A Royal Affair

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  • Opened January 18, 2013 (Jan 18 NY, Feb 1 LA)
  • 2 hr 18 min
  • R | Sexual Content and Some Violent Images
  • Parents: Common Sense Media says OK for kids 16+. More on child suitability

  • ROYAL AFFAIR is an 18th century historical drama four years in the making, starring Mads Mikkelsen and Alicia Vikander. Directed by Nikolaj Arcel, screenwriter of The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, the film is an epic romance about the love triangle between a German doctor, the queen of Denmark, and her deranged king.
    *Note: In Danish with English subtitles. Full synopsis

  • Cast: Mads Mikkelsen, Alicia Vikander, Mikkel Boe Følsgaard, Trine Dyrholm, David Denick
  • Director: Nicolaj Arcel
  • Genres: Drama, Romance

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Fans say Go
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Critics say Go
73 out of 100
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Fan Reviews

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As Foriegn Films Go, This One Is Special.

by Alon Patterson

Reading a film puts a lot of people off. That's understandable in that it's difficult to watch and read at the same time. Still, some films transcend this deficit and this is definitely one of...

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by gsthilaire

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Both interesting and Educational

by dawesten

Based on true events and historical characters, I found this period film from the woman's point of view interesting, and the view into court life and politics of the late 1,700's educational and...

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Critic Reviews

90
Wall Street Journal
| Joe Morgenstern

With its sumptuous settings, urgent romance and intellectual substance, A Royal Affair is a mind-opener crossed with a bodice-ripper. Read full review

88
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
| Joe Williams

Although the brazen lovers, bellicose ministers and backstabbing handmaidens are familiar elements, the film is so handsomely mounted that we happily endure the ride until the turning of the screws in the tragic last act. Read full review

88
Philadelphia Inquirer
| Steven Rea

Historical drama of the highest order - teeming with big ideas, and anchored by the nicely nuanced performances of Vikander and Mikkelsen. Read full review

88
Charlotte Observer
| Lawrence Toppman

Writers Rasmus Heisterberg and Nicolaj Arcel are known in America for the original version of "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo." This film is the exact opposite: stately instead of propulsive, emotionally warm instead of chilly, lit by candles and sun instead of flashlights and neon. Read full review

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Mads Mikkelsen and Alicia Vikander in "A Royal Affair."