* * * 1/2 (out of 4)
Rating: PG (sensuality, brief language and violence)
Director: Jean-Marc Vallée
“The Young Victoria” dusts off the portrait of a dowdy royal by focusing on her early life. Unfortunately, until she was Queen of England for several years, nothing worthy of making a film seemed to happen to her. It is an excellent film, but it is in need of a sequel. Yes, I admit I am a fan of British history, and I wanted more. The screenplay (by Julian Fellowes) ends right at the moment when Victoria began to really rule. The struggle of the young princess against her adult supervisors doesn’t quite supply enough dramatic tension to sustain the promise of the film.
“The Young Victoria” introduces us to a 17-year-old Princess Victoria (played by Emily Blunt), who describes her palace as a prison. The thing is, it’s not quite her palace until King William (Jim Broadbent) dies, and she reaches the age of 18. Until then, she is controlled by her mother (Miranda Richardson) and her advisor (Mark Strong). They try their hardest to shield Victoria from the interaction (or influence) of practically everyone at court. It doesn’t work of course, and Victoria rebels from their controlling behavior. She loathes them, and makes it clear that upon achieving the crown, she will think and act on her own.
As an opulent, historical film experience however, it succeeds as few like it really do. The film’s main story focuses on the courtship of Victoria and Prince Albert (Rupert Friend). It accomplishes what only the best historical fiction can: sending us into the language, habits, and traditions of another era with such grace that we have no idea how much information we are absorbing. The film gets so much right that it is easy to overlook the contemporary “Hello” that escapes Victoria’s lips as she is being presented to Prince Albert. (Princess Victoria would hardly have used a word that had just come into print.) But for the most part, the film is wonderfully detailed.
As Victoria, Emily Blunt lives up to the promise of her scene-stealing, brief film appearance in “The Devil Wears Prada.” She brings intelligence and heart to the role of Victoria, and makes us truly care about whether this young girl will arrive on the throne undamaged. As played by Blunt, Victoria learns to play the games that surround her so that we see the uncanny politician emerge slowly but in a satisfying manner. But what she really craves is not power, but romance. As her consort Prince Albert, Rupert Friend does a strong job as well. Albert didn’t have the charisma of Victoria, yet Friend keeps us rooting for him, and he ends up being the most sympathetic character of all.
The best performance in the film, however, is given by Jim Broadbent as King William. He is just the kind of relative you want on your side when family politics appear at a family get-together. He delivers one of the most powerful scenes of the film, and by doing so, rescues his character from historical neglect. When he speaks, you listen; it is a performance that adds meaning to everything you see before and after he makes his appears onscreen.
Victoria grew up in Kensington Palace, and as a sign of her independence she moved into Buckingham Palace (the first monarch to do so). When she moves into the new Palace, we can’t help but feel the excitement of a new era of history beginning. The details that surround the story plunge the viewer into an world of opulence, romance poetry, suffering, and the burgeoning of enlightened thought all at once. It is a heady mix, and it dispels the ahistorical myth that Victorian times were stuffy. Like most good royal stories, the only thing boring, damp and gray around “The Young Victoria” was, of course, the English weather that surrounded her.
It isn’t a perfect film, however. While the gentle filmmaking of French-Canadian director Jean-Marc Vallée has its appeal, it also lacks a guidance and focus. At times the film does feel a bit safe, as if it didn’t want to tarnish any of the crowns involved.
“The Young Victoria” was, in fact, co-produced by Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York, and her daughter Beatrice has a brief onscreen appearance as a “Lady in Waiting.” This is not a modern day revisionist take on Queen Victoria. Don’t expect a foul-mouthed, sex-crazed, contemporary monster of a monarch here. In fact, one of the strongest moments of independent behavior in the story happens when Victoria decides to walk up a flight of stairs without someone holding her hand… and that moment is powerful stuff. It’s just that kind of film.
So, be warned, if historical films that try to get it right aren’t your thing, you might want to go see something more outwardly entertaining instead. As for me, I’d like to see Emily Blunt play the lively, middle-aged and someday the stately, old Victoria as well.
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