The Young Victoria

Rating: 5/10 (24 December 2011)

I remember seeing an advert or two for this film during the time of its release, and having seen films like Elizabeth and The King's Speech, charting the lives of famous past monarchs, I was keen on seeing this one. Basically King William IV (Jim Broadbent) is in the last days in his rule of England, and his teenage niece Victoria (Golden Globe nominated Emily Blunt) is the heir to the throne. She has a lot to deal with already, what with possessive mother the Duchess of Kent (Miranda Richardson) and bullying husband Sir John Conroy (Mark Strong), and becoming queen at the age of eighteen. Prince Albert (Rupert Friend), her German cousin, has been encouraged to try and politically court her, and she does like his concern for human welfare, however Lord Melbourne (Paul Bettany) is giving her more self confidence to do her duties and she seems more loyal toward him. But she does marry Albert and they become a devoted couple, even prepared to sacrifice himself when an assassin tries to shoot her, and she rules England for sixty three years until her death. I will be completely honest and say I didn't pay the fullest attention to everything going on, but at the same time it wasn't boring. Also starring Michael Maloney as Sir Robert Peel, Thomas Kretschmann as King Leopold, Jesper Christensen as Baron Stockmar and Julian Glover as Duke of Wellington. From what I saw, Blunt gives a good performance as the young and beautiful Victoria, it is certainly a change from seeing the Queen we all know looking old, grumpy and in dark robes, and the other cast of British talents do their parts well too, the story has some okay moments, it isn't something I'd necessarily watch again, but it is an alright historical biographical period drama. It won the Oscar for Best Costume Design, and it was nominated for Best Art Direction and Best Makeup, and it won the BAFTAs for Best Costume Design and Best Make Up & Hair. Worth watching!