La reina Victoria

Rupert Friend gives a performance, as Prince Albert, that lifts "The Young Victoria" to unexpected levels. He is superb. As we know, Queen Victoria fell into a dark, deep depression after Prince Albert's death and looking into Ruper Friend's eyes I understood. The film doesn't take us to his death but to an incident that may very well could have cost his life. An act of love. I believed it, or I should say, him. I believed what he felt was real. Nothing or anybody gets anywhere near the delicacy and profundity of Friend's characterization. Emily Blunt is good but I didn't believe for a minute she was Victoria. No real sense of period. It may no have been her fault but her prince deserved the crown.

I went into this expecting not to like it; I figured it would be terribly worthy and earnest, and rather plodding and dull.

It's actually far better than that, and I found myself really enjoying it. I don't know too much about Queen Victoria beyond what most know - married to Albert, who died young, and she mourned him ever after. Seeing the circumstances she grew up under was fascinating; in fact I found myself wishing I'd seen more of the story, and I imagine we may see a sequel at some point.

Visually the film is stunning. The sets and costumes are incredibly lavish without being too gaudy and over the top. The acting is top notch from everybody involved.

In a word, it was great!

The 63 year reign of Queen Victoria is perhaps one of the most documented and popularly known historical reigns in British history. On the one hand, her story lacks the theatrics of earlier royals thanks to a change in social climate and attitudes, and on the other her story is one that perpetuates because it is notably human. Taking on the earlier years of her life where the budding romance between herself and the German Prince Albert was taking forefront, director Jean-Marc Vallée who has only until recently remained in the unbeknownst shadows of the industry here takes Victoria's story and captures that human element so vital to her legacy. It's a story that feels extremely humble considering its exuberant background, and yet that's partly what gives it a distinct edge here that separates it from the usual fare.

Taking a very direct and focused approach that centres in on a brief five or so year period between her ascension and marriage to Albert, The Young Victoria does what so little period pieces of this nature offer. Instead of attempting a sprawling encapsulation of such a figure's entire life, Vallée instead opts to show one of the lesser known intricacies of Victoria's early years which are easily overlooked in favour of the more publicly known accolades. The result is a feature that may disgruntle historians thanks to its relatively flippant regards to facts and the like, yet never to let document get in the way of extracting a compelling story, writer Julian Fellowes sticks to his guns and delivers a slightly romanticised yet convincing portrayal. Vallée takes this and runs, making sure to fully capitalise on those elements with enough restraint to maintain integrity in regards to both the history involved and the viewer watching.

A major part in the joy of watching The Young Victoria play out however simply lies in the production values granted here that bring early 1800's Regal Britain to life with a vigorous realism so rarely achieved quite so strikingly by genre films. Everything from the costume designs, sets, hair styles, lighting and photography accentuates the grandiose background inherent to Victoria's story without ever over-encumbering it. Indeed, while watching Vallée's interpretation come to life here it is very hard not to be sucked in solely through the aesthetics that permeates the visual element; and then there's the film's score also which works tremendously to further the very elegant yet personal tones that dominate Fellowes' script. Entwining the works of Schubert and Strauss into Victoria and Albert's story not only works as a point of reference for the characters to play with, but also melds to the work with an elegance and refrain that echoes composer Ilan Eshkeri's original work just as well.

Yet for all the poignant compositions, lush backdrops and immaculate costumes that punctuate every scene, the single most important factor here—and indeed to most period dramas—are the performances of the cast and how they help bring the world they exist in to life. Thankfully The Young Victoria is blessed with an equally immaculate ensemble of thespians both young and old that do a fantastic job of doing just that. Between the sweet, budding romance of Victoria (Emily Blunt) and Albert (Rupert Friend) and the somewhat antagonistic struggles of her advisors and the like (spearheaded by a terrific Mark Strong and Paul Bettany), the conflicts and warmth so prevalent to Fellowe's screenplay are conveyed perfectly here by all involved which helps keep the movie from being a plastic "nice to look at but dim underneath" affair so common with these outings.

In the end, it's hard to fault a work such as The Young Victoria. It's got a perfectly touching and human sense of affection within its perfectly paced romance, plus some historical significance that plays as an intriguing source of interest for those in the audience keen on such details. Of course, it may not take the cinematic world by storm and there lacks a certain significance to its overall presence that stops it from ever becoming more than just a poignantly restrained romantic period drama; yet in a sense this is what makes it enjoyable. Vallée never seems to be striving for grandeur, nor does he seem content at making a run-of-the-mill escapist piece for aficionados. Somewhere within this gray middle-ground lies The Young Victoria, sure to cater to genre fans and those a little more disillusioned by the usual productions; beautiful, memorable but most of all, human.

• A review by Jamie Robert Ward (http://www.invocus.net)

This film is about the life of Queen Victoria during her youth and her first few years as the monarch of Great Britain.

"The Young Victoria" has amazing production. Every scene is designed and decorated to immaculate detail. The extravagant costumes, lavish locations and beautifully landscaped gardens all make "The Young Victoria" very impressive. I was the most amazed by the thoughtful cinematography. How every person is placed in relation to the background or foreground is well thought out, every scene is well composed. The scene that strikes me the most was when Victoria talks to Melbourne. Melbourne was positioned in the middle of the door frame from Victoria's angle, while from Melbourne's angle Victoria was situated between the space where Melbourne held his arm on his hips.

Story wise, it is far too compressed to be followed and understood by a person without historical knowledge of Queen Victoria. Many events are rushed through or not even explained. I expected a grand scene of the coronation, and disappointingly it only lasted for a few seconds.

Overall, "The Young Victoria" is a good film, and it would have been even better if it was longer, so that events could be properly explained without rush.

I just came back from seeing The Young Victoria. What a beautiful movie! Despite some flaws, I think it's probably the strongest costume drama we've had since 2006's Amazing Grace, although unlike Amazing Grace I don't think it's going to become one of my favorites. Let me set out by stating my problem with the movie: the pacing (also a common criticism of AG, but one that I considered unfounded in that instance). A large portion of it consists of a flashback, and a very awkwardly set up flashback at that; however, even putting that sequence aside, the narrative structure is just odd. The various scenes and plot threads just seem to be cobbled together without any dramatic purpose. But then again, I caught myself thinking that this approach—while questionable artistically—might better reflect real life than a more typical scriptwriting/editing job. The ending, too, doesn't feel particularly conclusive, but again this seems to be a conscious decision. Whether these things sink the movie or not is debatable, but they certainly distracted me.

However, The Young Victoria is also one of the best, most human love stories I've seen on the screen in many years. If what it shows us is factual, Victoria and Albert were a couple who really loved each other in every sense of the word, in spite of each others' mistakes, and in spite of the political maneuvering going on around them. Their refreshingly chaste courtship makes the intimacy they achieve in marriage that much more beautiful and satisfying: many of the scenes during their honeymoon period are highly sensual without being explicitly sexual, and the whole presentation just reeks of taste and class. But their relationship isn't idealized, either. They fight rather bitterly at one point, but make up later. (This scene does go rather over-the-top when Victoria accuses Albert for walking over her simply because she's a woman—a comment that seemed a little too modern in a movie that otherwise sticks close to the values of its period.)

Emily Blunt and Rupert Fiend do a beautiful job portraying this fascinating couple. Blunt manages to make Victoria a strong woman without falling into many of the standard Hollywood Strong Women clichés; again, she seems to be very much a woman of the period, but one with her own moral convictions. Friend's performance is similarly refreshing. Too often men in period movies are so charismatic and "in control" that they don't seem quite real; Friend's Albert, on the other hand, is timid, quiet, and has struggled with many of the same social inhibitions as Victoria. At the same time, he never comes across as a ninny. Kudos to them both!

The rest of the cast is quite strong, with Paul Bettany, Miranda Richardson, Mark Strong, and Harriet Walter all giving laudable performances, but not star turns. This too is in keeping with the film: it is Victoria and Albert whom we are supposed to remember. The costumes and cinematography are simply gorgeous, and the soundtrack by Ilan Eshketi (whom people may know from Stardust) is going straight to the top of my wish-list.

Recommended to all costume drama lovers.