gelman@attglobal.net
The endless fascination with the time of King Henry VIII, his immediate predecessors and successors, owes much to William Shakespeare whose history plays are mainly devoted to the former. The long, conflict - filled rule of Queen Elizabeth I, Henry's daughter by Anne Boleyn, is the centerpiece of the succession. "Mary, Queen of Scots" falls neatly into this profuse dramatic line, telling the story of the rivalry between Mary (Vanessa Redgrave) and Elizabeth I (Glenda Jackson). It is difficult to think of a movie or play dominated by two such powerful and splendid actresses, and there's no point to arguing who is better in this film because each dominates the scene when alone and the sparks when the two appear together are like fireworks in the sky. The bitter and deadly rivalry between the Catholics and the Protestants dominates this story. Mary is the hope of the Church of Rome; Elizabeth defends the faith established in her father's reign to permit the divorce from his Spanish Queen to marry Elizabeth's mother. The historicity of the script is questionable but the rivalry between Mary and Elizabeth was real and the successful plot to dethrone Mary by her bastard brother, James Stuart (Patrick McGoohan), is likewise accurate. The film portrays Mary as devout, love-starved, soft-hearted and put upon, Elizabeth as a steely minded monarch who, though not without feelings, never allowed the personal to prevail over her resolve to protect her kingdom against all enemies. Although Elizabeth I has been portrayed many times in recent years by many great actresses, Glenda Jackson more than holds her own in the role. Mary is more rarely seen on screen or stage but it is impossible to believe that anyone could do it better than Redgrave did almost 40 years ago. It was, of course, Mary's son by her second husband (the young Timothy Dalton), raised as a Protestant by her scheming uncle, who eventually succeeds to the British throne as James I and to the Scottish throne as James VI.
Julia Arsenault (ja_kitty_71)
I love a historical film...hmm...because after watching the movie, you can research online or in a book and compare differences between the film and what really happen back then.This film is about one of my favorite royal women Mary Stuart, Queen of Scotland, who claimed the Scottish crown from her mother upon her death. Of course is was after her husband, the King of France had died of an ear infection that spread to his brain, because there wasn't a cure back then...or much of anything. But then she runs up against religious prejudice, both from the Protestant Elizabeth (who had met anti-Protestant bias before she took the throne) and from Mary's Protestant half-brother James Stuart. Elizabeth, whose own reign is shaky (given a strong Catholic presence in her country), is nervous about her Catholic cousin -- and made more so by Mary's seeming inability to appreciate the political niceties of the period.In the film, the ever-luminous Vanessa Redgrave (Camelot) takes on the role as Mary, and the sharp-edged Glenda Jackson as Queen Elizabeth, who knew a thing or two about palace intrigue. And Vanessa received an Oscar nomination for her performance. So overall, I would say about this film is that I love it from beginning to end, and I love the original soundtrack in the film, and as I say many times: I love a film with a good soundtrack.
bixster
I only just saw this movie for the very first time on one of my cable movie channels and have seen it several times over the past week. I love British movies and I was blown away by all the great actors and the locations and castles used for the filming. The two ladies performances are so strong and were framed by all the great male actors. Patrick McGoohan is awesome, and his steely look playing other roles has always inspired me. From his role as the Disney "Scarecrow" to the Prisoner. Just awesome. I was mesmerized by Nigel Davenport. Nigel had my attention the entire time he was on screen. Nigel, like Patrick, has an awesome look about him and how he carries himself. I will definitely buy the DVD of this movie and get my son to watch it.
aussiebrisguy
Even though Mary Queen of Scots and Elizabeth I, Queen of England never met, this is a brilliant film. Vanessa Redgrave is perfect in the role of Mary. She is such a wonderful actress. She plays the Scottish Queen in all her arrogance and deviousness. She looks and sounds magnificent throughout. Glenda Jackson is magnificent as Elizabeth I. She is so powerful and such a clever actress. What a great loss it is that she became a politician. Her great scene with Redgrave must be one of the classics of acting between two great actresses. Timothy Dalton is great as the devious and weak fop Lord Darnley and Nigel Davenport is incredible as the rugged Earl of Bothwell. The casting gets better with Trevor Howard as William Cecil, Ian Holm as David Rizzio and Patrick McGoohan as the half-brother James Stuart. Katherine Kath is suitably odious as Queen Catherine de Medici and Vernon Dobtcheff is highly suitable as the Duke of Guise, Mary's manipulative Uncle. Robert Fox is absolutely right as John Knox. The script is very clever, the scenery magnificent and the costumes incredible.
AD
