Never seen so many people walk out during a film

Rating: 1/10 (4 January 2019)

There seems to be a fashion amongst directors keen to gain attention, to snigger at historical figures and make them look ridiculous, regardless of their true character or achievements. The more fictional the representation, the more clever they think they are. Put the film into a sumptuous setting which is historically accurate, throw in some salacious lesbian sex scenes whenever possible and then sit back and rake in the money. I thought this film would be amusing, admittedly reasonably historically inaccurate, but well acted and have some depth. Instead I felt bored, disconnected from the characters, unable to understand any historical context or how they had come to be as they were portrayed. Throughout the time that these supposed actions took place the real queen Anne was married and adored her husband. She had after all borne him seventeen children and lost her young son. This was briefly touched upon now and then but there was no explanation as to how she became the pathetic waste of space that they chose to portray. Every opportunity had to be a bed or sex scene. Boring. Yes she had favourites. No it wasn't proven that they were lesbian. She is widely considered to have been the most stable, sensible and successful of the not very good Stuart monarchs. I realise we don't go to the cinema for history lessons but why make a totally fictional film and pretend it is hidden history, misleading and almost mocking the audience. I thought it was a terrible and distasteful film, only lifted by Olivia Colman having a vague physical resemblance to Queen Anne, and from the number of people who left during it and those who were complaining at the end as they left the cinema, I was not alone.