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Sylvia

Play trailer Poster for Sylvia R Released Oct 24, 2003 1h 50m Biography Drama Romance Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
37% Tomatometer 133 Reviews 56% Popcornmeter 5,000+ Ratings
Young Sylvia Plath (Gwyneth Paltrow) dreams of becoming an important writer. Her childhood is scarred by the unexpected loss of her father, and by the time she enrolls in college Sylvia has become emotionally fragile, suffering from depression. In 1955, she travels to Cambridge, England, to study literature, and falls in love with well-known poet Ted Hughes (Daniel Craig). As she struggles to balance a rocky marriage and growing literary success, Sylvia becomes increasingly obsessed with death.
Sylvia

What to Know

Critics Consensus

This biopic about Sylvia Plath doesn't rise above the level of highbrow melodrama.

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Critics Reviews

View All (133) Critics Reviews
Empire Magazine Rated: 3/5 May 14, 2004 Full Review Nev Pierce BBC.com Atmospheric, elegant and thoughtful. Rated: 4/5 Dec 5, 2003 Full Review Jay Boyar Orlando Sentinel A prestige picture that doesn't have a lot going for it beyond its serious intentions. Nov 13, 2003 Full Review Kat Halstead Common Sense Media Both Paltrow and Craig give engaging performances, but Paltrow's character in particular feels underwritten to the point that Sylvia never quite lives up to the potential that's surely offered up on a plate by these infamous characters. Rated: 3/5 Mar 8, 2023 Full Review David Walsh World Socialist Web Site It seems reasonable as a first principle that a film about a writer should treat the subject of writing and a film about a specific writer should treat the specific subject of his or her writing. Feb 15, 2021 Full Review Felicia Feaster Creative Loafing When there are so few stories dedicated to female creativity and pathos, you resent this one all the more for mishandling what might have been. Feb 3, 2020 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View All (431) audience reviews
Liz C What is up with the sound? The dude sounds like his mouth is gargling mashed potatoes while trying to speak. It sucks. Can't even finish. So far everything is also bad. Flat boring. The sound! The worst you cant even understand him. Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 09/06/22 Full Review isla s This is quite a good film, with the 2 main performances done well by Gwyneth Paltrow and Daniel Craig. Its a sad story of course but I liked some of the prose spoken and its not too bad in terms of being a period piece. It isn't a film I'm likely to want to re-watch but it's a pretty good film otherwise - somewhat thought provoking I suppose. Yes, I would recommend it. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member I can't speak for Plath, but if her ghost was speaking to me, she was horrified by this film, especially showing her having sex on screen! Even though Betty White is a hot number, it was like seeing Betty White's shadow puppet doing soft porn (don't ever do that to Betty White's shadow puppet!). I'm sure Ted Hughes would be into a libido-heavy interpretation of his time reciting poetry to his suicidal lovers, but not Sylvia. Rated 1 out of 5 stars 02/17/23 Full Review Audience Member I went with 2 stars for this movie very sad movie, a true story based on the life of Sylvia Plath. If you know very little or nothing about her before seeing this movie, be warned *trigger warning* she passes away at the end of the movie at a young age in a tragic way by her own hand. Do not watch this movie if feeling sad etc... Small talk throughout the movie and kinda slow at times. I thought that G.P. did a good job at playing the role of Sylvia Plath in my opinion this is a tough watch, but if you are a fan of Sylvia Plath and her work then I say you should at least give this movie a watch. Rated 2 out of 5 stars 01/16/23 Full Review Audience Member I should've heeded such warnings: FLAT. Nearly everything from story, tone, character arc, dialogue, editing, sound, cinematography...seem flat or underwhelmingly average (in 2018). For a biopic supposedly about passionate poets falling in/out of love, little poetry or passion oozes from, or even jumps off, the screen. Younger people might refer to the flat tedium as simply, BORING. As an adult, I still did not really care for any character by the film's conclusion. The lack of connection and apathy are in direct opposition of what we're likely supposed to feel at the end. If anything, I felt relief, then disappointment. SKIP this snoozer. Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars 01/15/23 Full Review Audience Member So flat. So terrible. Rated 1 out of 5 stars 01/24/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Sylvia

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Cast & Crew

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Movie Info

Synopsis Young Sylvia Plath (Gwyneth Paltrow) dreams of becoming an important writer. Her childhood is scarred by the unexpected loss of her father, and by the time she enrolls in college Sylvia has become emotionally fragile, suffering from depression. In 1955, she travels to Cambridge, England, to study literature, and falls in love with well-known poet Ted Hughes (Daniel Craig). As she struggles to balance a rocky marriage and growing literary success, Sylvia becomes increasingly obsessed with death.
Director
Christine Jeffs
Producer
Alison Owen
Screenwriter
John Brownlow
Distributor
Focus Features
Production Co
BBC
Rating
R (Nudity|Language|Sexuality)
Genre
Biography, Drama, Romance
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Oct 24, 2003, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
Dec 1, 2017
Box Office (Gross USA)
$1.3M
Runtime
1h 50m
Sound Mix
Surround, Dolby SR
Aspect Ratio
Scope (2.35:1)