Review

With its graphic and gruesome opening sequence of a trio of Protestant heretics being burned at the stake, one knows right away that this look at the tumultuous rise to power of one of England's most beloved monarchs will not be the fluff of light costume drama. The year is 1554 and Elizabeth's Catholic half-sister Mary is on the throne. She's dying of cancer and amidst the religious strife that's tearing England apart, Elizabeth becomes the last hope for the country's Protestants. Naturally, the palace is awash in intrigue, and everyone's being carted off to the Tower -- including Elizabeth. Kapur, who previously directed Bandit Queen, shows a continued affinity for powerful women who overcome their oppressors as he paints a London reluctantly climbing out of the grit of the Middle Ages and into the opulence of the Renaissance. Blanchett is dazzling Elizabeth, offering a radiant portrayal of a young woman who though cunning and guilelessness is struggling to hang on to every shred of her innocence -- it's a riveting portrayal. Moody, gloomy and ultimately triumphant, Elizabeth is also adorned by a number of notable supporting turns including Rush as the unscrupulous Walsingham, Ardant as Mary of Guise and, last but far from least, Fiennes as Elizabeth's exuberant young lover Robert Dudley. As would be expected, the evocation of 16th-century England is flawless.