Elizabeth (1998)
TOMATOMETER
AUDIENCE SCORE
Critic Consensus: No mere historical drama, Elizabeth is a rich, suspenseful journey into the heart of British Royal politics, and features a typically outstanding performance from Cate Blanchett.
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Cast
as Elizabeth I
as Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester
as Sir Francis Walsingham
as Sir William Cecil
as Duke of Norfolk
as Earl of Sussex
as Alvaro de la Quadra
as Kat Ashley
as Queen Mary Tudor
as Duc d'Anjou
as Bishop Gardiner
as Sir Thomas Elyot
as Earl of Arundel
as Mary of Guise
as The Pope
as Isabel Knollys
as John Ballard
as Lettice Howard
as Monsieur de Foix
as Dance Tutor
as Waad, Chancellor of the Exchequer
as Female Martyr
as Master Ridley
as Male Martyr
as Palace Chamberlain
as King Phillip II of Spain
as Mary's Dwarf
as Lady in Waiting
as Lady in Waiting
as Lady in Waiting
as Lady in Waiting
as Lady in Waiting
as Master of the Tower
as Norfolk's Man
as Norfolk's Man
as Young French Man
as Priest
as Bishop Carlisle
as Elizabeth's Dwarf
as Earl of Derby
as Lord William Howard
as Lord Harewood
as First Bishop
as Second Bishop
as Bishop in Cellar
as Third Bishop
as Handsome Man
as Dudley's Man
as Dudley's Man
as Vatican Cardinal
as Arundel's Son
as Arundel's Daughter
as Arundel's Nursemaid
as Arundel's Wife
as Walsingham's Man
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Critic Reviews for Elizabeth
All Critics (60) | Top Critics (12) | Fresh (49) | Rotten (11) | DVD (7)
Without [Blanchett], Kapur's extravagant history lesson (written by Michael Hirst) blurs into dark doings among men in tights.
"Elizabeth" is superior historical soap opera that shrewdly sidesteps all the cliches of British costume drama with its bold, often modern approach.
Kapur cunningly confuses gender roles, equates sex with death, and rattles through dark, stony passions with some considerable panache.
It's almost guaranteed to get a couple of Oscar nominations in the technical categories, and I think Blanchett deserves one, too.
With her power constantly challenged by the state and the church, and with powerful men conspiring against her at every turn, it's little wonder that the strength of the first Elizabeth to rule England is legendary.
Cate Blanchett gives a bravura performance in this dark and lurid account, which is done from a contemporary standoint as a conspiracy thriller, emphasizing the violent actions
Audience Reviews for Elizabeth
A handsome period drama that looks stunning but feels more like reading a History book, with a plain screenplay that doesn't offer many surprises and a cold, didactic direction by Shekhar Kapur that doesn't leave us engaged in the way that it actually should.
Super Reviewer
Clumsy filmmaking that doesn't always succeed in doing justice to the amazing screenplay, Cate Blanchett still manages to shine in a memorable peformance, a lot more comprehensive and profound than Kapur's awful direction.
Super Reviewer
Its an interesting Biopic, not intirely sure i completely understand everything that was going on in this movie, but the acting was superb, the costume designs was amazing and it was directed and made beautifully! I think Queen Elizabeth 1 is an inspirational woman for what she did and dealt with! From making England poor and defenseless to making England one of the richest countries of that era! Good Job by all accounts! An interesting movie, one a feel i may have to watch again!
Super Reviewer
Elizabeth Quotes
| Mary of Guise: | Go back to England, and take this to your Queen. Hm? |
| Mary of Guise: | [in French, to herself] English blood on French colors. [turns to her officer] |
| Sir Francis Walsingham: | Madam, if I may. A prince should never flinch from being blamed for acts of ruthlessness which are necessary for safe guarding the state and their own person. You must take these things so much to heart that you do not fear to strike. Even the very nearest that you have if they be implicated. |
| Elizabeth I: | She has such power over men's hearts. They died for her. |
| Sir Francis Walsingham: | They have found nothing to replace her. |
| Elizabeth I: | She has such power over men's hearts. They died for her. |