As far as docudrama’s go, this is not the best historical recreation, but the sets and locations are stunning as well as the costumes. There was however a bit much liberty taken in the telling of the story which seemed to bog down with too many details and people involved. It would have been better to just skip over much the “plotting” and spend more time on the Spanish vs English battle which seemed rushed and thrown in at the end of the film. Overall I enjoyed watching it with my kids to give them a nice history lesson, but the film could have been much better.

This was really powerful and awed me tremendously, in much the same vein as Joan of Arc, but without the unfortunate demise and quite so much war-mongering. Indeed this instalment of Elizabeth’s march is full of wonderful moments of introspection and heavenly light, reminding me somewhat of The Fountain, yet with infinitely more foundation. Blanchett naturally does a stunning job of conveying Elizabeth’s predicament, and ultimately her convictions towards her country and people. The costumes were stunning, as were the dizzying camera pans and shots from on high, but the use of cathedrals rather than palaces as one would expect, overemphasises the religious angle. Given that the film covers the war between Spain and England and the religious division, this is partly to be expected, and you certainly walk away with a trace of fervour having been infused into your blood. I’ll be seeing this again, and I can recommend seeing it on the big screen.