The Young Victoria

[glebb]

Forget NINE. See THE YOUNG VICTORIA!

Didn't like NINE much. I saw the original Broadway production, the National Tour (in LA) and the Broadway revival. Loved the original Broadway and Broadway revival productions. NINE was never showy like CHICAGO and I don't understand why they wanted to make a film and yet take out the beauty and try to hip it up. I also don't like musical films in which no one can sing well. I was actually surprised at how well Daniel Day Lewis sang, but the film didn't work for me. I'm sure I'll enjoy it on HBO as I have Mamma Mia and Dreamgirls.

THE YOUNG VICTORIA is fantastic. It seems a natural for ballet lovers. After all these are the fashions of the Romantic Era! Let's hope they make an older Victoria film and there is a recreation of the command performance of Taglioni, Grahn, Grisi and Cerrito!

THE YOUNG VICTORIA

Jean-Marc Vallée - Director

Julian Fellowes - Writer

Emily Blunt ... Young Victoria

Rupert Friend ... Prince Albert

Paul Bettany ... Lord Melbourne

Miranda Richardson ... Duchess of Kent

Jim Broadbent ... King William

Thomas Kretschmann ... King Leopold of Belgium

Mark Strong ... Sir John Conroy

Jesper Christensen ... Baron Stockmar

Harriet Walter ... Queen Adelaide

Jeanette Hain ... Baroness Lehzen

Julian Glover ... Duke of Wellington

Michael Maloney ... Sir Robert Peel

Michiel Huisman ... Ernest

Genevieve O'Reilly ... Lady Flora Hastings

Rachael Stirling ... Duchess of Sutherland

I'm not much of a writer but I look forward to reading other posters opinions.

[Mel Johnson]

Some outstanding names there for supporting cast! But a period piece about Victoria wouldn't have to be all that much later; the "Pas de Quatre" happened in 1845. Victoria succeeded to the throne in 1837, and was married in 1840. Twenty-five still counts as "young" in my book

[dirac]

Thanks for posting, glebb. Don't underrate yourself - I always enjoy your posts!

I also saw The Young Victoria and it was all right, although in all honesty I didn't enjoy it quite as much as you did. I agree that many BTers might like it. There is little in the way of drama but there are royal tchotckes to check out, nice costumes, Jim Broadbent, and Paul Bettany as Lord Melbourne -too young and too hot for the role, but this viewer was not complaining. Rupert Friend is a charming and appealing Albert. Not much happens - Victoria gets a hard time from Mom and Lord Blackwood, I mean Sir John Conroy, but she ascends the throne on schedule, she wants Albert, she gets Albert, and so on. There is a scandal regarding Victoria's ladies-in-waiting, but that's about as intense as things get, so the filmmakers, casting about for some action, have Albert take a fictional bullet for the little woman. (Flora Hastings gets a passing mention but the movie doesn't go there.) We're told that the monarchy is on the brink of tottering, but as we don't see anything in the movie that would seem to make a throne totter, there's not much in the way of dramatic tension. The tone is bland and positively deferential, as if Victoria and Albert were still on the throne and might drop by the premiere.

[sidwich]

The tone is bland and positively deferential, as if Victoria and Albert were still on the throne and might drop by the premiere.

Well, not quite, but the Duchess of York co-produced the film so it's not surprising that it might have a reverential tone.

[dirac]

Fergie certainly knows something about an embarrassed monarchy. Martin Scorsese was also involved, so I harbored hopes that Peel and Wellington would solve their political dilemma by hiring Ray Liotta and Joe Pesci to whack Melbourne and dump his body in the Thames, but it didn't happen, alas. There are certainly worse ways to pass two hours in a movie theater this season, however.

[dirac]

A new exhibition at Buckingham Palace showcases Victoria and Albert's taste in art.

When it was delivered to Windsor Castle in 1844, depicting Prince Albert in a thigh-high kilt and bare feet, the queen wrote in her journal that she thought it "very beautiful" but that "we know not yet where to place it".

Two years later the statue was finally placed on a remote staircase out of the sight of visitors at Osborne House, the queen's palace on the Isle of Wight, and she recorded that the reason for the hesitation had been "Albert thinking the Greek armour with bare legs and feet looked too undressed in a room".

Did anyone else see the movie?

[Nanarina]

Yes,. I have it on DVD and watch it a lot. I think it is a true representation of what the couple were, truly in love and happy. It was a terrible blow to Queen Victoria when she lost her beloved Albert. Another film that tells of her later life, which is available on DVD and well worth watrching is "Mrs Brown" which tells of the distraught Queens relationship with her Scottiah Gilley John Brown. both at Balmoral and Sandringham.and how he helped her face life again. It is heart rendering as she looks after him when sickness also strikes him down and he dies. However there is no mention of Ballet in it.

[glebb]

I went to the art house movie theater to see it again on Valentine's Day.

[Paquita]

I saw "The Young Victoria" over the holidays and enjoyed it. I thought the lead actors had good chemistry and the sets and costumes were lovely. But I agree that there isn't much in the way of dramatic tension and I still found the characterizations a bit superficial.

It's a real departure from "C.R.A.Z.Y.", probably Vallee's best-known film (which I would highly recommend).

[dirac]

I saw "The Young Victoria" over the holidays and enjoyed it. I thought the lead actors had good chemistry and the sets and costumes were lovely. But I agree that there isn't much in the way of dramatic tension and I still found the characterizations a bit superficial.

It's a real departure from "C.R.A.Z.Y.", probably Vallee's best-known film (which I would highly recommend).

Thanks for the recommendation, Paquita. I'll check it out.