Wish there was more

Rating: 6/10 (29 November 1998)

There is much to recommend this film, but when it ends, one has the feeling one wanted much more. First, there is the gratuitous charge one character levels that Elizabeth is really a man. That was an historical charge. One would wish the producers had done something more than merely bring it up. Second, we are left wondering about Mary of Scotland. That was certainly a dramatic time in Elizabeth's reign. The catholic question was dealt with politically only. There were people of faith who rebelled against Elizabeth's insistence on having only the Church of England be recognized. Yet the acting, sets, costumes and cinematography were excellent.