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Elizabeth: The Golden Age [2007] | ![Elizabeth: The Golden Age [2007]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51DKL52qR0L._SL160_.jpg)
 enlarge | Director: Shekhar Kapur
Actors: Cate Blanchett, Clive Owen, Geoffrey Rush, Rhys Ifans, Abbie Cornish
Studio: Universal Pictures UK
Category: DVD
List Price: £17.99
Buy New: £5.98
You Save: £12.01 (67%)
New (16) Used (13) Collectible (1) from £2.90
Rating:  20 reviews
Sales Rank: 855
Format: Pal, Subtitled
Languages: English (Unknown), English (Original Language)
Rating: Suitable for 12 years and over
Region: 2
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Number Of Discs: 1
Running Time: 111 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 7.1 x 5.4 x 0.6
EAN: 5050582533040
ASIN: B0012RGKFO
Release Date: February 25, 2008
Availability: Usually dispatched within 24 hours
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Amazon.co.uk Review
Elizabeth: The Golden Age may not have been bestowed with a similar shower of awards (nor quite as glowing critical reaction) as its predecessor. But don't be fooled: this is a terrific costume drama, and one that very much leaves you hoping for the hinted-at third installment. Once again starring Cate Blanchett in the title role, Elizabeth: The Golden Age sees events pick up with her very well established on the throne. It's a new set of problems and issues that present themselves, with the impending threat of the Spanish Armada, and the scheming Mary, Queen Of Scots (brilliantly played by the always-terrific Samantha Morton) foremost in her mind. That is, of course, apart from Sir Walter Raleigh, played by Clive Owen. Elizabeth: The Golden Age adds a potential romance for the virgin Queen, one that she struggles to come to terms with. And in the capable hands of returning director Shekhar Kapur, these many threads are woven together skillfully and a willingness to break the conventions of the period drama. The star attraction remains Blanchett again, of course, whose performance is just as striking and textured as it was nearly a decade before. Elizabeth: The Golden Age may have an impressive cast, but all of them must have known they were on a hiding to nothing going up against the majesty (in more than one sense) of Blanchett. Because while the film itself does have a problems, it's still better than you may have been led to believe, and boasts a tour-de-force central performance that you simply won't see matched very often at all. --Jon Foster
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| Customer Reviews: Read 10 more reviews...
 Let's go living in the past February 2, 2008
jingles_sunderland (Morrisville, NC United States)
20 out of 24 found this review helpful
I had some reservations about this film before venturing to see it at the cinema. The rating, PG-13, was lower than the R the first movie had which brought a degree of trepidation about the content being watered down. As well as that I wondered if it would indeed be possible to achieve the degree of excellence which the first film had met.
Having watched this film again several times on DVD I believe that although the current film has not achieved the same degree of oppulent excellence as the first it has come pretty close. It is clear that the lower rating is intended to attract a wider audience and the naughtiness which abounded in the first film is still there in the second although not so obvious.
Both films display a degree of enlightenment of how to perceive the past. Others have characterised the Elizabeth films as mere historical dramas and romances and to a degree those perceptions are correct insofar as the settings go. However, this is, to me at least, a superficial interpretation but other perspectives have greater strength.
Growing up in England, I was exposed to wonderful television programmes and films which depicted a historical portrayal of merrie olde Englande which was very historically inaccurate. I used to believe that the grimy industrial England portrayed by Dickens amongst others was an inferior time of high infant mortality, short live spans and very Hobbesian in nature. Until, that is, I discovered that Dickens was paid by the word and to keep his readers interested he portrayed the country in such a way that they would crave for more. Simialrly, closer examination of merrie olde Englande showed that it was not very merry at all.
In conjunction with that, history of human sexuality was largely began from Victorian times with their sense of prudishness and repression and it has been falsely claimed that much of current life was non-existant before so-called modern times.
Viewed from these perspectives both films shed a different light on events of Elizabethan times. Elizabeth is not a single strong woman, she is a survivor against men who resent her grip on power. She was, like Margaret Thatcher, the strongest "man" of her time. Similarly the record of the times showed that although there were certain societal rules which needed to be followed, they were often broken but unless they were discovered and exposed they continued. Feints within feints as Frank Herbert would write in Dune.
What I love about these films, aside from their radical perspective on past events and the personalities of the time, is their focus on intrigue and plots. The machinations of the Catholic Church as exemplified by Philip of Spain in the battle to prevent the supremacy of the Anglican church from occuring, the jockeying for power utilising religion as a front, the godfather ruthlessness of the time and indeed the correlation with the penultimate scenes of that movie, all within times which were supposedly much simpler than our own.
Ultimately though Elizabeth is human, a woman, a woman of strength who subborns her own needs and desires to those of her country. Elizabeth the consumate politician. Is this a story of Elizabeth I or the current monarch residing on the throne of the United KIngdom? Sometimes one wonders, not least in the role of the closest of her advisers.
There is much for thought and entertainment in this film. Blanchett's performance is stunning once more and Clive Owen has come a long way since his Chancer days. All in all this is an excellent film and will be judged as such in the longer term.
Wrongly panned by the press critics January 27, 2008
D'log
15 out of 19 found this review helpful
After seeing this tremendous film, I was astounded to hear that the press reviews had been poor and that the box-office takings were very low. Why? I can only put this down to the dismal and ever-lowering standards of press criticism these days, and it's sad that these seem to have put off people from seeing a great film that is destined over the years to become a classic. This is a completely absorbing, beautifully realised, sweeping, painterly film where the costumes and sets are as convincing as the acting. There are some tiny flaws, as there are in all films: the fleeting 30-second appearance of Drake falls completely flat, the central romance is perhaps strung out two or three minutes too long, and the fleeting 'return to the Council tent' in the final clifftop scene near the end was over-egging an already rich emotional pudding. But these are minor matters in the grand sweep of the film, which also has a strong flow of countless gem-like scenes and actors - the portrayal of Dr. Dee in particular is very fine. The visual portrayal of England's landscape is also fine; restrained yet powerful, showing an England which has yet to undergo the peace and prosperity of the Elizabethan Renaissance and become the land of Shakespeare and Marlowe. This is a grand historical epic that deserves to sit alongside the greats in that genre.
Good, Good, Good, - The film of the year. May 16, 2008
DK. (NIE)
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
Elizabeth: the golden age is a very good moovie. I highly recomend it to everyone. The costumes, the setting and of course the actors are of high quality. And as always Cate Blanchett delievers a splendid performance as Queen Elizabeth. Blanchett is one of the 21st best actorest. And I just love the scene when Cate is shouting at the Spanish ambassador. God she's good!!! I also adore her conversations with her astrologer. And the trailer of this film is stunning, as is the moovie. It is so good, it makes me shiver.
Elizabeth,the golden age is worth every penny and is a must-see. Go buy it, you won't regrate!! (",)
Loved it July 3, 2008
foxcylady
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
I did I loved it. The acting was amazing the film kept furious pace yet you never felt pushed. I watched both first and second film together in one night and then did it again a week later and still loved it.
If you dont see any other films this year then please watch this even my other half enjoyed and believe me when he says its good it must be, there wasnt a secret mission nor a gun in sight.
My daughter has also enjoyed and it made sense of her school work as part of her history is the Tudors.
Wonderful July 10, 2008
Dodster (UK)
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
I haven't watched the first film, so cannot make a comparison.
However, this film stands on it's own. Excellent acting, gripping story line, (whether historically accurate or not) and fabulous costumes.
The movie is quite long at just under 2 hours, but the time seemed to fly. Both my teenage kids were gripped by the storyline, which came as something of a surprise.
If historical/costume drama is your type of movie, this comes very highly recommended. You might find yourself back in history books checking the accuracy of the script! Great movie.
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