An old fashioned "star" vehicle

Rating: Null/10 (10 December 2004)

Shekhar Kapur's version of 'Elizabeth' is a fine vehicle to showcase the blindingly talented Cate Blanchett as Queen Elizabeth I. Her portrayal of the great monarch places largely excellent co-stars in danger of being completely swamped by her charisma and total identification and interpretation of the character. An astounding portrayal taking Elizabeth from beautiful young princess to her final transformation into the white-faced doll we have all become familiar with.
Kathy Burke (Queen Mary) is just about equal to Blanchett in every regard. Her portrayal of the tortured "Bloody" Mary in the last days of her murderous reign is touching and powerful. Geoffrey Rush (Walshingham) and Fanny Ardant (Mary de Guise) are superb as well. She is especially serpentine and fascinating. Her nephew, the Duc d'Anjou, is hilariously performed by Vincent Cassel. Of all the fine actors in this ensemble his scenes with Blanchett are the most memorable. His raucous prince is a perfect foil for Blanchett's dry humor. The scene when he appears in drag before the queen is a priceless classic of comedy.
Terence Rigby is a wonderfully vile, malevolent Bishop Gardiner, more a demon from hell than a Christian icon. Christopher Eccleston plays the "villainous" Duke of Norfolk with a sexy swagger. He seems to have a brilliant career ahead of him as a modern Basil Rathbone. Kelly Mcdonald, in an early appearance in a secondary role in film, stands out as the doomed lady-in-waiting.
The balance of the cast is quite good with the one glaring exception of Joseph Fiennes. It is a total mystery to me how he lands so many high-profile roles in major films. His acting abilities run the gamut from 'A' to 'B'. When he's not pouting he's smirking and smug. His smarmy delivery of his lines is irritating in the extreme and his attempts to play the "laughing cavalier" are pathetic and he comes off as an annoying pipsqueak. It was a great shame that the handsome and sexy fine actor, Eric Cantona (here the French Ambassador) was not cast as Dudley.
The technical side of this show is good if a bit artsy-fartsy. The myriad of tricky camera angles is more reminiscent of a PBS travel documentary than a major motion picture, but it is pleasant to look at.
Even if historical drama is not your cuppa I recommend this film for the tremendous performance by Cate Blanchett. I long for a film that would pit her and her Antipodean colleague, Russell Crowe, together in a love story. Perhaps another historical saga, or something legendary like 'Tristan and Isolde'.