W.E. | Rotten Tomatoes

W.E.

R

Released Dec 9, 2011

1h 59m

Drama

History

Romance

List

12%

Tomatometer

113 Reviews

48%

Audience Score

5,000+ Ratings

Dissatisfied with the way her own life is playing out, New York-based Wally Winthrop (Abbie Cornish) becomes obsessed with the romance between American divorcee Wallis Simpson (Andrea Riseborough) and England's Edward VIII (James D'Arcy) when Sotheby's holds an auction of the royal couple's belongings. Wally is especially drawn to Wallis' side of the story, and as certain events transpire in her life, the line between fantasy and reality begins to blur.

Read More

Read Less

Watch on Fandango at Home

Premiered Sep 09

Buy Now

Fandango at Home

Prime Video

Rent W.E. on Fandango at Home, Prime Video, or buy it on Fandango at Home, Prime Video.

Critics Consensus

W.E. exhibits director Madonna's keen eye for striking style, but this shallow biopic is too enamored with aesthetics to offer any insight into its subject.

Read Critics Reviews

Deborah Ross

The Spectator

With the right amount of directorial mishandling, you can utterly waste the talent of two actresses who are otherwise first-class.

Aug 31, 2018

Full Review

Austin Chronicle

Rated: 2.5/5

Mar 24, 2012

Full Review

Kimberley Jones

Austin Chronicle

The coda plays like one long and petulant foot stomp about sacrifice and due recognition of said sacrifice, and in that, too, it's impossible not to tease the thread back to its maker, striking a pose as misunderstood icon.

Rated: 2.5/5

Mar 22, 2012

Full Review

Brian D. Johnson

Maclean's Magazine

W.E. offers astounding proof that a movie can be larded with talent, money and craft, yet fail miserably.

Jul 29, 2019

Full Review

PJ Nabarro

Patrick Nabarro

The film is perhaps an ironic exposé of how personal Madonna's interest is in the very sort of privileged, monied and transnational lives of the two lead women.

Rated: 2/5

Jul 24, 2019

Full Review

Kelly Jane Torrance

Washington Examiner

Madonna needs to accept... that her talents lie not in the movie business.

Rated: 1/4

Jan 4, 2019

Full Review

Read all reviews

Sofia V

As a child, certain parts weren't the best. But I do believe the rating is too low, and the history of W.E. on both sides is wonderful( the romance of Evgheni and Wally is *chef's kiss)

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

03/02/24

Full Review

Julianne B

It doesn't make sense that this movie received such low ratings. I thought it was mesmerizing. Cinematically beautiful, thoughtfully written, engaging, and a wonderful suprise on a cold and snowy day. I didn't want it to end. Just watch it, you won't be disappointed.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/13/24

Full Review

Emilija S

I thought this movie was absolutely beautiful. I really cannot understand why the critics have rated this so low. I have watched many bad films and this is not one of them. Well worth watching.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

isla s

This is very much a swanky looking (i.e. stylish) period drama. It shows off the decadence of the time (the first half of the 1900s), although certainly not everything is as it seems. It puts across quite well that being well off does not, in and of itself, make for a happy life, with some quite chilling, you could say sobering, scenes. I understand that not everyone would be keen to feel sorry for someone who is, or was, perhaps regarded as having 'it all' but this film seemed, to me, to do well to show the other side of the proverbial coin. I felt the performances were decent, particularly that of Andrea Riseborough. I suppose its a somewhat thoughtful film, for the most part, although I did find it frustrating the cutting between timelines, from the 1930s to the late 1990s, when items that revealed the affair are auctioned off. In a way it reminded me of the film 'Red Violin', which also was partly about an auction and the various times in the distant past in which the items sold were of relevance. I enjoyed the settings of period scenes - the sumptuous surroundings and so on. The classical (musical) score was reasonably good too and I guess it was at least somewhat engrossing. Of course a film directed by such a director as Madonna is likely to get some stick but I only concentrate on the film itself. I thought it was interesting, insightful to an extent but not excellent. A relatively good film, I would recommend this only if your particularly curious about the main theme/subject matter, yes, although be aware that it isn't purely set in the 1930s, so some of it concentrates on the 90s - I thought that was less interesting and I did feel it dragged a bit, plot wise, certainly toward the end. I was also aware that at times there's relatively little dialogue and it felt like the film makers were perhaps overly trying to make it seem, I imagine, atmospheric and moving. I'm not entirely sure that really works as such. I certainly preferred the first half of the film to the 2nd half. However, I don't know enough about the details to be able to say to what extent it may be historically accurate (or not).

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Beautiful Movie! I Really Love It

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/27/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Critiques of this movie seem quite harsh to me and I think it's undeniable that has to do with Madonna. This is a beautifully shot movie, perhaps a touch mellow dramatic but not enough to border on camp. I would say this movie shows directorial potential and her only big mistake was choosing to make a movie about nazi sympathizers without addressing their sordid history in any real way. To quote Aretha Franklin, "great gowns, beautiful gowns."

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/23/23

Full Review

Read all reviews

Post a rating

Madonna

Director

Abbie Cornish

Wally Winthop

Andrea Riseborough

Wallis Simpson

James D'Arcy

Edward

Oscar Isaac

Evgeni

Richard Coyle

William Winthrop

Show Less Cast & Crew

Show More Cast & Crew

63%

50%

Anna Karenina

10%

42%

Tulip Fever

TRAILER

for Tulip Fever

43%

27%

Madame Bovary

27%

50%

The Aftermath

TRAILER

for The Aftermath

69%

61%

Sophie and the Rising Sun

TRAILER

for Sophie and the Rising Sun

Discover more movies and TV shows.

View More

Critics Consensus: The Woman in Black is a Solid Ghost Story

Critics Consensus: New Year’s Eve Drops the Ball

View more photos

Synopsis

Dissatisfied with the way her own life is playing out, New York-based Wally Winthrop (Abbie Cornish) becomes obsessed with the romance between American divorcee Wallis Simpson (Andrea Riseborough) and England's Edward VIII (James D'Arcy) when Sotheby's holds an auction of the royal couple's belongings. Wally is especially drawn to Wallis' side of the story, and as certain events transpire in her life, the line between fantasy and reality begins to blur.

Director: Madonna
Producer: Scott Franklin, Donna Gigliotti, Harvey Weinstein
Screenwriter: Madonna, Alek Keshishian
Distributor: Weinstein Co.
Rating: R (Nudity|Language|Some Domestic Violence)
Genre: Drama, History, Romance
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Dec 9, 2011, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): May 2, 2013
Box Office (Gross USA): $582.1K
Runtime: 1h 59m

Most Popular at Home Now