The Young VictoriaRated Parental Guidance ~ Runs 104 minutes
Dir.: Jean-Marc Vallée, UK/US, 2009
Emily Blunt, Jim Broadbent, Mark Strong, Paul Bettany
Golden Globe nominee for Best Actress. Academy Award nominations for Best Art Direction, Best Costume Design, and Best Make-up.
"What filmmaker Jean-Marc Vallée has done in this delicious historical romance is capture that hot blush of pure emotion that comes before kisses, sex, heartbreak and the rest can dilute it. Vallée understands the power in the promise of things to come, and though kings and queens might abuse the power, the director uses it wisely. You might worry another costume drama on the British monarchy would feel tired... The answer would be no, for this is a smartly told story, and as fresh as any contemporary romance. Here much of the credit has to go to its two stars, Blunt, and Rupert Friend as the equally young Prince Albert who would steal Victoria's heart... Despite the era, Victoria and Albert are a couple with modern problems: she has to ask him to marry her, rules of the court; she makes more than he ever will, perks of the crown; she wears the crown in the family, luck of the draw. Blunt and Friend make the most of the inherent tension in their role reversals and their relative youth. It all plays out a bit like their first waltz in front of the entire court, they are so intent on each other you feel as if you want to be careful not to intrude, yet you can't look away... Blunt infuses the character with high spirits, humor, intelligence and headstrong determination, dancing neatly between a teenager's whimsy and an adult's sense of history... Other than her destiny to lead a country, Victoria seems very much like most teenagers - at odds with her mother, desperate to do all the things she's not quite old enough for, eager to be in charge of her life, eager to share it too... Particularly good at stirring things up are an excellent trio: Miranda Richardson as the Duchess of Kent, drawing in her emotions as tightly as her corsets; Mark Strong as the man who controls the mother, unleashing his rage in flashes; and Paul Bettany's Lord Melbourne... As Albert was for his queen - the smartest advisor and most loyal ally she would ever have - Friend is for Blunt... Their chemistry is such that you sense their passion and playfulness whether a romp in bed or on horseback, rain-soaked by a summer storm. Together they create a couple that could become like Tracy and Hepburn, one you'll want to see again.” - Betsy Sharkey, The L. A. Times
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