The Young Victoria

 

 

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Exquisite cinematography, locations, cast and costumes. However, in terms of storytelling, this version adds nothing to the perfectly structured work of the TV miniseries Victoria & Albert. Buy that instead.

In fact, I would tend to suspect that the Queen Victoria television miniseries served as the basis for this film rendering, which though gorgeous to look at, is basically the Cliffs Notes version. (Ditto for the visually beautiful but trite Keira Knightley version of Pride and Prejudice.)

First, I owne over 3K DVD's, 10 are romances. Therefore, when I say this is excellent believe me. It's in my cart. Secondly, it's historically accurate. The actors do a great job of making history come alive and the dialogue is believable, the erotic scenes are tasteful and the love scenes are touching.

Victoria is dominated by her mother and her lover. On her first meeting with Albert he tells her over a game of chess: "Learn the rules of the game until you are skilled enough to play it." Albert is ruled by his uncle the King of Belgium, but is a Coburg, therefore, German. This marraige is a political alliance and love is not supposed to be a factor.

After she becomes Queen at age 18, she turfs out her mother et al and rules with the help of her charming Liberal Prime Minister. This creates problems and she turns to Albert who's been writing supportive letters throughout the political crisis.

Once married, she tries to continue ruling alone and Albert resents having nothing to do. When he tries to help, she resents his "interference" ... ok you probably know they had nine children and lived together for 20 years until Albert's death. Victoria never remarried. That's why this movie animates dull old history. I know the facts, yet this movie makes the facts fun.

So why only four stars when it got 3 foreign awards equivilent to the Oscars -- well, I really don't like romances even it they are absolutely wonderful. If you like romance read 4 stars as 5. It's only a matter of personal taste on my part.

The acting is supurb. The script is well-written. The costumes are glorious. I hate to admit it but I cried in one of the love scenes.

The Brits have done it again. They've made a great movie.

Quite ably acted by Emily Blunt (Victoria) and Rupert Friend (Prince Albert).

The opening scenes of the movie take a 'Cole's Notes' approach to Victoria's early years: the viewer is given a rapid overview of her overly-restricted childhood at Kensington Palace living under the rules of the isolating Kensington System drawn up by her mother (the widowed Duchess of Kent) and her mother's devious personal advisor & comptroller, Sir John Conroy; Victoria's discovery at age 11 that she is next in line for the throne, as none of her uncles, including the current King, ailing King William IV, have any surviving legitimate children; her continuing refusal to sign an agreement demanded by her mother and Conroy appointing Conroy as Victoria's private secretary & treasurer; and her uncle the King's great dislike & mistrust of both the Duchess and Conroy, and his hope that he lives long enough to see Victoria pass her 18th birthday (so avoiding the Duchess and Conroy taking control of England under the Regency Act).

Many of the political intrigues & machinations of the day are accurately captured in the movie, including the wrangling between the Prime Minister of the day, Lord Melbourne, and the Opposition, headed by Sir Robert Peel. And of course, the plot itself revolves around King Leopold I of Belgium's blatant manoeuvring to forge a purely political alliance between his nephew Prince Albert and Victoria, a manoeuvre that did eventually succeed - not because of Leopold's influence, but because Victoria and Albert fell genuinely in love with each other.

The sets, costumes, historical events, props, and dialogue in this movie are all bang-on, and yet I wanted to see more depth: more of the political intrigues & minor scandals and how they tested and influenced Victoria's abilities to rule; a more in-depth look at the 4-year courtship between Albert and Victoria, from first meeting in 1836 to marriage in February 1840. The movie ends quite abruptly after the birth of Victoria and Albert's first child (November 1840), which was quite unexpected; I had been expecting to sit & watch for some time beyond that, to see their family grow (9 children altogether), to see them bring in the reforms that benefited England's working class, and to see their contributions & influence on the Arts (music, dance, etc.) Instead, some footnotes about their 21-year marriage and Albert's untimely death in December 1861 at the age of 42 are shown on the screen; and then there is a brief cutscene in which the viewer sees Victoria straightening an outfit of Albert's which has been laid out on a sofa; and then another footnote explains that such was Victoria's devotion to Albert that even after his death she continued to have clothing laid out for him every day until her own death at the age of 81 (unfortunately, the movie's director neglected to appropriately age Emily Blunt for this cutscene, so the viewer sees a lithe & wrinkle-free Victoria still in her early 20s when she should have been depicted in her early 40s).

All in all, an enjoyable movie; family-friendly if your kids are age 12 and up (there are some romantic/mildly erotic scenes between Victoria and Albert). The Special Features are: Deleted & Extended Scenes, Making of The Young Victoria, Lavish History: A Look at the Costumes and Locations, The Coronation, The Wedding, and The Real Queen Victoria. Though good, the special features are also much too short - in some cases, little more than a few minutes long.

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5.0 out of 5 stars The Young Victoria
Very beautifully done - romance, intrigue, good story, good ending. I especially enjoyed the dancing scenes. Read more

Published 13 months ago by Eileen Young

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent
My husband and I really enjoyed this movie. It tells the story without hours of dragging it out. We think both lead characters did an excellent job of portraying their roles.

Published 14 months ago by Gabbie

5.0 out of 5 stars A must watch for Historical based movie lovers
I am in love with historical based movies and this one does not dissappoint! I first saw it on one of my movie channels and fell in love. I loved it so much I had to buy it! Read more

Published 16 months ago by lanholm

5.0 out of 5 stars Deliciously Romantic!!!
Excellent movie!!! Highly recommended to those who love period, romance dramas. One of the best romance films that I've seen in a long time. Read more

Published 20 months ago by Stefanie L.

2.0 out of 5 stars Flat and No Depth
This film is wonderful film if you have nothing else to do. This film is flat, uninteresting and poorly produced. Read more

Published 21 months ago by M. Mckeown

3.0 out of 5 stars A light and fluffy romance, no depth
A lovely, light, fluffy period romance -- but that's all it is. The movie tells Victoria's story from her rather dismal and isolated childhood to her coronation, marriage and the... Read more

Published 21 months ago by R. Lloyd

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautifully done
This film is visually stunning and the costumes are fabulous. The acting is superb and the story is romantic and interesting. Read more

Published 23 months ago by philosopher queen

3.0 out of 5 stars Don't Settle for this one
Lovely setting, lavish rooms and costumes, but although the story is ok, it adds nothing to the Victoria and Albert movie already available, in fact it misses much. Read more

Published 23 months ago by joyful spirit

4.0 out of 5 stars "I will be good."
As the story opens, we meet 17-year old Princess Victoria (Emily Blunt), the niece and heir-apparent of her uncle, King William IV. Read more

Published 24 months ago by Kona

5.0 out of 5 stars Believable and touching
I thoroughly enjoy historical/period pieces based on true stories and also pure fiction.This is one of the best historical movies I have seen in a long time. Read more

Published on May 2 2010 by Pamela Mckinnon

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