Elizabeth: The Golden Age

Synopsis

In 1585 , Elizabeth I ^re reign on England for nearly thirty years under the doctrine Anglican and without legitimate heir, having self-described as “The Virgin Queen” ( The Virgin Queen ).

However, his reign is threatened by the Catholic kingdoms , especially the Spain of Philip II , who see Mary Stuart , her cousin, the Queen of England in title. Elizabeth faces conspiracies to place her cousin on the throne, religious dissensions within her own people, but also fight against her attraction to the explorer Walter Raleigh .

Technical sheet

• Title: Elizabeth: The Golden Age
• Original title: Elizabeth: The Golden Age
• Director: Shekhar Kapur
• Scenario: William Nicholson and Michael Hirst
• Production: Tim Bevan , Jonathan Cavendish , Liza Chasin , Eric Fellner , Debra Hayward , Michael Hirst , Mary Richards
• Production Companies: Working Title Films , Canal Studio , Motion Picture ZETA Produktionsgesellschaft
• Distribution Company: Universal Pictures (United States and United Kingdom)
• Music: Craig Armstrong and AR Rahman
• Photography: Remi Adefarasin
• Editing: Jill Bilcock
• Sets: Guy Dyas and Frank Walsh
• Costumes: Alexandra Byrne
• Filming locations: England ¹
• Country of Origin: United Kingdom , France , Germany
• Language: English , Spanish
• Format: Colors – 1.85: 1 – SDDS – 35 mm
• Genre: Biographical , historical
• Duration: 114 minutes
• Release date :
  •  : October 12 , 2007
  •  : October 23 , 2007
  •  : December 12 , 2007

Distribution

Caption : Version Québécoise = VQ ²

• Blanchett (VF: Isabelle Gardien ; VQ: Nathalie Coupal ) : Elizabeth I ^re
• Clive Owen (VF: Bernard Gabay , VQ: Daniel Picard ) : Sir Walter Raleigh
• Geoffrey Rush (VQ: Denis Mercier ) : Sir Francis Walsingham
• Tom Hollander (VQ: Frédéric Paquet) : Sir Amyas Paulet
• Samantha Morton (VQ: Julie Burroughs) : Mary Stuart
• Abbie Cornish : Bess Throckmorton
• Eddie Redmayne : Thomas Babington
• Jordi Mollà : Philip II of Spain
• Rhys Ifans (VQ: François Godin ) : the Jesuit
• Aimee King : The Infanta Isabella of Spain
• Laurence Fox : Sir Christopher Hatton
• John Shrapnel (VQ: Guy Nadon ) : Lord Howard
• Emily Mortimer : Kate
• William Houston (VQ: Luis de Cespedes ) : Don Guerau De Spes
• Susan Lynch (VQ: Marika Lhoumeau) : Annette
• Penelope McGhie : Margaret
• Stuart McLoughlin : Savage
• Steven Robertson (VQ: Patrice Dubois ) : Francis Throckmorton
• Adam Godley (VQ: François Sasseville ) : William Walsingham

Around the film

Reception

He reported 74,237,563 $ worldwide, against 82,150,642 $ for the first game Elizabeth , nearly 8 million less for a larger budget ³ .

In comparison to the box office, the film is rated 34% on the site Rotten Tomatoes ⁴ and is rated at 2 out of 4 stars on the website of Allociné ⁵ .

The critic of the Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert wrote:

” Elizabeth: The Golden Age is crushed by its splendor. There are scenes where the costumes are so sumptuous, the scenery so vast, the music so insistent, that we lose sight of the men behind the brilliance of the production. Unlike Elizabeth (1998) by the same director, Shekhar Kapur, this film sinks into the water, its cargo of opulence too heavy to wear. “

– Roger Ebert ⁶ , Chicago Sun-Times , October 12 , 2007.

The British daily The Guardian has published:

“Where Kapur’s first Elizabeth was cool, cerebral, surprisingly clever at reporting complex intrigues, this new film is at the level of a romantic novel by Jean Plaidy . “

– Peter Bradshaw ⁷ , The Guardian , November 2 , 2007.

Controversy

As with the first film, many newspapers and leagues have accused the film of anti-Catholicism by newspapers such as L’Osservatore Romano , The Star-Ledger , Journal & Courier , The Star Tribune and the National Catholic Register . ^{[ref. necessary]}

Bishop Mark Langham, the administrator of the cathedral, regretted that some Catholics allowed the production to film scenes in Rome, in the official buildings of the Church. Although he believes the film is a must-see , he suggests that it contributes to perpetuating the myth of “priest-killers” ⁸ .

Director Shekhar Kapur denied these accusations:

“He is indeed very deeply” non-anti-Catholic “. He criticizes the extremism of all religions. At that time, it concerns the Church of Spain, where Philip had said they would bring the whole world into a very pure form of Catholicism. So it’s not anti-Catholic. It is against an interpretation of the particular Word of God, and that led to the judgment of Elizabeth’s faith. […] The fact is that the Pope ordered his execution: he said that anyone who executes or murders Elizabeth will find a beautiful place in the Kingdom of Heaven. […] That’s why I made this film, so the idea of a break between Catholicism and Protestantism does not arise. “

– Shekhar Kapur ⁹

Soundtrack

The soundtrack was composed by Craig Armstrong and AR Rahman :

The soundtrack was recorded in Scotland , in Armstrong’s studio in Glasgow . Kapur was delighted to collaborate with Armstrong and Rahman, claiming that he was fascinated to see “two people of different backgrounds and cultures could interact as well” ¹⁰ .

Cate Blanchett had traveled to India in the early 2000s , and had returned with some excerpts of Indian songs. She harassed Kapur to hire Rahman. In January 2009 , Kapur regretted that Rahman ‘s other compositions could not be used in the film, believing that “the music of the Golden Age is half as bad as it could have been”. He hopes to see these pieces reused in another project ¹¹ .

Distinctions

Awards

• Cinema Oscars : Best Costumes ( Alexandra Byrne )
• Australian Film Institute : Best International Actress ( Cate Blanchett )
• Satellite Awards : best artistic direction ( Guy Dyas and Richard Roberts ), best costumes ( Alexandra Byrne )

Appointments

Notes and references