Natalie Portman, Scarlett Johansson keep their heads in "Boleyn"

By Ray Bennett

BERLIN (Hollywood Reporter) - Anne Boleyn may have married Henry VIII, but her sister Mary in would have been his queen if only she had been better at making babies.

That, of course, was always the problem. The Tudor line's grip on the throne invariably was threatened by the lack of a son, even though it would be daughter Elizabeth who reigned in the nation's golden age.

In Justin Chadwick's handsome but glum film, "The Other Boleyn Girl," based on the novel by Philippa Gregory, the focus is on Anne (Natalie Portman) and Mary (Scarlett Johansson) as their father, Thomas Boleyn (Mark Rylance), and uncle, the Duke of Norfolk (David Morrissey), conspire for one of them to win the king's fancy while their mother (Kristin Scott Thomas) looks on in disgust.

Shot in high definition and filmed at many historical locations, the film somehow still lacks the splendor of an epic, and its urgency to get on with the next plot point leaves much unexplained while context goes out the window. Good performances by the female leads and all the appurtenances and costumes of the time might attract fans of period movies, but there's not enough flash and fire to grab the attention of a wider audience.

Already given screen treatment in a 2003 BBC TV film, "Boleyn Girl" here gets a bigger budget, big-name stars and a script by Peter Morgan ("The Queen").

Morgan already had a go at this particular monarch for Granada Television in 2003 with "Henry VIII," starring Ray Winstone, and he's back presumably attracted by the opportunity to write for two dynamic actresses playing competing sisters.

His script lacks punch, however. Portman and Johansson are more than equal to the demands, but with a tougher-minded script they might have soared. Portman comes to grips with the sharpest lines, but she could have done so much more. Johansson's character grows the most in the film, and once again the star dazzles with her versatility.

Eric Bana as the king offers little help. Such is his lack of screen presence that the Australian film star virtually disappears whenever Portman, Johansson or Scott Thomas makes an appearance.