The story of the ascension to the throne and the early reign of Queen Elizabeth the First, the endless attempts by her council to marry her off, the Catholic hatred of her and her romance with Lord Robert Dudley.
Acting
Blanchett's transformation from naive girl to ice queen is ACTING CLASS.
Costume
The white face paint evolution = visual storytelling that slaps.
Cinematography
Shadowy candlelit corridors where everyone looks guilty.
Director
Shekhar Kapur
Cate Blanchett
Elizabeth I
Joseph Fiennes
Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester
Geoffrey Rush
Sir Francis Walsingham
Christopher Eccleston
Duke of Norfolk
John Gielgud
The Pope
Richard Attenborough
Sir William Cecil
Fanny Ardant
Mary of Guise
Éric Cantona
Monsieur de Foix
Vincent Cassel
Duc d'Anjou
Kathy Burke
Queen Mary Tudor
Edward Hardwicke
Earl of Arundel
Emily Mortimer
Kat Ashley
James Frain
Alvaro de la Quadra
Kelly Macdonald
Isabel Knollys
Kenny Doughty
Sir Thomas Elyot
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Blanchett beat out Emma Thompson, Emily Watson, and Helena Bonham Carter for the role. History thanks us.
The film basically invented the 'Tudor aesthetic' that dominated 2000s television—The Tudors owes its entire visual identity to Kapur's gloomy candlelit corridors.
GB
