Elizabeth (1998)
Directed by Shekhar Kapur
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.
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What critics compared Elizabeth to
For the film's style, Kapur has said that in addition to studying earlier films of English monarchy, he leaned on The Godfather.
Anyone expecting a typically stately, in manner and in pace, British historical drama will be jolted by Shekhar Kapur's stylish and fast-paced "historical thriller," in which Queen Elizabeth I's rise to the throne and resulting loss of innocence plays not unlike that of--yes--Michael Corleone's in The Godfather.
If you have seen both movies, you cannot help but observe how loyally Elizabeth follows the structure of The Godfather , as closely as Todd Haynes' Velvet Goldmine apes Citizen Kane or Gus Van Sant's Psycho follows, well, Psycho.
Finally, with Sir Francis Walsingham (Geoffrey Rush) as her hatchet man, Elizabeth strikes back at her enemies in a sequence that borrows heavily from The Godfather.
Spooky assassin monks lurk in palace shadows, poisoned dresses kill the wrong people, adversaries are seduced and slain in their beds, and the climactic sequence — in which Elizabeths enemies are rounded up and executed while sacred tunes play over the soundtrack — is almost too obvious a homage to The Godfather .
Partly inspired and conceived by executive producer Shekar Kapur (the Indian-born director of "Elizabeth"), "The Guru" reflects Kapur's culture shock and artistic struggle when he moved from India to London.
The script by Tracey Jackson came from an idea by esteemed filmmaker Shekhar Kapur ("Elizabeth"), who probably had something more refined in mind.
The film, though shot in rich, saturated colors by Remi Adefarasin (he filmed Elizabeth back in 1998), has a nice sense of economy.
On the other hand, Cate Blanchett’s acclaimed performance as the title queen in Elizabeth might have made her seem an obvious choice for Galadriel, the Elf Queen of Lothlrien, but it took me awhile to accept her in the role.