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3/12/2017

Elizabeth (1998) - Kapur and Blanchett succeed with grand biopic



+ Best Biopic of the Year + Best English Movie of the Year + Best Historical Drama of the Year + Breakthrough Actress of the Year: Cate Blanchett

 

Cate Blanchett appears as a woman to be reckoned with on this poster for Shekhar Kapur's Elizabeth


1558, England: When Catholic Queen Mary of England during her fatal illness decides against convicting her Protestant sister Elizabeth to death, the country soon have a new queen, who finds herself under pressure to establish herself by marrying. 

Cate Blanchett (Hanna (2011)) plays with captivating vigor, impulsiveness and humanity in the title lead and enjoys first-rate backup from John Gielgud (Prospero's Books (1990)), Richard Attenborough (All Night Long (1962)), Joseph Fiennes (Elizabeth, Michael and Marlon (2016, TV movie)), Vincent Cassel (The Crimson Rivers/Les Rivières Pourpres (2000)) and more in the impressive ensemble.
Elizabeth is a very exciting and handsomely produced biopic with some extravagantly long music sequences (David Hirschfelder (The Dressmaker (2015)) has composed the fine score). It is a confident and great piece of very vividly rendered historical filmmaking. It is written by Michael Hirst (Vikings (2013-17)) and directed by great Britisth-Indian director Shekhar Kapur (Bandit Queen (1994)).

 

Related post:

 

1998 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess 







Watch a trailer for the film here

Cost: 30 mil. $
Box office: 82.1 mil. $
= Box office success
[Elizabeth premiered 8 September (Venice International Film Festival) and runs 124 minutes. Shooting took place in England, New Zealand and Australia. Blanchett was a widely unknown Australian actress at the time. Marlon Brando was in consideration to play the pope, which eventually was played by Gielgud. Kapur has related how he suggested, in vain, that the legendary Thespian acquire an Italian accent, which horrified every English actor within earshot. The film opened #17 in 9 theaters to a solid 275k $ in North America, where it peaked at #8 and in 624 theaters (different weeks) and grossed 30 mil. $ (36.5 % of the total gross) in its 26 week-long release there. The 2nd and 3rd biggest markets were Japan with 15.8 mil. $ (19.2 %) and the UK with 9 mil. $ (11 %). The film won the Oscar for Best Makeup and was nominated for an additional 6: It lost Best Picture to Shakespeare in Love, Actress to Gwyneth Palthrow in Shakespeare in Love, Cinematography to Janusz Kaminski for Saving Private Ryan, Art-Set Direction and Costumes to Shakespeare in Love, and Score to Nicola Piovani for Life Is Beautiful/La Vita è Bella. It was also nominated for a two Golden Globes, winning one for Blanchett, 12 BAFTAS, winning 6, won 2 National Board of Review awards, an award in Venice and more. The film was accused of being anti-Catholic, and it is also fraught with countless historical inaccuracies. It was followed up by Elizabeth: The Golden Age (2007) about the second part of Elizabeth's reign, again by Kapur and with Blanchett, - but not a hit. Elizabeth is certified fresh at 82 % with a 7.3 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

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