Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Mild
- decadent
- witty
- cynical
- historical drama night
- literary film night
What critics said
Critics generally found Johnny Depp’s committed performance compelling but considered the direction and murky cinematography muddled and the overall film uneven.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
The plot places Rochester’s artistic and sexual life amid the flourishing theatre and visual arts of Restoration England.
Rochester is presented as a brilliant, cynical poet whose drunkenness, promiscuity, and provocations lead to disgrace and decline.
Rochester undertakes to make Elizabeth Barry a great actress, then falls in love with her and makes her his mistress.
Critics specifically faulted the film’s murky cinematography, while the Restoration court and playhouse are portrayed as morally and aesthetically dark spaces.
Films like The Libertine, and why
Molière
shared themes of artistic ambition, sexual transgression, and self-destructive aristocratic excess in a historical drama
Shakespeare in Love
shared biographical drama, theatrical milieu, witty decadence, and a gifted but difficult creative protagonist
Quills
shared dark period atmosphere, corrosive desire, and psychologically intense literary subject matter
Amadeus
shared tragic portrait of a charismatic artist consumed by addiction, desire, and social scandal
Movie Details
- Director
- Laurence Dunmore
- Release Date
- 2004-09-16
- Runtime
- 114 min
- Rating
- 5.9 / 10 (501)
Cast
- Johnny Depp
- Samantha Morton
- John Malkovich
- Rosamund Pike
- Paul Ritter
- Stanley Townsend
- Francesca Annis
- Tom Hollander
- Johnny Vegas
- Richard Coyle
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Shout! Factory Amazon Channel
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Google Play Movies, YouTube
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Google Play Movies, YouTube
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is The Libertine about?
- A brilliant Restoration poet turns theatrical ambition, sexual appetite, and cynical self-invention into a devastating path toward disgrace and spiritual reckoning.
- What is The Libertine like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of The Libertine as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is The Libertine violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in The Libertine as mild.
- What did critics think of The Libertine?
- Critics generally found Johnny Depp’s committed performance compelling but considered the direction and murky cinematography muddled and the overall film uneven.
- Which films are like The Libertine?
- Films with a similar feel include Molière, Shakespeare in Love, Quills, and Amadeus.
- How long is The Libertine?
- The Libertine runs 114 minutes.
- Where can I watch The Libertine?
- In United States, The Libertine streams on Shout! Factory Amazon Channel.
