Elizabeth: The Golden Age

NEW YORK (CNS) -- Skillful cinema is put at the service of slipshod history in "Elizabeth: The Golden Age" (Universal). Most blatantly, the film presents its subject, England's celebrated "Virgin Queen," as an open-minded champion of religious freedom, a claim that would surprise the hundreds of Catholics and dissenting Protestants who were executed or tortured during her reign.

Even as it whitewashes Elizabeth (Cate Blanchett), the movie darkly caricatures King Philip II of Spain (Jordi Molla) as a spidery royal villain, along with his subjects, the Jesuits and the cause of Catholicism in general. Indeed, with the single exception of Mary, Queen of Scots (Samantha Morton), all the Catholics in the film are twisted, embittered intriguers.

The story the film tells is based on one of the most familiar passages in English history. Philip, determined to overthrow his former sister-in-law, Elizabeth, launches a huge invasion fleet known as the Armada.

As this threat gathers force, Elizabeth must rely on the wise counsel of her chief adviser, the aging Sir Francis Walsingham (Geoffrey Rush), and on her own popularity to defeat it. She must also decide how to cope with the internal menace posed by disaffected English Catholics and by the imprisoned, but still dangerous, Mary Stuart.

In between dealing with all these matters of state, Elizabeth still manages to find time for matters of the heart. She is pursued by a crowd of royal suitors, including the barely adolescent Archduke Charles of Austria (Christian Brassington). But these potential husbands -- and alliances -- bore her.

Far more intriguing to the queen is the dashing figure of Sir Walter Raleigh (Clive Owen). Just back from the New World, where he has established the colony of Virginia, named in honor of her as "Virgin Queen," Raleigh regales Elizabeth with his tales of seafaring adventure. Equally impressed, and much more accessible, is one of the queen's ladies-in-waiting, Elizabeth (Bess) Throckmorton (Abbie Cornish), who competes for his affections.

Shekhar Kapur, who also directed 1998's "Elizabeth," which launched Blanchett's international career, creates a rich, sweeping spectacle, especially in scenes such as the execution of Queen Mary and the burning of the Armada. But the film as a whole is somewhat less satisfying than its predecessor.

Blanchett is most convincing in portraying the imperious ruler determined to hold on to her power, but she's less successful in etching the lonely woman behind the crown. In fairness, the story of Elizabeth's self-imposed solitude has been portrayed so often that it may be difficult to present her flirtation with Raleigh in a fresh way. Owen, meanwhile, wears his swashbuckling role comfortably, and as he relates his tales of derring-do, one can see why he so enthralled the queen.

As a pageant of period costumes and settings, and as a showcase for some good performances, including Morton, Rush and a distinguished British cast that features, among others, Rhys Ifans, Tom Hollander, David Threlfall and Adam Godley, "Elizabeth: The Golden Age" works effectively. But as history, the film fails fundamentally, delivering an interpretation of events that is not only outmoded and oversimplified, but to Catholics definitely skewed in the wrong direction.

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The film contains rear and partial upper female nudity, scenes of torture, blood with gore and occasional crass language. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is A-III -- adults. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG-13 -- parents strongly cautioned. Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.

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Copyright (c) 2007 Catholic News Service/U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops