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In screenwriter Stephen Jeffreys’s adaptation of his own highly acclaimed play, Johnny Depp plays John Wilmot, the real-life earl of Rochester, a notable poet and playwright in 17th-century Britain -- and one of his country’s most notorious hedonists. A self-proclaimed outcast who shunned polite society to consort with licentious scoundrels, Wilmot alienates the very people that expect his love and loyalty, including his wife (Rosamund Pike) and his king (John Malkovich). He takes a fancy, though, to inexperienced stage performer Elizabeth Barry (Samantha Morton) and transforms her, over a period of years, into London’s greatest actress. Their stormy relationship is at the core of this Laurence Dunmore-directed film, which chronicles the earl’s spiritual and physical degeneration. Depp himself seems positively energized by performing in disfiguring makeup that conveys the increasing toll of venereal disease on Wilmot’s flesh. What ultimately emerges is the profoundly sad but compelling story of a gifted man whose self-destructive impulses never diminished his ability to honor truth and beauty. Ed Hulse

All Movie Guide

A man who lives for pleasure finds his hedonism betrays him in time in this film adaptation of the play by Stephen Jeffreys. The second Earl of Rochester, John Wilmot (Johnny Depp), was a notorious figure in 17th century Europe; well-respected as a poet and author, Wilmot also earned no small degree of gossip for his freewheeling sex life and appetite for decadence. Wilmot was close friends with Charles II (John Malkovich), the powerful and Machiavellian ruler of England, and enjoyed a passionate romance with Elizabeth Barry (Samantha Morton), an actress of note. But Wilmot's seemingly charmed life took a turn for the worse when he wrote a satirical play lampooning his friend Charles II; the monarch failed to see the humor, and exiled the author from Britain. Wilmot found little solace in his relationship with Barry, especially after he contracted syphilis and began drinking heavily as the disease tore away at his body and his mind. The Libertine was produced in part by John Malkovich, who played the role of John Wilmot in a production of Stephen Jeffreys' original play. Mark Deming

Product Details

• UPC: 796019794060
• Source: WEINSTEIN COMPANY
• Region Code: 1
• Presentation: Wide Screen
• Sound: Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround
• Language: English
• Subtitles: English, Español
• Time: 1:54:00
• Sales Rank: 3,441

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