Introduction

Elizabeth: The Golden Age is a 2007 biographical drama film, directed by Shekhar Kapur and produced by Universal Pictures and Working Title Films.

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It stars Cate Blanchett in the title role and is a fairly fictionalised portrayal of events during the latter part of the reign of Queen Elizabeth I of England, following up on Kapur’s 1998 film Elizabeth, also starring Blanchett.

Outline

In 1585, Catholic Spain, ruled by King Philip II of Spain, is the most powerful country in the world. Seeing Protestant England as a threat, and in retaliation for English piracy of Spanish ships, Philip plots to take over England and make his daughter, Isabella, the Queen of England in Elizabeth’s place. Meanwhile, Elizabeth I of England is pressured by her advisor, Francis Walsingham, to marry – if she dies without an heir, the throne will pass to her cousin, Mary, Queen of Scots, who is Catholic.

English explorer Walter Raleigh is presented at Elizabeth’s court, having returned from the New World. Elizabeth is attracted to Raleigh, enthralled by his tales of exploration, and asks Bess Throckmorton, her most favoured lady-in-waiting, to observe him. Bess also finds Raleigh attractive and they begin a secret affair. With tensions strained between England and Spain, Elizabeth seeks guidance from her astrologer, Dr. John Dee.

Jesuits in London conspire with Philip to assassinate Elizabeth and replace her with Mary, in what Philip calls “The English Enterprise”, historically known as the Babington Plot. From her imprisonment, Mary sends secret correspondence to the Jesuits, who recruit Anthony Babington to assassinate Elizabeth. Walsingham continues to warn Elizabeth of Spain’s rising power and of the Catholics’ plots against her, but unlike her predecessor and half-sister Mary I of England, Elizabeth refuses to force her people to share her religious beliefs.

Walsingham’s Catholic brother, who knows of the plot against Elizabeth, is jailed, leading Walsingham to reveal Spain’s plan to Elizabeth, who angrily confronts the Spanish diplomats. The Spanish ambassador feigns ignorance, accuses Elizabeth of receiving Spanish gold from pirates, and insinuates that she has a sexual relationship with Raleigh. Enraged, Elizabeth throws the Spaniards out of court. Meanwhile, Philip is cutting down the forests of Spain to build the Spanish Armada to invade England. Mary writes letters condoning the plot.

Babington storms into a cathedral where Elizabeth is praying and fires a pistol at her, though Elizabeth is unharmed as there was no bullet in the gun. As Elizabeth learns of Mary’s involvement in the plot, Walsingham insists Mary be executed to quell any possible revolt. Elizabeth reluctantly agrees. Mary is tried for high treason and beheaded; Walsingham realises this was part of the Jesuits’ plan all along: Philip never intended for Mary to become queen, but with the Pope and other Catholic leaders regarding Mary as the true Queen of England, Philip uses Mary’s death to obtain papal approval for war. The “murder” of the last legitimate Catholic in the line of succession gives Philip the pretext he needs to invade England and removes Mary, leaving the way to the English throne free for his own daughter.

Bess reveals to Raleigh that she is pregnant with his child, and pleads with him to leave. Instead, the couple marries in secret. When Elizabeth confronts Bess, she confesses her pregnancy and that Raleigh is her husband. An infuriated Elizabeth berates Bess, reminding her that she cannot marry without royal consent. She banishes Bess from court and has Raleigh imprisoned for the crime of seducing a ward of the Queen.

As the Spanish Armada begins its approach up the English Channel, Elizabeth forgives Bess and sets Raleigh free to join Sir Francis Drake in the battle. The ships of the Armada vastly outnumber England’s, but a storm blows the Armada toward the beaches, endangering its formation and becoming vulnerable to English fire ships. Elizabeth, atop her coastal headquarters, walks out to the cliffs and watches the Spanish Armada sink in flames as the English prevail.

She visits Raleigh and Bess and blesses their child. Elizabeth appears to triumph personally through her ordeal, again resigned to her role as the Virgin Queen and mother to the English people.

Cast

• Cate Blanchett as Queen Elizabeth I.
• Geoffrey Rush as Sir Francis Walsingham.
• Clive Owen as Sir Walter Raleigh.
• Abbie Cornish as Bess Throckmorton.
• Samantha Morton as Mary, Queen of Scots.
• Jordi Mollà as King Philip II of Spain.
• Susan Lynch as Annette Fleming.
• Rhys Ifans as Robert Reston.
• Eddie Redmayne as Anthony Babington.
• Tom Hollander as Amias Paulet.
• David Threlfall as John Dee.
• Adam Godley as William Walsingham.
• Laurence Fox as Sir Christopher Hatton.
• William Houston as Guerau de Espés.
• Christian Brassington as Charles II, Archduke of Austria.
• John Shrapnel as Charles Howard, 1st Earl of Nottingham.
• Kelly Hunter as Ursula Walsingham.

Trivia

• The film was shot at Shepperton Studios and various locations around the United Kingdom.
• The film premiered on 09 September 2007 at the Toronto International Film Festival.
• It opened in wide release in the United States on 12 October 2007, premiered in London on 23 October 2007, and opened wide on 02 November 2007 throughout the rest of the UK and Republic of Ireland.
• At the 80th Academy Awards, the film won Best Costume Design and Blanchett received a nomination for Best Actress.

Production & Filming Details

• Director(s): Shekhar Kapur.
• Producer(s): Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, and Jonathan Cavendish.
• Writer(s): William Nicholson and Michael Hirst.
• Music: A.R. Rahman and Craig Armstrong.
• Cinematography: Remi Adefarasin.
• Editor(s): Jill Bilcock.
• Production: StudioCanal and Working Title Films.
• Distributor(s): Universal Pictures.
• Release Date: 12 October 2007 (US) and 02 November 2007 (UK).
• Running Time: 114 minutes.
• Country: UK, US, France, and Germany.
• Language: English.