a little historical quibble

Rating: 10/10 (9 January 2007)

I love this film, and I view it again from time to time. However, I felt a little distracted when I first saw it when Lord Wessex states his intention to take Viola to America with him to live after they marry so that he might grow tobacco. There was no English settlement of North America during Queen Elizabeth's reign. Jamestown, the ill-fated first attempt at settlement, was not begun until 1607, four years after Queen Elizabeth died and over ten years after this film is set. But it's a small quibble about an otherwise wonderful film! The rough yet beautiful feeling of the language, the comedic timing, the sense of squalor and violence all contribute to the film's sense of unique time and place.