Blu-ray of the Day: Elizabeth: The Golden Age

Cast: Cate Blanchett, Geoffrey Rush, Clive Owen, Samantha Morton.
Director: Shekhar Kapur.
Screenplay: William Nicholson, Michael Hirst.
Score: Craig Armstrong, AR Raham.
Cinematography: Remi Adefarasin.

The title sums up one of the key differences between Elizabeth I and II: the latter is nowhere near as dark. Nor gripping. But how the Virgin Queen consolidated her reign in the face of treason, religious fanaticism and unconsummated passion is still the stuff of splendid intrigue. On his dense commentary, director Shekhar Kapur says he wanted to explore what absolute power means. “Once you become powerful, you become divine. Once you become divine, people worship you, you become immortal. Who are you when you’re immortal and how do you become divine?” Indeed, Elizabeth I was so complex that Cate Blanchett feared two weeks before filming ended that she’d been playing the character “all wrong and I wish I could go back”. As well as four concise making-of shorts, there are eight deleted scenes, including one of Mary Queen of Scots’ deleted head.

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Extras: 😀 😀 😀 😀