Stage Beauty is a historical romance that delves into themes of patriarchy, sexism, the exploration of sexuality, and self-identity. For me, it was quite a dense movie, watching the mental deterioration of a man falling from his glory and spoiler getting rejected by society and his lover. There was quite an interesting discussion of how women really are: does feminine equate to weak and submissive and do we portray women most accurately? Although overall, Stage Beauty does a good job of tying loose ends and giving a quite dramatic and powerful ending, there were some scenes that were hard to swallow and a little rushed, in my opinion. For example, I didn't really buy or think it was necessary for Ned Kynaston to * spoiler * get violently beat up.
Overall, it's an insightful view into the past with a Shakespearean spin.