Elizabeth
Delightfully different from conventional (and more cliché-ridden) bodice-rippers and historical biopics, the 1998 release Elizabeth is a work of real imagination on several levels.
The film has been unfairly criticized for playing fast and loose with history, but it is drama not documentary: writer Michael Hirst for example conveys the tension of Elizabeth I ’s life with poetic licence, cutting through complexity by the simple device of making the Catholics in the film the ‘baddies’ – John Gielgud relishing his role (which proved to be his last) as a noxious Pope.
Elizabeth’s imaginative depth is seen too in the cast: along with those who you expect to see in such pieces - Joseph Fiennes , Edward Hardwicke, Cate Blanchett, Gielgud and Richard Attenborough – there are cinema actors for whom this is perhaps newer territory – Daniel Craig , Geoffrey Rush and Christopher Eccleston – and some who work brilliantly but are wholly unexpected – Wayne Sleep , Angus Deayton , Kathy Burke terrific as Mary Tudor , and Eric Cantona an accomplished M. de Foix. The movie gave an early role to Kelly Macdonald too, which she filled superbly – her poison dress moment a gift to a then aspiring actress.
Note should be made too of the soundtrack, again not afraid of anachronistic touches by incorporating for example some brief elements of Elgar and Mozart.
There is violence, surprise, love and sacrifice in the story, all framed by a gorgeous look that saw an Oscar win for make-up, and nominations for art direction, cinematography and costume design. Lighting was inexplicably excluded from that list – the technical difficulty and atmospheric impact of the outdoor night sequences and candlelit interiors surely merited at least nominating.
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