Summary: the death of Shakespeare’s son.
Whilst the title implies that Upstart Crow, a British TV show did it first, I would argue that where the difference comes is in the framing. Within Upstart Crow the focus is very much on Shakespeare’s point of view this is more so from the point of view of his wife Agnes/Anne.
This is Jessie Buckley’s film, she should win best actress for it, her performance is likely a career high, though the Bride is coming soon. Her performance is not only the emotional core of the film but also the life force for everything else that happens.
The subject matter is handled in a way that is depressing yes, a child dies, but you would argue that there is a more optimistic feeling by the end of the film. If you cannot handle depictions of grief or child mortality this might not be the film for you as it goes go to some dark places.
I appreciated the hyper real aspects to the film such as the stuff with the cave and the hawk and think that it provided a nice respite from being too depressing.
Overall, a strong emotional film.
4/5
Pros.
The performances
The emotion
The ending
The impact
Cons.
Pacing issues
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