Elizabeth - The Golden Age (Widescreen Edition)

A Visual Feast, A Tedious Film
ELIZABETH: THE GOLDEN AGE isn't golden. Expectations were high after Cate Blanchett's first foray in 1998 as Elizabeth I, but somehow this follow-up film, with the same director (Shekhar Kapur) and writer (Michael Hirst with assistance from William Nicholson), does not reach those heights. Visually stunning, with an endless array of knockout costumes for Blanchett, special effects and scenery as majestic as any that have been photographed by fine cinematographer Remie Adefarasin and a musical score by Craig Armstrong and AR Rahman - all of these fine attributes cannot cover the weak script and the general lack of character development that hampers the usually exceptional core of actors.

The portion of Elizabeth's history covered by the film is the battle with Spain, England being the only country not participating in the Holy War in Europe under the direction of King Philip II of Spain (Jordi Mollà), complete with the surprise decimation of the approaching Spanish...

One Queen to Rule Them All
When we last left Elizabeth I (Cate Blanchett), she was young and inexperienced, struggling to come to terms with ruling a country. We now rejoin her in "Elizabeth: The Golden Age," which begins well into her reign; beginning in the year 1585, the film chronicles the growing tension between England and Spain and culminates with a fierce sea battle. It also examines the relationship between Elizabeth and Sir Walter Raleigh (Clive Owen), an adventurous seafarer. What we're presented with is less of an actual account and more of a dramatic love story, which basically means that it isn't even close to being historically accurate. But I guess that isn't a bad thing, considering the film's more creative aspects--"The Golden Age" is a triumph of set and costume design, and the performances are top notch.

If only the story were at the same level. It would be too much to say that the plot isn't interesting; rather, it isn't interesting enough. Much of the material plays like a run...

Eye Candy
It's not often that I review movies (there are some exceptions) but felt compelled to do so here as there seem to be so many that disliked Elizabeth - The Golden Age. I saw this when it first came out in the theaters and was thoroughly impressed. Yes, the costumes were spectacular, the photography superlative, and the scenery breathtaking; in other words, this film is filled with eye candy. Cate Blanchett played the awesomely beautiful queen and I was transfixed by her performance - something that normally doesn't happen to me when I go to a movie.

Granted, there may be many historical inaccuracies in this film but I didn't buy a ticket to receive an education - I use other sources (such a books) to accomplish that. (What a concept!) Elizabeth - The Golden Age, effectively transported me out of the here and now into another realm which only the arts can do. It also led to a desire to read more on the life of the "Virgin Queen." It is for those reasons that I would highly...

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