Product: Victoria & Albert: A Royal Love Affair [VHS] (2001)
Rating: 4.0
Great Costume Drama, So-So on the History
Victoria and Albert is a magnificent costume drama with excellent stars, a compelling story, and lovely settings. As you watch this, please keep in mind that this is a romanticized, not completely factual dramatization of the married life of Queen Victoria and her consort Prince Albert. In other words, enjoy it, but don't take it as accurate history.The first episode is good drama and fairly good history. The young Victoria is shown living a cloistered life in Kensington Palace, used by her ambitious mother and others to maintain a toe hold on power. Then, after the death of her uncle William IV, Victoria's early reign is also depicted accurately as she took on her responsibilities with a dutifulness which characterized her entire reign. Her daughterly relationship with her first Prime Minister, Lord Melbourne is also well done. Finally, her meeting with Prince Albert and their hesitant courtship, engagement, and marriage is both compelling and true to history.It is with the second episode that the drama begins to overwhelm the history. Victoria and Albert are shown with a family of six children (they really had nine) whom they bounce on their knees, cuddle and nuzzle in public, and obviously adore. Unfortunately the real Queen Victoria was not fond of children, and Prince Albert saw his progeny as useful tools for carrying out his long range plan for the liberalization of Europe, but not a whole lot more. The whitewashing of their troubled relationship with their eldest son and heir Bertie is really ridiculous. Bertie could never do right and was a constant disappointment to his parents, as they never ceased telling him. While Prince Albert's last meeting with Bertie, in which he says something like "I'm sorry we've been so hard on you" is charmingly acted, nothing like that ever took place. I also found the scenes in which Albert repeatedly ponders whether he really loves Victoria a bit unbelievable. Finally, Victoria's composure after Albert's death is completely at odds with history, which records her retreating into deep mourning for the next four decades.Regardless of the inaccuracies, this is a beautiful piece of work and well worth the price. If you like this Victoria and Albert, may I suggest that you also look into the mini-series Edward the King, produced in the mid 1970s, which covers Bertie's life and times. It is just as well written and acted, and contains a far more true to life depiction of Victoria and Albert.