A love story that happens to be true.

Rating: 9/10 (5 April 2010)

The Young Victoria (2009) directed by Jean-Marc Vallée, is a love story between a young woman and a young man. What makes it an interesting movie is that the young woman happens to be the Queen of England. The love story between Queen Victoria and Prince Albert has been told many times. This particular account of their romance succeeds because of several factors. It has great production values, it has reasonable historical accuracy, and it has Emily Blunt as Victoria.
The production values are what we expect from a BBC-style historical drama. It's impossible to deny the pleasure of watching actors wearing period costumes as they move through great English manor houses and castles.
Experts in Victoriana point out lapses in historical details, but, as far as I can tell, the main historical aspects of the film are accurate. More importantly, the plot goes beyond politics to emphasize the stultifying atmosphere in which Victoria was raised. Until she reaches her majority, her life is ruled by her overbearing mother. The fact that Victoria survived this upbringing with her psyche more or less unscathed is a testament to her psychological resilience. This makes the story more than simply a historical drama.
Emily Blunt is perfect as the young Victoria. Her attractive features are enhanced by her flawless, glowing complexion. She does, indeed, bear a likeness to portraits of Queen Victoria as a young woman, and she is as convincing in her role as Helen Mirren was as Queen Elizabeth II.
This movie is worth seeing as a love story and as a study of the psychological attributes of a young woman whose circumstances have made her a queen. It will lose something on a small screen, but it's worth seeking out on DVD if unavailable in a theater.
P.S. A special exhibition of art collected by, and portraying, Queen Victoria and Prince Albert will be shown at the Queen's Gallery in London through October 31, 2010.