Elizabeth I [DVD]

There are countless portrayals of Elizabeth I in film. Certainly, the best known and unforgettable of these are Dame Flora Robson, Betty Davis, Dame Judi Dench and more recently Cate Blanchett in Shekhar Kapur's "Elizabeth" and "Elizabeth: The Golden Age". In HBO's "Elizabeth I", Helen Mirren's portrayal of England's greatest monarch shows an Elizabeth who has now moved past the flower of her youth into middle age and narrowing prospects of using her virginity as a political bargaining chip on the world power stage. And yet it is no less a push by her Privy Council for her to find a husband and produce an heir and keep England safe and independent from a world that is far more Catholic than it is Protestant. Jeremy Irons is certainly a well considered Lord Robert Dudley, who was the love of Queen Elizabeth I's life. Irons and Mirren play beautifully off one another and the tenderness, even at times when they are at odds or at the passing of Dudley is a palpable thing both historically and on the screen.The movie is well researched, and the portrayal of Mary Queen of Scots was far more acurate than the version by Shekhar Kapur. Mary Queen of Scots spent most of her life in France and would have a decidedly French accent rather than a Scottish one. HBO's producers of Elizabeth I thankfully did not omit this detail. Mirren gives a very good insight into a very complex and incredibly intelligent women who kept herself several steps ahead of her courtiers and ministers and someone who was very much the product of her father, King Henry VIII and mother, Ann Boelyn. Helem Mirren shows us a glimpse of a woman who loved and loved deeply and yet was not free to live as other women lived and had to make decisions not just for her own considerations but for the people and Country to which she considered herself married to first and foremost. No matter how you feel about Elizabeth I or the times in which England began to truly become an Empire, you can empathise with Mirren's Elizabeth right up until her legendary end.If you are interested in history, particularly the history of the Tudors and Elizabeth I, this is a film that is definitely not to miss. An important thing to note to those who are concerned about violence in film/ There are a few scenes depicting graphic violence dealing with torture, punishment and execution of those who went against the Crown. The scene of the execution of Mary Queen of Scots showed that it took more than one strike of the executioner's axe to behead her. While all of this is certainly in keeping with the times, it is not for children or the squeamish.

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This is a very well directed series, with outstanding acting, cinematography, and costumes. It is well written and portrays the events reasonably accurately. On the whole the mini series is factual, but not always - for example Elizabeth I and Mary Queen of Scotts never met in real life, but they are portrayed as meeting in the mini series. The production does a very good job of representing the issues and the brutality of the Tudor Period, the love and conflicts between Elizabeth and the Earl of Leister, the stress she experiences with her Council over their desire for her to marry, and using spectacular scenery. There are issues with the show's timing of different events, but on the whole, the storyline is interesting and moves at a good pace. As someone who has taught Tudor History, I enjoyed the series and the production's focus on combining fact with entertainment.If you enjoy historical novels, time period movies, movies that combine romance and drama, or enjoy seeing a well written, directed and acted movie, I recommend this mini series to you.

“Elizabeth I” is a TV miniseries from 2005 that was originally produced for Home Box Office (HBO). It is a very entertaining account of the reign of England’s Queen Elizabeth I, and a very good program in every respect.Written by Nigel Williams and directed by Tom Hooper, the series features a formidable cast of stars, among them Helen Mirren as Elizabeth; Jeremy Irons as Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester; Toby Jones as Robert Cecil; Barbara Flynn as Mary Queen of Scots; and Eddie Redmayne as Southampton.By the time I viewed “Elizabeth I,” I had just finished watching “The Virgin Queen,” a 2005 TV miniseries from PBS’s Masterpiece Theater that's also about Queen Elizabeth I. (That series featured Anne Marie Duff and Tom Hardy.) Naturally, comparisons between the two shows became inevitable.Like PBS’s “The Virgin Queen,” HBO's “Elizabeth I” focuses more on Elizabeth’s private life, her on-again, off-again romance with Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester, and some of her other flirtations and dalliances. But while "The Virgin Queen" covers almost the entirety of Elizabeth's reign, "Elizabeth I" focuses mostly on her later and middle years as England's monarch. In both shows, Elizabethan politics are less conspicuous, although there’s still plenty of court intrigue, plots, counter-plots, and conspiracies to keep things moving along. The trial and execution of Mary Queen of Scots features prominently in "Elizabeth I," with Mary's execution scene being unexpectedly gruesome. Nearly all of the main events shown in “Elizabeth I” appear to be reasonably historically accurate, with some concessions made to dramatic and artistic license.Although I enjoyed “Elizabeth I” immensely, I do not think it quite measures up to either “The Virgin Queen” or with 1971's “Elizabeth R,” with Glenda Jackson. For some reason, this miniseries never really “grabbed” me; in fact, I unexpectedly found myself becoming increasingly disinterested in it by about halfway through the second episode. I’m not sure why that is.Having said that, I still believe “Elizabeth I” has obviously very high production values, great acting from an all-star cast, beautiful sets and costumes, and a well-written, historically sound script. It is certainly very well worth watching. Recommended.