Elizabeth Review
by Seth Bookey (sethbook AT panix DOT com)November 30th, 1998
Play Us a Volta!
Elizabeth (1998)
Seen on 25 November 1998 with Byron and Andrea at the SONY 19th Street for $8.75
A problem with historical epics is that you already know the ending of the movie before you've even seen it. So the viewer can only be pleased if the story shown is enjoyable and elucidates the hidden details that lead deepen your understanding of history.
Director Shekhar Kapur's Elizabeth wisely focuses on the years immediately preceeding the Virgin Queen's ascension to the throne and the years immediately after. It's a wise choice, as covering her entire life is almost impossible in the time a feature-length film can offer. (Indeed, it took six hours last to do just that in the 1972 miniseries Elizabeth R, starring Glenda Jackson.)
This period in English history is one of its most tumultuous, as successive reigns swung the country from Catholicism to Protestantism several times, setting England on the verge of yet another civil war (Elizabeth's grandfather Henry VII had ended the War of the Roses once and for all). By the time she is crowned Queen, the country is also virtually bankrupt and beset by the Scots and the French on one side, and the Spaniards on the other.
The movie begins in the doomed reign of her half-sister, Mary I (Kathy Burke), who is hoping for an heir so she can keep the country Catholic. She is also busily burning heretics at the stake.
Legally, Elizabeth must succeed her (as prescribed by a lay of their father's--Henry VIII). She does, but her court is full of intrigues and there are few, perhaps none, she can trust. Just about everyone has a hidden agenda. One agenda that is not hidden, though, is her advisors' desire that she marry and produce an heir. They underestimate her because of her sex, and consequently, she surprises them all.
Elizabeth is forced to prove herself in a very short time. Cate Blanchett moves Elizabeth from unfettered joy and innocence to world weary and worn with great skill. Her joyful radiant Princess is reduced to a worried sovereign and it's all thanks to, yes, Acting!
Robert Dudley (Joseph Fiennes) is Elizabeth's lover, played with swagger and sex appeal, and giving us a sexuality not often seen in portrayals of the Virgin Queen. He is clearly jealous when advisors suggest she marry the Duc d'Anjou (Vincent Cassel), the brother of the King of France. Meanwhile, Alvaro de la Quadra (James Frain) is advancing the proposal of his own sovereign, her brother-in-law King Phillip II of Spain. The venemous Duke of Norfolk (Christopher Eccleston) is a staunch Catholic, and happily receives the aid of a nefarious, homicidal priest dispatched by the Pope (John Gielgud) as a hitman, to bring England "back to the true faith."
Meanwhile up in Scotland, Marie de Guise (played with an elegant viciousness by the usually kind Fanny Ardant) is plotting away also. Sometimes it seems like the only person she can trust is the recently returned expatriate Protestant Sir Francis Walsingham (Geoffrey Rush). But you know what? You can never be completely sure who she can trust. Neither can she.
Elizabeth is rewarding on many levels--visually, historically, emotionally, and even in terms of plain entertainment. Cate Blanchett (of Oscar and Lucinda) holds it all together, but the supporting roles are also rendered well. Director Shakur does make a few mistakes, and the ending seems very forced and unrealistic, but overall it's a great effort, visually and narratively, and worth seeing. Shakur uses skillful editing and camera movement and placement to avoid giving us the typical stagey-and-stodgy period piece. Two scenes to watch for: Elizabeth's showdown with the bishops, and the dinner during which she comes to her *own* conclusions, and determines her own course of action.
Also starring Richard Attenborough as Sir William Cecil. Costume Design by Alexandra Byrne.
----------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright (c) 1998, Seth J. Bookey, New York, NY 10021 [email protected]; http://www.panix.com/~sethbook
More movie reviews by Seth Bookey, with graphics, can be found at http://www.geocities.com/Athens/2679/kino.html
Originally posted in the rec.arts.movies.reviews newsgroup. Copyright belongs to original author unless otherwise stated. We take no responsibilities nor do we endorse the contents of this review.
