. This will be freely available to all from September, and should be a good resource for students, teachers, theatre practitioners, and all who love Shakespeare. You can register for it now in advance; just follow this link. Please tell your family and friends about it. Editing 60 Minutes with Shakespeare is taking up most of my time just now and the project will feature some very special contributors. So, watch this space…
And, there are also the three speeches the Stanley Wells, Michael Dobson, and I gave at a debate at The English-Speaking Union on 6 June posted on this blog in June to refer to as well. We spoke up for Shakespeare against Charles Beauclerk (a descendent of the Earl of Oxford), William Leahy (Brunel University), and Roland Emmerich himself. Or, you can watch the debate here.
As many of you will already know, William Shakespeare of Stratford-upon-Avon, a glover’s son, formed by a grammar school education, with a strong imagination, a sense for the musicality of language, and who knew what it is to act, won the debate.
The head of research and knowledge made up the part about the grammar school education and is only guessing the Stratford man had an imagination or artistic ability because there's not a scrap of evidence to support his claims. Oh, well, anything to keep "the questions" from being stirred up!
Resources:
"Anonymous trailer: a history lesson from Roldand Emmerich" http://screenrant.com/anonymous-full-trailer-sandy-126980/
"New trailer for Roland Emmerich's Anonymous" http://www.reelzchannel.com/movie-news/11353/new-trailer-for-roland-emmerichs-anonymous/