r- *■ í-%' i inr^d i~»> .».»*-•. «« i- í f —: g l — £ r - n C ~ 9 TT r c f r n 1 s. 1 1 í 5 '■ :. o ti n :.< n u — 7 & I ä ľH í i 5' 5 | 5' | •3 S. ä &■ g . =■ ř 5 y *> £• * r ž =- í 5 z & | r-- n 3 -■■ — 7 n ^ r ' ~ =: s =- í i Š — i "5 f S 1 =* s í g % ?- =. S, s =■ š -* =■ ŕ— — n c ■ =" - ~ 3" s :• — ;; q - Ö1 ,-: c- ■ 5" o ŕ 1 £ 1 :r 1 g s, E- S c o ^í :* ^ 2, = ■: 3 5 : ŕ* *i - g .1. c —i I Z ! 1 S I l n — ■r_ - | « —' ^< í g s z i ■S c_ o 3 t í & p- 5 1 1 s -■■ Ô ? r. f p 5= i f | 1 S « ľL s S : E II n r ~ ~ — ■ _ tí- ~ ä < " :- B 5 n C "í — ". 5C ŕ&5 ._- Síl! f ?Ť tm r íl = ?-E:E-í;2d2 ŕ — =- ' ? r> 5 1= s- S 5 £ 2. '^ I 1 i"-f„ I rs Siří í H* Ä S - s a s iS^S? ins Iff o. í p III! fj « ä S»r -■ =: II1IHI ^S* **£ sŕ S.-8 ? tí S S ľľ = =3 !? <ň 3" 3 H - **-rtrStpf lllíllfl P i - D fII Vi I II í i«!í5 IP !IÍItP O Eli is, o> C/j i—T- •*. ' «««41, 115-11 u ~ r. - >c _____________— ■/■ á. s s n — — 1.1 ť- í s, II, Š BI r- z -- '• š _. = 5 iflfíf! T—* • n; G\ m s b____ ^.ffi o: n ä. 2. 5 s- B m =' S = -. ~ í ; :. H ^- '^- ŕ "5 o. a mi' rt" ^= i ítiifii Br l!U l« o 5. -v' -^fe r = a o MhiiIi ii 11« i S = ^ íV IS 5 •* « ° m i ar í 'ú- c si* O £ iSiiawa r. 2 5-í w g-fl - j -» S' ft !í II s-l á ?? a s: $ Ä I? a,"l s i44íoŕg^cä-fl íle .- T- rillfiiia HitfUU4'** ifipi o. ň' ?if. dřfí 'é-Z- '«««««Mi íli HflfSlll H =1 S & ui C "ifuftll itillflř ^i-ä1! ä ? Ilww mm*» Iff 44 12 12 78 38 I I: *3 —:i ;;;;;;;1L ;.,< 1.,«.^ ^ m«. .he >»* »„<. ^,.,- ,hc ,,,„, 4. « die chapter unfolds. V \s in (he analysis of Wi^ u «ho ways in which the initial idea for an historical dram» was opened. llp m Wrned inio a successful cultural commodity for a range ..I consumers. l„ COm piling evidence of die extenl to which the film opened up interpretations ,,„!„,. dun closed them down, 1 wifl look at the range oť discourses which circulated around lite Blm, the range of ways in which the film was taken up in the culture .it large, the debates lhal have unfolded about the cultural status and significance el the film. This will involve looking at the extent to which the film engaged with heritage discourses, but it will also involve acknowledging the range oť other discourses with which it engaged. In order to understand how the film was able to generate such a range oť interpretations and debates, 1 shall explore the contexts of production, promotion, and presentation. Much ol the chapter will be about reception,-however» although I will be focusing on commentary that is publicly available, on the internet or in print, rather than on empirical audience research. Much ol this publicly available material con he seen as promotional material. Promotion—the business of drawing a film lo the attention ol potential audiences-is a vital ingredient in the cultural presence and success ol any film. What we will see in this case is the way in which particular aspects of the film were prepared for and promoted lo particular segments of the audience, the way in which specific interest groups and laste communities were encouraged to engage with ihc film in specific ways. The distributors of Elizabeth, for instance, mad.; a .pi i ial effort lo reach what they called'upscale, educated female viewers'' Of course audiences didn't necessarily take up the film in the expected ways and some alternative, perhaps even resistant, interpretations and evaluations ol the film emerge in press and internet commentary, especially in relation t" tbc question of historici authenticity. Films also get caught up in other cultural discourses circulating at the time of release, discourses thai may be regarded as Incidental to the promotional thrust behind the film but which may have a profound «fed on the film's reception and its cultural presence—in Ihc case of fl/aiM» "" jna»™* the post-feminist discourse of'girl power' played an interesting í*' '„V T U" lhc nim- The A"* promoters may not necessarily have fote « fences would engage with the film through such discourses. Other v > ľ( rT* *"**«* voided: lor instance, the production W» hL Cmenia' rhus <**HW TJm B-cyan stated on nunc than one occasion- tphonc """'"■»I NjGram Pllmcil KiiierUlmiieni II« iliwi»«11"""" tí ■v. j.,cl, (6 do .i period movie, but one that wiSn'i i„ ,v,„ ■ ■;;;;, i an^ i«<*»-7* «ww «'»vow,«!, ,m,^CT ** e „„„„„on is mken „on, «he h». |ioolslel »»S t |,„ok|Ľl issued 10 the Ammern pro», „as idemical, ' '>',m'* ; ' ccp.il-1« a..nli:c:Rm-n,he box-office „^Cof^™£** I""m, rrference lo .he, «as dropped, so thai I3cv.„, w.,„ now, »V| '" *• ***?írf •« °™id ""■ ,;'"ii/C"' n''!"ü"f''': C;"'Kl mMk«»8 » Ä i ; :::« Ü, sneh de-nils. he.......en, on ,o «pUl„ whal thci? ^^ film: , fthl it would be great to do a picture sei in Tudor times, a, that u* lhe m(„, W historii periods. We settled on Qnabeih 1 and her that not only has ,\n immense reputation as an intelligent and artful thriller but was also a 'major box-office hit. The reference is also of course nicely controversial, the idea that one might depict a national hero in terms ol a Mafia film. Similarly con trovcrstahand still with an eye on the market, was ihe decision to allow the Virgin Queen of national history to enjoy copious sex before becoming the virgin of k&cnd. This irreverence was tempered by an attention lo historical detail and an pent with the discourse of authenticity—to lose lhal altogetherwould have meant losing a whole audience stratum who enjoy and appreciate such detail; to insist on the irreverent approach on the other hand was art attempt to encourage •'less familiar audience lo catch the film. There is nothing new about this irreverence, of course. It was, fpr instance, a 'ibl ingredient in Alexander Korda's 1933 British film. The Pnvau E# «Mi quoted in niiitsli and An.- Sec ..ho Candi« llu^.'iU.ml., ,1-..... '■■'■- ;,.,,.. .- rJřH^aiiKWAini/ii „Kk,,ll,lí.onlihlW...w,ii«nu<.^ <*» säks« ■.............».loiii/js indc)(.snilicont 'll"» Bevn„ „...i .„:.........., .ľ. ltlv. lVe« Bookkt uhI "ll ll" ' .1 Ali »«Uli 'test 46 16 ■ ■ , - : • .v,iVs.i1:.iinM.il'i>tUi.T'>l"ll,Min,,"s ■'"^'HJ-.iii-. ; Ur Bohemia, i*i*Í Iň : Th(s „m of genres, «nribilrtie», ««*!, b) lie end, audicn«» um , , eriellK b in m.mv ways ivpical ní the mali, producl aimed • * „jwlr^Mtf mid.enee. The producnon and promotion of relatively populfc,. ' |Tnls, almost bv default encourage a range of readings, and perhaps ,VVll ß «<* cadingsrit i* J vital mcans'-ofmnxiinixing audiences. The o lagcBudicn£eJnso^asoncexisis.wasju8toneof^^^^ l(u. p, : d distributors aimed this particular film, though it k ;i]So,.,/ (hat the whole question pf historical interpretation aňd rcpresětitntion was at tj,' of many responses.10 the film. nil iiinsi'.i Ol nil COLONIALS ' QUESTIONS 01 NATIONAL i I V: C í -J» l -U ; -■ ■■ Eliaiheth is described on the official website as 'a film about a very English subject: Stella Bruzzi, writing in 5ight «ml Soun luggcslj lowi ; thai it would be inap- : ate to sec Elizabeth as .1 celebration of English c is npl alone in arguing that llie film is, in&tcad. marked by its distance from radier Mian ■■ for its subject',1 Iť the film i> nut a celebration (j\ £, U can certainly beiread as an exploration-ói '■ H| - a historical meditation on the- making of modern England and the construction of a central kou ofihe national heritage, the image ol the Virgin Queen, No surprise, perha| . film should emerged in a period when Mew Labour were seeking tó nihrand Britain, logive 11' more mo while not ignoring established traditions. Nor indeed thai such a film should prove successful so shortly after the death of that modern 'VirginQucci ;i' 1 cc ■ í i[ana. But if the film seemed radical in some respects, a break with tradition, sumo commentators thought 11 was still only going to wor) I 1 ious Anglophiles'1' More than that, for one American reviewer, 'England has never seemed more English than in (he exterior scenes of rude merrymaking,1 ' VVc can also find uncompromisingly patriotic views closer lo home, in the pages of the OailyMail foi instance: 'England furnishes a wealth of wonderful too-long neglected loca- ■ «Ujilyondthcllcrilajjc; ,■ ... .....,., .. .... „-4. faHn'iSSÍií? iq ■ '" Gur S,limfl"-'N<« ::!' 'Vuuin! K !.....ft««« IS * ■ ■ «ttalwjutbonePkWud« BN faihúáSbätapä*i*I*™-* < Jr.. .;. ■ «nd*Mí«Lj Film/i ^'V,lJ,^M«fiirti(lhhllcrilaBrr./tři.....itoftopufaBritUhCu*.....• ...... ... .-..I; :'1"" ■ll""v *"«% —■ L «ciion 5-! nW. — : .^■H u))opii!ei a marvellous selling for ,hc (.ig . i......' iUe-ls1n.htHn!;lil,h:H,s(>í,he,ul)^.i, . . ^ ^ lt that'The film's other 1 I purseesthattobethllouriShedbypuui^ rf^Ä^cíinachroiiitticElgarmu« Pneniu.) i interprei.11 i «rely a liltle perverse m h, almo« w«**,** ^^.hepos.-^'lon.al makeup o(,he hlrn s m ' k-rs "r Id see the question «narks that the film puts around the question of ■",, identity and traditio». It also of course underlines the ««em to which «arc open to interpretation, including to interpretations thai may be quit *L with the intentions of the lilnvmakew. Perhaps the My .v.. tew*deliberately perver.se in an effort to rcKU ohvenibnaland •Aswvative reading of national history, but tint in iiulf simply underlines the ,[ readings of films Cor arty other texts) will often be purpo rath« than moccnli designed to serve the interests of the reader, consciously or other- ,.- is die film-make onecrncd» Eihalmh was clearly not intended to e across .is a conventional presentation of a slice of the national past, On the ■ rv. in Kapur's words, it was conceived in part as'the revenge of the ■ ■'. rials ' I am the last person, in the world who should be direct! ■('(... To ask a" Indian who knows nothing about British history to make a film about j British icon. U was such a mad thing, I jus; had to do it.' Alongside Kapurwcre the Australian actors < ale chctl and Geoffrey Rush, the Frcn I Fanny aidant, Ľric < lAntóift, and Vincent Gasscl, and two more Australians, the editor, (ill Bilcock, and tbc dompi cit, I 'avid Hirschfelder. As the reviewer for (he British publication Asian Axe point;* óúí, 'few doublct^and-hosc muvic n '..han international spread.....\ multi-national east working foi a multi-ethnic cr team is, of course, landab; ■ jusl one of the ways in which the modernit) ol I'ii.-ii/'.'f/i cannot be impugned.' ? What we are confronted with from this point of view is an 'outsider s new ol Bittish history'.a position which Kapur relished; I wasexciiedby whal the) «peeling from me .., something very dangerous; "something raw and mlorm ■< bíl melodramatic and chaotic'.'7 This perspective clearly W*teú" •nvqlvcd with the film (which makes it even more surprising that iňci> r ' ' to see none of this danger). G«oifwy Rush, for instance, saw in viewthat'Shekhar has nocultural reverence for Ení^10^?'^ »ii 1 '' »limcheu recalled thai 'Shc-khar kepi saying "Th>s is my Uihi ^' - '''»"'plwTdofccy/lonk Ibi lletoliwAddku ■ li0tl " ■-TM, mioiol in 5usman,*Kol Like a Virgin; T""1 wfcut*. ^..U0u«nv;r,(......^M.ciSkkMMr;;2^lC, «"'.Wilm ■...,,.. aNov.wÄl.lrom^v.vilUip b"-M6MjJScm,iys.s),l6. 35 09 03 _*, ,,, L ,hciwi lhal he's Ir.di.rn. Heing both froh. líic CoJpnj^w, , sfcewed perception."* Michael Mint, (he scriptwriter, was of, ,inil| |; The idea it M Indian directing ■« .|..imcssonii,ll> English sll),ica Mii .„„„■ -i.,.t n delighted me. Sheklwu hod made a rcni*rkablo film called /(„,„,„ „h'idi w.i. [«"iili emotion ... no! a qualit) easily ossociuted will, BriiBn mn V"*""" iimight wilhhim^no'preconceptions abouihliiubeth.WiihQ." even being ibnsciouj of It, many English peopje arc protective about ihc „„,.. -of Eliwbrth I; aftei .ill- ihe remains one of ilie great«! icons |„ 0J gin iv—of 'lea«, I'Whap, I (hc list thing ihe film needed was .1 rcvercnlial camera. Our-liiMc, , Prom this poinl ol 1 iew, the view of the outsider, Elizabeth is not so much i;n„|j, ai an irreverently post-colonial take on .1 core moment in English bistorv. n sense of irreverence, (his sense of a 'skewed perception towards ',1 quintcssc„iUi|! English subject* emerges lime and again in ihc discourses which emerged arn,1IKi ihcfih«. It suggests lhal at Ihe centre of the narrative is a theme typical »f ,|( heritage film: not ihc celebration of ;i fixed nn<\ pure national identity, hut ih, hesitant exploration of the crisis of inheritance, ihe struggle over ihc meaning of Englishncss, mh\ the question of national ownership; Elizabeth, from this m .pánve, confronts us with the 'Howards End' questions. To whom dues England belong? To whom shot/lit ii belong? And how will this struggle be u (Catholic or Protestant? Insular or allied with the Vatican, ihc French, the Spanish, or ihe Scots* And so on, í'Hie'skewed perception'also produces what can be seen as a very hybrid, exotic, cosmopolitan, and fluid English court in ihe Elizabethan period, a reflection on the strangeness of ihc English inheritance and the impurity of nationhood. Or at least, this is one way of looking at the film. If this way of seeing, this sense of irreverence, can in part be attributed lo Kapur's outsider status« then n is worth remembering just how many English costume dramas have been made by non-English fílnvmnkeŕs. It is worin noting too just how much else is conventional about Elizabeth, with its emphasis on an iconic hnglish monarch; its showcasing of no less than twelve period properties; m overall sinnptuousneSS and visual splendour; its fine period costumes, decor, and architecture; its seductive performances; and its narrative exploring English history and a crisis of national inheritance. PRODUcTiOM, distribution, ano iix m i b it I ON cl7vÍtK«ľr,TIUní?,;al makc"UP of lhc filmmaking te.no. Elizabeth was »(»- ■>. ',1 i . ľ' i''' \ "ÍSh fllm'and »,'"U(IIV scribed by one of its produce* * «*h "um, financed, produced, written and shot in Britain'.11 » was nude ■9' lir«, IK*1 ""^«.'■"«....M.di.-Hrliiii«,/;,, s<,ip,... . .. [London: Bo '.0rcKl^l,*,'"»^^ ""-Mídtäd eiliwr,,-n^d «.tni«/„r Ôícn'í ..,„„■, 1-,..:. ■ ...... (Bafl I En • |Uc leading UriUsh him and icJcv.mo,, ?Tíjám . ^rldng Title.'Ihc huge, was around í U!llll,i()n^'' c0,ning »'""" Channel 4, some from ihc i:,,,,,,^«, L I°Coi ll* ^""" ,1 bul mo«» few K*Grwn Filmed EnierUi™ °* *W*K WJ" "i by a D««* W company; Philips. iw 2 ■ ;^downer.ofoneof(heIlolly,woodmaíors.Un^ľr í '' u|, ihefr own American distributor. Gramcrcy, in ,9W fwhcn Un^ ; I owned by the giant Japanese company, Matsushita). Thus if Bh* ,1|(111,IIV ■ BřIlW» film, 11 was in other respects a (ypical product of th .„tcrtaiuments industry, in which almost all product . „uHinatiOnal status, epical in some ways, bul in others, unique. Ace, I EbhCnun executive Stuart I ill, hltzabeth would never have been g,Cenlit in .„J ... but u has the ability to work on a world-widi ' l,,.olT)Cc subsequently confirmed the substance of ihis claim.) If it was not ihe sort j film that Hollywood would make, Till was keen lo promote it as an ideal F.uio-nean film, screening it for the EU's audio-visual commissioner Marcelino Orcja , what the European film industry should he about'." The si'«' <>f 'he budget for Elizabeth is worth pondering. By ]i<, itjiHlards, £13 million was a small budget; by iiritish Standards, : was a fairly big budget.lt was certainly a big budget fora British costume drama: fowofthehcri-UK films made earlier in ihc 1980s or 1990s could command that son of budget, but the relative bpx-pffice success of many of those earlier films undoubtedly 1 y way for Elizabeth. At the same lime, there was clearly a gamble attached lo this film—as (here is for any film. That gamble is routinely played "ff in the industry by selling the familiar and predictable against the new and unpredictable. In the case of Elizabeth, on the one hand, it was a standardized product-working in what one trade journalist called 'a sale genre'; on die other hand, it w 1 •nive and risky, given iis relatively high budget .\n n*tyi*t^,mFihimmvis.....t'ofuiM ■.-•■■■■■ -:-' * . ^mqtwiediiiA.lpm-Miiiiw.'WIuifiiwn.....■/?' " :"" Umrity,'Virgin Uctord 25 19 A+� H in,,.,,.,,,.v. who dUtribuicd toMň in ihc USA. mt v . «Regies ol Mh Njstíraiti and w«rtíi»S l'"lc:,;1 budicí the „,,. ,.—■.>aNl-w1«lHMll!u(lnuKUu.o|jKvl,kinf;s1n.i1,; , „Im on ihc scale of ÉBstfMi would never have been made lVťK. h wn iiiU,cm of the l fojlywood majors in well-made mul ...,, ketahle 1(li, cni films, ami the sue«** of sudí films in Uw crossover market. The bottoľP :„„. Universal, und the oilier major «u porations \s „i ,„,„.„. l() »« »profiilv exploiting, a iwliailai commodity in as many markets t« p^,. 1 is (his bultum lino which paradoxically created the space for an irrcver«, genre-busting, Ruropean prriduciion like litizahetlt, The apparently nionuHthir Hollywood machine thus allows for—indeed, enables—the production „, diflcreiicc. In order to trass oyer from specialis! Lp more mainstream niarkeis, ,md u, appeal lo American distributors, films like HIizaWíU have lo embody .1 mm» „f appeals. In the case of Elizabeth, the producers ami distribuloi s invest) genre', o known product-type, and soughl to attract the core audience for that genre, .1 slightíy more upmarket, older, and more female audience ilia n i|lť Hollywood mainstream. At the same lime, ihey developed .1 strategy for opening up the costume dram« markei and attracting new. younger, and more male audi. ences alongside that core customer base. I lie plan was to build on the success 01 the costume dr.ima/heriiagc film production Cycle, lift ii uul of the specialized an-hoUsc circuit, insert it into the multiplexes, and attryel more mainstream ein-cmagoersand more nule cinemagöers than would normativ patronize a costume film. This meant maintaining some allegiance to Merchanl Ivory and the 'frock flick', but it also meant engaging with the T"* i„,| WfiMmr.''. M.-'"11'""'1'''''' ■ ■^5 targe. aud.encewa,lesS^ßorouslyd.rincuJ>m ro, '^1,M,ml-^--',,a^,^VtC"AV,'Ukil,miil1 N»hcffi - ' "Uat hkiv-kVuisit-rs ;»nJ Christmas releases, thus both a ■ crcconv «n"ncr 'n(1 maximi/.ing lis appeal to those audíen lonot apprcčiál Äwood inarkcting onslaughts 1 UK Elizabeth opened on fourteen West Lud Kreens tlic firsi weekend " deliberately restricted to these 1 cni for three weeks. On the one hand, ■ Sn «cry different from the nationwide openings of the HÓllyww d ''-S V the other hand, it was also different from HowanU ľ.ml\ opening in '""^te cinema. The distributors managed to gel what they regarded as'the best TdrUb'c whole of London1, including the Odeon West lind and the Tmixt showcase einem....: -uhly the most prestigious screen in the UK". This fiat platform for the film euioyed a lull adver.isingp.ish and generatedtttdkni Lews word-of.niouth. and box office, which were crucial to the success ot the Iforn. release. In its four.li week, the him moved up a platfornv showing 1,'lally on uto screens; i„ i, - sixth week, ii climbed toil* lh.nl anuhig-icstpbl- • of 197 screens, ,, . ,... „„,.,„. .,,.. Tflc London release is vital lor any films distributed ... -he LK. *"•"*> ami 1997, for instance. Loudon admissions were- on average,:r p.e. cen our* amissions iW.ll^^^^^^ in London, screenings there will inevitably generale more copy han no* where. Thus 'London cinemas provide a springboard tor releases r^i,"- This of course is particularly important fora h ^JJ» «.which is precisely designed lo exploit this SP™^**" J■ „,,, 1 n head of ihealrical distrihulion a. PolyGram, explained t^ra^ ^ ^ ^ «hoc more specialist titles, n platform release can raise in.w u j(. Wide London. U builds lip heat and is a bolter film «mn With the Loudon openin,, and therefore the national tiuvspape . . ■ Marjtmtl, ■Fli^l.clh' (review), Srnv« /«rrnwnii l>"h««wt,.tWi«yli4 5ejH..iiwlll ■ m'1 IWHaW'-V r m-mH^ dc|iho ■: , wiihPFBAUÍr,MNBv..iw9fca'V>n" "ai ' '(i\C km. 1 . . . 1. ■ ľuim Sl»t(>-in- llikl. A4:� 2828 ■ ■ '- * ■," ■ J£&£ oWe ... b« the benefi« ol leap-l.ogg.ng suf« compel ^ ^ Porc rkcl< ariislk cm ol Lbe ma.nMrc.rtv, for the son of ,11,,, ^ ^ ,llioVal by people who read ccv.eyvs and depem on Wc-ru-nf.,,^ MOMOttd 10 lhosc who an more influenced by ill« hard.S«li oj television,,,. lidné The success of the strategy depends heavily ort the quality of (he a-,. . . ', Hed- 'Vou have 10 try 10 ascertain what reviews you uro likely u:( &Ľl lf ym| hgvť bad reviews, it ".ill not ho a succcssV- 1 he pUform release Was 5CCn ,ls ^ lor Eíiaí&«&. which »he distributora saw as n typical 'upscale. literate dmnci r, crowd, prestige movie'.1' This was a film they were confident was going w. rCv ,,,'. ,, md get good woľd-of-moutK,and iheyAvanied to be in a posUwn m.o.i , lhal publicity. The platform release is a relatively sophisticated tonn úl distribution which requires cartful and regular attention to how the film is faring, and allows fot minor adjustments to the advertising campaign week by week; 'In using a plat-form opening we can shape and evaluate the wide release. We can pin new quote) [from reviews', into uur roll-out campaign to sustain advertising,' liecaiisčlhcitlis-tributors were also wanting to attract a more mainstream audielfce, they'grasped ' the nettlcand ploughed in money for TV ads'." The use of television- rthcrc wai also a short programme about die making of tbc film- -tnice again signals the dif-ference of ibis film from earlier quality costume dramas likt Howards J:n<Í, and the attempts being made to consolidate the mainstream end ol the CToäsöVt market. The television advertisements, for Elrzftfcof/i focused heavily on chivalry and on the powerful soundtrack, which were seen as among die key selling points' for rume regular cinemagoers. If lilixabeth had been released straight onto zun scŕeertsi ihe distribute« believed it would probably have had a reasonably good Opening but then tw* sunk very quickly, which would have been a very inefficient way of SÖtlkiug l!le market. A more likely ideas? for a modestly budgeted costume drama like Eliiaheth would have been to rely heavily on a run of art-house screenings. »ad then possibly build up to the metropolitan independents and more upt» i» multiplexes. In fact, this was never the intention with iiumbvih, as can be ascin lamed from the Si«; Of the production budget, far in excess of what could »«« been recouped from such a modest release. The plan was always 10 start in up"»'-Ket multipte and Selected independents before going U. the arl-hmises ftitf Heglpnal Film Theatres, SÍ:^ÍÍ^?l,0í«|A,)<>''..'VUifo.mSi,flň.ilu- - m ťom0tion twuíweu u snnnar.seriesütstagcaTnitially.maga-,büS'"CS5 0ii v0nicn'SmagM'«cs'^eicT.tirgetcd,^ Iílť,iid č8!"* -ľ \wctw wide, the press campaign was extended to mid-market ■lť!'.JsVl"111 ,lK 'V li/ and TV spots also kicked in.' Teas« trailera were shown í the f),ii/yj " jor lo ihc arrival Of the.film, while a limits1. . ilnu CUlCOl p...... i«, mi-itfnnnlit'm i'iTiIc'l m «,,-;,M„ l,ľl ty ..ill*-'" ■ .-maS P"or ,u " ........■—-, ■................ pun.« 0 ■ifioatinS „iWnĽ dcsiÄD was run in melrppohtatt centres, especially '"' ijUii»11"'* , idvcrli^ments quoting caielully selecu-u reviews w.;k """Si. A» «ch n'f newspapers and in listings magazines such 4s faiw Out, . j in lb, '-quam) < ibc "i111:"1 •; I ,uu.,ol forms WA * «7"s" «■ «cdta.1 opening «ecken, «id W '™"B , oiliil,„,uul c„„ .hou8h , •»'«e «cond high«! 8r«»'"S filni oi ' n ^ iľo.-U,». H »till M«(0l » ^ Jv showing on fourteen screens, oil ■■ L ^.^ „ c.,c, ,, «d. Pl.ce -„„«ionwide because ol *e «fegt ona1/5 -^ . ^ shom„g feci,, „us in which it was pitying «'» «í S »P ^»-i! "* T"'^ I, ,ei« ,h»n all bu, one of ,he rest ol A*»»'^ ^ .,c; ««en fl-W« llul week-but i« had a blBhc* f«f C.^^;e„ i, had opened jfB* ta.fl,eu, .h.ed. By i» fourth »*k ? r1t^ÄB-'«'5 W9W'" X. Won, h W ovenaken U* Sfcrf H f > » »ft ^ .,m become U,ek.cw ,t .^.^ juJ ,cv,c„s,,i k «lase: Ry this Mauc, i, was ti'dins » "JVC "'s' J„*i,i„n adverts *w »'"c'/ '«I u. a«„,c, ihe'upscale audience: «hile Ú- ^u,all), ^^ »»*n|,0,i ihc more n.ainsuean, aod.cnec. 1 nc _ ^ ^|hol,sll ,„ ... ••■ '"}■«' films at the Hrltish box oflicc lor w» «e ' '• Ib'aL 81 ELIZABETH . " . ■ U . . : 'Í , t. .,. ■'' . . ■ ■.■■..... ■ ■ ■ . ■ .'.:■•■■■■ .... I . ' . ■ ■ - - - - -■ ■ .. ■■■...-■-■■■■■ ■ .■:. trt ■■ : I films, i : ■ ■ ■ lives running in i ... - ■•■ - -,-,.- — ; ■ ■■'■■...: í y3 li,;.' , to dis(,, i, aS an teMrf film. (~d by Mriho^ * bens: it managed 10 lake enough money on those saves u, reach nun,Ľ * ín ,;,, bwr-onke .Juris; indeed its average takings per screen were highe, ., 7 m>0lhei film in Die lop jo- By lbe third week ol its release, ö/aiiw/ftjiad becorľ (il, mosi succe»rul British film currently on release in (he USA. by weekfoj lvhcn i( was showing äi more than 500 cinema*, the lilm broke inu, the ^ ' ,,,, box office iop leu." AS one British newspaper commented, this vtas'nm SUr prising... This- remember, is .1 bit of black-teclh-pnd.boils English history m zapped up or modernised liifl» with an Indian directoi and an Amtrnlfnn fC|1d And we don't 'hink Eric Canlona or Kathy Burke arc pulling them in fli&beih eventually remained in the box-office lop ihiny in the USA lor twenty. uro weeks. In early February, it was slili on more than <|Oo screens. When the Oscar nominations were announced in mid-February (EHziibeih received seven), it was on 624 screens, but thereafter gradually tailed off. The overall box-office takings were ofcourse minuscule compared to the two major studio films'released around the same time. The Waterboy flpjjS) and Rugjtats (1999) (by week three. Elizabeth had taken nearly V million, but Rugrafs by that stage had taken Su million and Wah-ilw iih) million; even after twenty-two weeks in the lop-thirty; the box-office gross for Elisabeth was still only $19,] million J. Although Russell Schwartz, president of Grainercy, the film's American distributors, claimed thai'this is better than we'd hoped for', it is clear that in facia carefully finessed marketing plan was coming to fruition; 'We have a populist period movie here— We're selling il as a historical thriller... with the emphasis on thriller."-' In order 10 exploit the film to its maximum, Grainercy "mounted a cosily campaign for Elizabeth, including TV spots and two- page ads,... belting n [would] surpass the typically limited grosses that period pieces usually achii Another strand to the promotional campaign was a brilliantly designed website for the film, which included an elaborate game. Traitor in Our Midst','where you can try to find the traitor in Elizabeth's court. Von gain points. y,n\ gel dues— olherwise, you get beheaded". According to Schwartz, the website was treated io otn ongoing hope to get men interested in (he piciurc, which is obviously on* ina*ť,ingťhallc*ges..v ' Wonka Ron,™, ■ 0jMbeih' Reigns ;„ Nich« n.o:. Vmieiy Exm online, > rxe- w* " "'"■ A«*» IínJť., '-«iabflli- Rules': Semu Iniemalmial US Nov. i9<,S), «i *"*<" ,d,,won,'»AľÄ '"*""Minwiii/ ,,,,li,w *, F*n ch3rLť.Cu.»rfľľ 3? "**.,rw d"m'" «»«.'//and SAwn MoiMmvA ""-»*".....*»»«£ ......., hup odl'l,M":;., lVcre obk to expose «he Him «0 ,u-T1 ,, wcl| ,* ^' S (in their demographics) and there's no „llM,n wh 'w »JJ* fe % «b ., ■"": ZlLc\ M;" '**'• lei them (sec, what 0,Ľ môvi^ abllll 2gf# jo * ,u,. . •„„ (he lilm as both a traditional chlume dram,, and a thrill 1 JJÍ a wider audience was the centra, strategy „f lhc m^^ *£SX i-1* I'M« also show its no, ,|| ab0U1 CosiUmcLlSÄ S7backs.abbing and adventure. There's a |0, jn lhii mm, 3 •«s of the marketing campaign can be gauged bv the comments 61 the manager of a film website on the internet: ■ two weeks... my preview page fot this movie has been visited enough to rod« tfubtih up to ihc top icn o! my most visited previews, an honor not „hen gran« | visitors io period piece dramas. I ihmk wl,at may be drawing some of the attemkin. and may be the key to this movie's success, are the surprisingly riveting commaciatl that \mt K-f'n showing in some theaters and on cable TV. Rather than .1 limp British drama trill i* being marketed as a dark Machiavellian historical thriller about a youngwoman whoslccrctl her country down hct own path, in the face of much oppodtíon. Another.tíiiha tím jumps out in the commercials is the cinematography and lighting of the film, which ň «ry rich and enticing... The main promotional image used in the USA was different to the poster and advertisement design adopted in the UK (although the same key image was med fot British book and CD tie-ins, see Fig. >8). The image foregrounds Gate Manchen in .1 glorious golden dress, blending in with her auburn-coloured hair. Although she is looking straight to camera in a potentially challenging way, Schwurt; * ^.tn image of'a very vulnerable woman. I haven't met one man who hasn't liked that shot— Both sexes have quite taken to this movie.''" He also saw n as> very contemporary shot of her. I don't think people think of Elizabeth the Queen asa ir-o!d.They think of her giving a speech (in 1588 when England repeUed) die Spanish Armada or (in the classic shot) in all the while pancake makeup. Other promotional materials indicated a much stronger appeal to Uje. tradi-,io«fl costume drama audience: older, more educated and upmarket, and female. A packet of seeds, emblazoned with a mock-authentic EtR Ho topped oil mei 1 «own, allowed the owner to 'plant your own Royal wlWIU«*»- A boett» r!°!e,'VVcl'Siu? an«l Tirol Card I f Ibid. u^wuoiäm ' ti,ni',,B,l)c-"1 Se!,l"i". 'Witobedt'. VpcotHingmMW«, *< bur*/*"**** "wini.niinl, „ J'Wjj'Sehwartz.imoicď in Grove, 'Web Site and Tüiüt C«^'*■ .. ,.„„„.. .'■. ' ■ f Sthwriz, quoted in Martin A. Cro™, 'J : ''' ' ! ' ° ' '"'"'("""M-M-.-slKi. ,.^S).S. 9 54 40 65 - : ■ : ■ . ' ■ ■ : iawnt-M ■■-■■■-■ "■eílz",Ví'* 1 L i ■ ■ < bť ** "- . -■v _,» •--i ' -' ". 1 ' ■ istoncal deiailft nu ihc revets*. li'ol mure „, r.K- darkest WSWnw p«-Wru ^ ., ,,"..-d.AW.lrun.anticJr..Mi;. «r a. . .:,.. i .,■ ; Ľ lWngtf"V»»luri'*l<,m' ;ňCd history lesson'? '■ ■ ■ "■■ -"i'luil thrill1 r>i • ■ :■■:■>■'., owtathatshrewdlysidesi -i i'.riti<.h ;" ■ : ■ QtiA, often, iwjdcrn approa ui iiv intelligent'un.nl ?;.i\n wwikii iuul politic ■ btkatonelevel.it is all:' Ihiii^ Some revkwersCbn^uenHylhi . up their min;*-, ib* ■■■■ KápúťíitH'tdecHlci! ■ ■■■■ LrVniovKM)ľaiiielodraii ■ ita^apopcta.-'" Others ■ ■. ■ ;i ;h^ nmjht h^-v.n.) J,: Äi'tiWjt'i go lb a period pktúMí if it came with utorsaŕe;tplwscď Ho ■ M*"1 ■ llisiot'< '' "":''';';: straU-gy designed t" ľ ■ '■ «nething for .'II -■■' ■ ■ :, ■-, Iílía In*.' : , ■ ■ ■ x ...... ' ■ '" ■ W ,;: i ■■'■ ■i ■ i ■ ■ ■■ : ..... ■■'■■ ' '...- .»en : ' .' ". . ■ ■.■■■■ : . . ■ I ■.' ■! Ii . Ii . BdiSli WKIgf« rjigum umem -,(h «ill lov lihu plotting!. ■ ■ Feminists will di-lighi m Ki)i | |„ ,1,0.1. itiii daiWy sumptuous, hypnotically complex muvú; 0U|(h| t(i, '< «nnnoKin. (li il»cmnWi'iurnol..tolu-.»oviet;«erS|,Ullgryfor,4 ■ | . , ■ '■ll'--- ü fai .„ the American distributors were concerned, because ii wus 'muC[ >t^ iii.I.-lU.im »i«^ ^i'i' ^^llull iln T^. lcsi.nH--íľnUlohcc■ ríenry 8th in particular make, an interesting comparison with Elizabeth: although it was nominally a British lilm, ii too was made by a multinational production (cam, led by lbe I lunganan director, Ah Korda. Several commentators also linked Elizabeth 10 both Eisenstcin'j Ivan (he Terrible. C1942), and in Reine Margot (1994) and other recent French costume dramas Of lhal ilk." To situate Elizabeth in such a context is to begin to suggest thai it might be genuinely European in sensibility. Even if lbe focus of die film is English, it deals with a key moment i" Western European history, tentatively exploring the prevailing relationships between England, France, Spain, Scotland, and the Vatican: when Elizabeth is crowned queen of England, Ireland and France, ü very unfamiliar political geography is writ large. The one trait of FMzabeth thai is no! thoroughly signalled in this list of generic forebears is the thriller clement. Vet there is no denying thai, if this is a costume diania ihat tries to authenticate its liction in various ways (but also to fictionalize us history), it is also a thriller full of intrigue, violence, and trie expu ; m ' brute power. The thriller clement is tempered or counteracted by the clen the woman's lilm. historical romance fiction, and lbe costume drama. The fiXtii lwM.'RivJew;7ime(i«NM.i»8ii i-.h,..! vi.„ui -i^vicv.--. /,.,., (f.> N,iV, ,.>.^(. ĽUltillĽ. .„.i, „niwrdcsi.es and sexuality, and espc<....., „,:[ |Ji' i'v Earl of Leicester, is important here. So tu ,, -;., |(i| átobdh. Then (here n «he auction ,„ lavish ore,, lhc Qse f 1 K, ,„d the OVCI". tl.so.SMO« nf a woman's role illH, ^ „.. i***nU .....y and love. Wf laafi ^cwcrs'll,c"' nli2abe'h WaS " falrly COnvCn,»o^ mtttfnie drama '! 5*3*1 Ít>^°ÍĽn,so1 ^n.ance.spec,;KlL,,HMl period dcUiUforoihei . "''" -dináry period film, since they did not usually off« their audiences such ^irWncftOod time? l:or the boys who did not care for the pleasures and con- 1 '7costiimc drama, it was cspci .ally important to be able to sell the film as '':l'"'' (tivcnttirc •. ■ a fine historical melodrama, with enough adventure, ''"""' and romance to keep the proceedings from dragging' .1 film that might 101 tparcd willi the likes of Hravcheart and Sob Roy.* The thriller clenu wtiuous plotting- the conspiratorial, noirish sensibility, the often gruesome ° seouences - -were thus never allowed to disappear. The description of the f|lll"Vi thriller was carefully foregrounded in the Press Booklet, on the official " a, t- and in other publicity. In fact, for some viewers, the romantic costume ment was lost altogether, and the film became solely .1 historical thriller: ,iJi liasjusi the right running time for .1 film 0Í Ibis genre. When compared 10 .Vi 1 mi-Qlbcr reasonably hismi i based conspiracy filnw,;£lizabetK em milcbable, in one sluing, '-lever use of editing during the s« ' ...';; , working out how la address parliament, alludes to a Ti - draws interesting parallels with řJJťC . ■■. Pan j ruler wanting to emulate his/her father's successes/lwho| slowly destroys all those :.; mu/her. The Ulms conclude by showing how lonely such an achievement can V to reality, leaving Elizabeth as .he 'Virgin * Juecn' and Don MicnaclCorleone isolated from 1 jirulci of his family, silting on his ihrone.by LakeTahoev More typical, however, was a recognition that Die film brought together the thriller tcmplalc und the cosiuirte drama template,'the.costume dwmaescap in mothballs in Knpur's vertiginous, labyrinthine conspiracy movie".- Thchybrui- ol lbe film is visible from the start, rendering it very difficult to reduce the Win íiilirely to one or other generic tradition. The opening sequence, for uistan«, is ^highly stylized m ,he level ol sound and image and. in the use ol titles pol g total information, a fragment fiom a worthy educational drama. M sucn. fca heady mix of aesihelicpleasurcandlustoricalau.heutic.iy.rhesetcns.ons. ' " "• ■V1IKmktf...r.ls.i..;'ľ.,jll.,. U«..\taiť.*>s. huirtfwi***«^ I ""■• kraidlnelli. 'Ellubdh, A Ejlm B«ieV. ",l,.'"'; .,.,,,,. h,.. Ik^«-" ClWie-jteiig- cl,.alK-i|i; compare üw comments of ^ 1 , ..lm,hjn,, nf "«I- be. «itaibrV uuot«d -In AUu» ■!!<«*« *IIM*= *»r S*ar t* Jfl*r *"^S ")MJ)lwi. '.....KVElúaU" (user common.*.. P<*ed on |MPh.3 »*W* "'""•''"iiy/Mi^Luh' (review), TiiivOui fto Scpi ' 3 8474582� 71 33 1 24 «á» ■ ■ l„.,ÍUVl1 >tyi,S..t innovalion and the c«mvc»ik,nj p,** dra»ia, ,nd -, llllinll, ««„mie drama -^'1"J drtmavÍŤropósingly beautiful, pcrsua$tvcry. rcsonam, "Isfui Wsi0.rlW »tempting 10 suggest thai if SnaVespcarc had come ,i's" i ■ en«1"1"11* ' kc a m0vic about his Queen, this h how it might centos Uťl '\ ■„ might eve., appeal to son« of the wpiking-da» 1 rS<^: Al '' ( m tle readers, of the more downmarket tabloi I V*xa „, at lcasl ' v '.,,'„.1; taste of history is a hit loo much for those w.ih ^■'" vidcntly die hngffi _b iiiidli ducali0)l. msWricai drama is still ^Schruem "<> lhc !°> * wjve tart* not for the reál mainstream, or at least I»** ! lh,n " m Parliamenll sta.tcd to pay fdm producer* no .. . |lC (1he IWf n l . ' W be costume period dramas. There .s a «orid - I""t ' tint ifwii «««V lecl li' £ üliut.r. although mat doesn'i men h's m^h ■■.....-r,;::'-- .. .t,^,,^ '-tedÄ^hisWiobadcho '^l ■ Mhc'lilmprec^ybecauseit^a^like'anenlo , coo.se appreciated lhc hto » ^ bcC|1 n0 morc lhan quasi- V« ' 'Imii i ! r ' Diml !' mi i ii'ir.cmii' ■ m. 'lib f.'ln Vcnii' nelíčil I'm'. (rvvkwj, T"i ■■ i : ,r Oni 1 " ■■ i': "i.ii.r■ . ■ ■! i i■ ',"i il« i\y «OkV-Mirířirtomi líli/Í»Ľ '"' .. 11. ■ ((Ol» (Il ■RH iiMiim-iiii). ' Amin .Urn ul liii; \U<\ ,.; ■ ; . 1 ,)l* ?W ,Q.klli cpi< ■ ■ • -»oWS V"»" rt" «^«W «H mow. ihěn Hbijicfl, a) and promoii s;a%^ llf!1ljllcli W attract «A w... the hdP ol ihe cnUc ,.......... ,r ihc period film. Although >i was a r«h historical bk$mph), u l)m ^ explaíncd/fifiMkfí» isoi your grandma's fcnghsh historical epic1 und mUv,5gllCB should thtrefote'torget all M "virgin queen siuíl and Bctlc Davis' i939 and (ij., Movies about the ifith Ccnuirv monarch'." Instead, itudicnett *-m. , prepare foi 'barbarism in silks and velvets and brocades^, for;'» dazing cm«, rjimncnl lhal never attempts to hide its frankly contemporary; slant*." This.'datk historical ihriUeŕ, in which 'sixteenth century England is a sordid^ dcadiy place' was thus 'far removed from ihc colourful pageant of most Briiüfc ■ . historical movies'; ibis 'vibrant, rcd-bloodcd biOfilm- was1* for cry from the M- Uy of British heritage movies''- Bui lei's not forget that, fur &o"me commentators^ ihe heritage film was far ftom sterile. The implication is obvious; that, w\Kw Bialiřf/i is passionate and libidinal. Merchant Ivory funis, o> Jane Misten adap. nations, for instance, lack any such character!sties- Yet, as we saw earlier, for wm< audiences the Merchant Ivory film is the film of preference precisely because of its passionate sensibility, its engagement with emotionality and dtsire—-even if it is very often the repression of desire that is explored. Still; there- is no denying thai, tor many commentators, there was a dear div tinciiijii between the usual 'bland British bore/ and the 'uninhibited' Bizabeth, befween'thc traditionally stuffy and aloof British costume drama' and the more 'accessible... entertaining and exciting' flizobcih'" With Kapur knowing decorum aside'. Uiizobcih could be presented as a more dem'ocr.alic tent, by comparison with the inaccessible elitism of tht more conventional costume drama; this was'a far cry from traditional British masterpiece theater filmmaking', ami as such could be offered áe a film to be enjoyed by a wider audience 'who like their period costume dramas defrocked of aristocratic poise'."" Tl.i-, defrocking brought with it what some saw as it more enlightened view of histôiy, the warning signs making h'saf-j to assume . ..that this won't be your average svvishily allttfid»PtQ* monarchy Crimplene and corsets costume drama', < >n tlie contrary, 'this subver- , n;cu jfoms up, Siiy, Th« Mndneií ďj King Worgc lot fa rPÍa' .'"-"■ ,., betweeu Mf* j lcin,,l.ne-s and Kapur* aversion towards the ! '■ ■■■■■ ^, m* of í£ *«£« »ory film, yes, but it ^«wloji« hitt*?£ Jin. rThis*» " lfrC(! 0f period torpor. Mint. 1 ^°* ľ! to* »K V.u. b hádWby way oí bombayVpro-, ^: , hsb Period «* - v;;ts ifůU „( ^ »etile detail an bW ^ f** ' costume drama, yes.but it Wa*also a Utf«£ < I, was l',0111°l ', dience draw than a more —onat— lilk'-l;i,: „.eh •' b,^cr i ;i w« still very much an 'exclusive film, <: t *« *<&» k**u rn(íc,cd a ■ í V» í A«črta«» Prc,,"erC ' „d no«« í«** " Wm Wl* '°T , :;" %n> »bou« PrľaľÄÚL Ml* f« ma6»»-točený **r^ <ä -ä "^« -^ä «^ ,ip'Mito Wra' . . . lisccmiug, hiir:/'^ «Kcvi« mml, M. Sh^u Movic Ä -Míne -a -r- « lMB/ÍÍn^.e|}iÍl*»8e»4Í"»nje«!i»b*ih. " l>ÍMVWiJrr.'f.l».iliťlu'.ir'•»'«'■»■■>!■:. ,.,w,|,.iu- I i.^Vllť-«1 " G«r/IUincIi«iPortrm*EteA*íhľT« ^^''TJTKfllliAuWh« '"" ll /,.,, MftO.'BÍUVctrťtK-VltWl.B.y.rí.iO ^í- 4fc ^^^ ■i.i.,.-,,.» ľmuayi-Elivabtil»' to íl« M^1*."""' *<*»*■ "ľ..,,,) . ,, ,-m" ....... ., ,„.-,..,.,,■. ,i-......,' ovnUnsGťOmcrcyAenK I titab^t; Cirt> Jíi»cí (Ofi IW«1,•.;. (.11U. POWER to ......-«rr^^^^ÄS^ ^„S.While the pi , t_wwbul\dmgmUie*"»_ fiV .^.^^ *^ aľ'^\he p oduce. and ^^^^3« element, thev al» states. Wbdc t f ť(icul,uw by buddmg m' m, ^ 4l(ŕ i ,o maxm /j- d WC1C lťwarded tf th LT m ,md . „■fum ot the week or ,l ^rmllU Ubvuur« On« £ ^ ;ll ..,..., of IPC maga^ne . "^«^ sWtS also appeared " ^ (bciiscd oň.ioiiunccandsex,tnoufc, ,. ,or t ,)H. b (U1UsMtulyolthe earlv rcgnolblu^e. t. Oil-1''"'1"''l ■„„ Pil«; tUwbctW '-■—■ (i ; .„„.^„^iľ"-»^0 ffl.i.i^filHiřWinfcsT.html .-.^.^o««» >'f '^lm,"i' ' .,;,.„■,.■ ■ íl Variety.««»; ,,. ;.. Vain-«" Till«*"' M'-" 1 l..^iJ],l;Kao,l'iE.sH.mdlu^.«t>io'^ ,M^,\.t:. ;,l(i!:|ulv W8i.aiVÄ.lcy.com,hr.^ w< ,. "ta*tiK ircvkwl, nvúuifj loi»""';0lcl! ",'lrt,• " ' ,. „i. (rJov. *9*>' ' : ^«ybwsi-v«. ,,tlo,l/''>",wll°' 'Ano,, |...' -, ;,..nac!', IvlNov. v^!.'""^1 '' 47 6 1,1 fcWfj'í/i Ueriuig/é, ü'Ml'tM Uitema lirlWkenby^^^^ |,Jtani,Wupliulvoilu-IoMllllns., .m.M.ims.Mftn.lc^.s^nr,,,, ^ S«l also A-curtd on .1.0 IM (h* th.S WM a H m with a strong (ni,,K. L * lis) - „j, [hcjnc ol lemale empowerment. Ihe man, interes, u| ([ ' iA k$ reading '" Eliasabeih.* .conic Hah» «s ihe Virgin Queen". As ,,ia '" Cue Blanche», she is a beautiful, independent force ol nature',* This WJS ( J ui;l, \,.me unsettling miu,cr" >'',n,llcls' l ',n [cmi,lc IC0"S ,[,M|" Macloiiiů ,ľ M .rgarei Thatcher) .-vor ha« a private lile? lor yountíer audiences. UK. ,M| ' loh were pursued in terms oi the then current Spice tdrls-insnired discourse'«,! ,jrl power, lit I"01 insiancc, charted some ol the problems'Liz' r.iccd, concluditip dial 'Worsl of all. her childhood sweetheart Robert Dudley (the not alt« unattractive Joseph l-iciincs) has been lying to bei . .Despite it all. l-li^bcU* cotiragc and tenacity help her -men;.- a winner—now that's Girl Power."0" The appeal, power, and modernity of the central character were in fact widely commented on, not iusi in women's magazines. This xyas .1 film aboul ',1 verv modern women ... |widi] an independent spirit and an iron will... [w|,0| t||!al. ii) a male dominated age* a smart, strom; woman stretched to survive and command in a man's world, while her sense ol duly conflicts with her romantic inclinations", 'a female figurehead struggling to gain purchase in ,1 patriarchal society'181 h was also a film about 'a sexy queen', a 'hell-cat Virgin QuecnV'tllc ultimate bitchy queen*. 'a guffawing good-time yirl toughened up in the courtly school of hard knocks', 'the first Iron Lady', 'lbe world's greatest career womahV'a feisty modern woman who wants it all but is unlucky enough to be trapped in a time warp', 'a stressed out modern woman who must cope with a super-intense case ol having it all'.'a woman mm between her hodily fluids . .. and her duty to secure the monarchy in a lime of raging conflict'.IW These different interpretations together suggested the film might be seen ,is 'proto-feminist', an attempt 'to synthesize Shakespeare. Harlequin and a Perspectives in Feminist History cour.se'. or 'an intelligent think piece about women and politics that transcends its time and place'"" This was certainly one ol the ways in which the film was promoted, with the official website anil the I'ress Booklet both quoting producer Alison Owen saying, McUod.'-flc« MoricV* Malíiwu,'lilizalKll»; 141. tloggatd, EuzabdhViK \iion„'Uírabcuŕ (review), jy (Nov. iw»), (*. iMam PrtYtrw, leaflet distributed ai Odern (UK) einem;*, OcUNm w*. Erri^o. Eliwl««»» ■ '■■ ■■■: rlicBijWciuW.yL der faincr,'Reviewti Mm iWjt [1« Nov. mS), cuuinc; Travers, 'KIímÍwiI.'; ll-nlty. ;ll* V KAnceoi Eliabcth ľ. u; Matthew sw«t. untitled culling (review), Uutc^mlau tm Swuhy. Culture 1 Oa 19981. y. Shlonio SckwuHbtfe (Review of Elizabeth), Uaxoflke online «vie«**« ľ. r ; » '"' '"''|a,,cl M«lin.'Amourind High Dudgeon In í C^tle of . . whoHy anacluoniSlic girl-power edge.'1* Anachronism, ľ h 'lofulin marketing liliztlb&h 10 a modern, youthful audience with ^rSonable reference points: 'the appeal of the Tudor bosS-lady is " „:'i",..i as Girl Power lakes hold'™' B :Z . .It coutempornry p.r.lld. -,c drawn; In fad, ^ I lUbcd. »Sľlr .vcraBc working pi. AUy McBíál in brocade inM«d of Banana ,.', ,,„.„, hin.seir saw l:li-„lW.h as Indira «andh.i o.h«s .,■..■., »d.« ,na(.a,61h-K,mIryMarSarclThaichcr; a secular Vrgm Mary,' ö.'Calc lilanchcu, as everyone has noted, u maBn ficen. m In heil.. She's fun, sliťs haughty, she's naive, she's slrong a. all the nghl luncs, ,«an Elizabeth who's believable and sympathetic while al the same tin* »melhingofa l.cro."" 11..I what SO« ofa hero was she! She may „avehcen on Owen, qiiot«] on ofticinl ttvUsuc. . . ,,,-wú'roiin; lümri S. Karlen, 'ľli^il. tW8ľ (a-viewj, posted iq rcc.flfts.mov.es.«...... ^ I i«kcWrttkcr,*llufTfiisticc* EveningShuidunl (1 Oct. 1098), 1 i-íuitt-jonťí.'Wliy 'ľhcii. O Brawlinit Lovci' )S. i« it,.<.ann S*e"«ction ■ Brown, untitled ctiulng Ireview). ľftť Timet'. < Oct. W&h •- uVmt-'" MW»)» »2; Urown. lauiilťd cutiing (review), J7. "*« Him icvlcw lor Thi$ is Ifuhm (Nov. i«i)R), po««--*1 " hllp.W^™tn •»lU/nim-liiml Hon ickcts - I'ilni*. ™m.'Queen Size' from tvebsite. . . . ,:,,,Wi,iUI,'Twvnticih- ' p iiuotftl in Raymond, 'ArdO. in the Court: f'"'" «^'EA i,i l leroinc AiJ "^•'HiabeUi figy»)' LvnUnc review). ■,„, independtínl woman oiMorlhrißlil hul naively Utopian ideak;hu, V| the very one of" the monarchy she lud fought to change*; »s *UĽ],", ." ,l" breathlessly exemplilieii the double-edged swbrtl that is im« girl ,„,v... naybcaprinuvsclling-poinl:douhle.cdgcdsxvoRlsaicgo,Hliii«o different interpretations, uvo ,iiit. audience experiences. l:or others, of course, there was a g girlhood t» the ihn 0f an imperial monarchy; the (oumcy 'from a girl into n« iron-wilfed « who PUI aside her personal desires to Iransform horsell into an icon: I, OucenV''The telling of this talc, íl. F lluM«urney, may hav, mftuenced by '«*' guides to empowerment; hu. it also nnscd some .».,, : , women holdin power in male-dominale society and the ^entices of personality and sexuality, involve,, in reta.nmg tl»i power. STYI.IZA'I ION ANI» S U ľ ľ: ľ I '■ M A M i V One thing that most commentators agi ecd upon was that Misabcih was a film of broad, dramatic gesturesV1" perhaps'even'excessively stylised, paciicululr ■ ' Mr M!tm-I>i/. M.ivirf.uiJť loni" ■ 11 Mari !^l,^■ľ,■r.■^lj/.i^<.l1'ucvK•wl1p>.^olIhl,...l|lw.lHV.L■^M■>■■.v.^ll'»'s,"l•ľ■ ( ii|n. la . '.:■■■ . \pťÍdťtiiiyu«iU:uistoilieUusic;N^»Vw|'',,'"-nlNCta*uri' ' 'IW™ '' ■ „ -. < „ItkIP ' ' ■ " McUod.'ResI ' ■ ■ ■..(ii|b to fc, . u:„fl camera, John Myhres meticulous production design and ?sp|cndorOfAl.cxandraliyrne,swšU.i P^^'tand vigorous bio-pic" was "the richest looking arid most «lo« '""T-din this country tor ages', it,'luscious.monumemiilia pkturcV.nSW-aiulits^uinpiuoiisfrenclicismVproyirJhtg'avUuain ' ^|vin British cmW' ' i|ie outSflt, Elizabeth signals that U u lo be visuáity a'vcryi : film. !"'i'e opening credits sequence is visually and aurally mV 'ľ,VCI1 • ( ľiiloursi faces, images, and íyrňbolisrn,ovcrlaíd with stylizedliilnptu-1""M hki uicd background i n lor ma lion, and clioral musk on the ■ ľ- í invited to enjoj ihcsecpienceasaself'-coiisciouisign.ofbotbgi ii i l * lue -tive historical drama, both aesth^ . and authentitiiy. As we íSletotó Ü.0 füst diegetic scene, «f a group oi I'mtestanh bang ,,.v. tthcsialítí wcareconfromedwitharelemlcsslymovinB 1 Irhe id shots, ■">'! a veritable chaos of voices, u,. ' . and image*. tt to.ingupciiher.lu.fi..... .eneof,hefil,,.a<)^h, ^Virgin Queen, is equally gunning as a virtue P,ece of enema, „»finanl. r parr ofih« quotaiion- is lypioil Mf«« ^J^ihU««^»«"'^ ,1lmuulside,Uilica,tono:,wll-con,lol,ivalllsn,.. ■ ihelilm. In order to situate the blmstyl.st.cally.o ence land warn oil others), .is we vc seen, cuninicn . . ^ 1( movjeS —.....I reference points. .V..... H« lft| yVellcs « l ■ l.-i««V '" Ml\.aiw - - «w ,,,,-ku.- lni« «rccnaway and larman. The t/ixíŕlí'"^ rciereiirt «as i ^ llrwtfj,TiHMh«lli',.l». W.'New-UiitWi.Fj.pti ■■■■■■-'......"" '■ ■ 1 ■■' •. 'RuiwfiH llcoiim \aa-.i-. m ■ . . I{. M.Dttl.«.*AUi-ti...... Awhonř.Q«t„,u-11w 1..1M Yea......^ V«e" ' ■". lM(nrw»5iMiJa>'i4 0ci.itfy>h): u"'1,v- '^* ;wvt'l.fllt(rp«l((1';ii Dil ■...■■ ■' ! ■- Jr-"»" ^* ^-twv,'iii..a».t\. u 41 53 intcitiä* will» Hie director, anoíhčr inJlucijco unespeciod m Ulc ,llflK..... period drama COlťUíS ihrough equally Mronr.ly: °' ll|( K.iimr> éfipv l»l Mldiacl Htisľ. screenplay liegü» with .1 imvM,,,, M,,i,.„,cm , iniríguc «ŕ TJw I luffaibtr. mid (he slvooling My ■■ ■ ■ íhiúu/.«»»^. nK. ,(|[|(ir .^ "'s ihe duefiy a question of attitude 'Iilumghi llmi ninnvaxlmlliniu—ii irL^lucitc.l iiu. , ' .;., ..■ It's tin- new cinema: it gave mt ilic confident;« 1.1 do ihú,' Kapui tiys iii 1 :i:»rid, lluid svnijs or iun.p-cuis, high earner* angle* and fai ,,,. : -.,■;■„ is ini med «těly fell in ilic finished tilhi's murky «nw «jf paranoii and .»-cilri conspiracy.' Tiic idea thai Hlizitlictlu via ľ/iŕ Gitffiuhcr, was 'a conspiracy thriller in *m,| dress' struck mpre lhan one reviewer.11 For others, the definitive referente iřoím was J'uriher aíí<.Kl: 'ihc slyk- is líollywooií: rli>'lhiiii.c,spccl,iailaiandHlüiiil ..,likc-agiaiil fresco in motion'1'" Ai;.iin, such references ,1 re inlwexnccied.Kivra thai Kaptirs career 10 date had been in lhal context, including his previous.film ŕtwrríif Queen Ü99-th which had made such a mark in Western elides. Thus'die film's'epcratic visual style owes much lo Kapurs irainingin Bollywood'.,w liitliij conlexl, Bollywood clearly signifies both a genuine influence and ,1 particularly Stylized činenia; For reviewers in some of the moru upmarket publications however» Hollywood does nol have quite the required cultural cachci and another, more prcsligious reference point is required; Rlizůíiah may :i"i have ino. much to do with real history I!l " lias Much to do with rcdl Cinema. Swirling overhead crliow-ol'f. Never mind Hollywood. Welles and liíscnsieiii come lomind ai the movie's high poinis and you eannoi gel higher Uian lhali Other reviewers suggested the design of ihe film was 'an intelligent (rfaúiilři |ffl assimilation of On- visual vernacular crcaied by Peter CirecnaWay md Derek Jurin.ni—a stylised and qrriaVe idiQm'l,; Mien: were sonic dissenters, Ihoitgh'i who thßughl lite film failed 10 live up M these art-house qualities, finding instead a 'lurid sensationalism, 'this is Masterpiece Theater for l]ic MTV generation, a Virgin Queen for people raised On lake a Virgin."1" Another reviewer found 'ihe bouncy, kinclic (low of imago ami,i,c shafts of light that un, artfully pierce through the shrouded chambers of various castles' resembled nothing more than 'a pop vidím'rt A third though' ll,c *"m 'vulgar and vacuous'; in ihe scene where kli/.aheth dances in .1 meadow who n*1 girlfriends, foi instance;, 'we almost expect a voice-over advertising l,ilir cm Clwfily.'Virgin tlcuiuj'.'. 17-i.s. Brown, Tin n»W((i (Jt,. 1(l. .. ..-%: i\ndn Oii Qupc/i -1 All Wcliircť Vuimutál H>W •? 'lli''M',ll,Ľ,,,a,,l"'^--..'-'Vr. : ^ mclodraina with hi- ariwtry, Kupur vulgaris* mclodr. UillĽS, !„, .pother reviewer, 1 ;„ [|ure and brutality '-ŕ the early síchcj suggeai linn Kapur h still locked inio ihr Jejív, ,.., l0Vic müde wbjeo was so inappropfiaie to the eompltaity oi Baadu Q-av:. bui »1 ith :: ainccivably rirove fining now thai any royal lluillcr liastO'limuptoi «thecikwri ., ; , fot,,/ Mňt$at-----be communicates ideas in iiu- most tudimfoH^^irjťrnaiic iht cyligblüigand InizcncomptKitior , íuoňglysuggf ■■ «prue u( Gothic horror. If 11- some, the 'dark, Ciolhic look ... befits 'he lus'n (Jrüntaties öf the piece* plliers it is typical of Kapur, whose lunch isn't exactly genllc. He cudgels home the impact of Catholic zealotry with plenty of God-is-watchingaenál shots'; other passages are 'óverwroughľ and there is 'a predilection for artful gmiesqueties... Such slickncss elevates style over sentiment'."0 Bui if there was a problem with "a lurdcoic English historical drama ,.. directed by a muckrake; - í 1 b«i j infl"-ence from TM Godfather films [with] moments of dramatic import coinc. wiOilbunděrstormsVit perhaps did nót matter.lo»m,^'bera^»e.Ii»eßlra;^.3«, anachronistic and punched-up lobe taken seriously'iandil'iiwas.at times, waicn-able, ii was only 'embarrassingly, soapiljr walchabje. Weiyülnccd;tö'returntoihcdisscnic».bcIow^ Hwply record the differences of opinion betten ihose who saw the ,. ra 1 ^>y cineiiiaiic-li.r whifh read arlistic-acliicwnieni. ;«w »!»>* VT^ «vulgarlydownmarket, (Wc should perhaps also record that imnyo i>( ',|"»csii-JuiiĽii.'Wliy'ťlie».0 Brawling LiiyclViS. 'bey. "Thu- i»g Weitif c'. > s- !Ti.'U-t. ■l.iti-i-^ SivoV Iron ^vlMil Mate'liliíiiiwi. s KU ■ 4 12922323 1-1 íjŕiť/iífi fhvittigCi '•"híí'1*'' '-'"'""iii rants »wl llw iK««nwi......k &■ llw samo sons »f relátky ..... publications. British broadsheei newspapers mul llw like; Untre Es, j« „„,.., ^ nooliťioiisvIasvilM^hťTť.í STOBV-1'Ľl-I.INO AND SYMUOI.ISM look .1 little mow closely m sonic ilioic specific aspects ol ihe diu, | beginning with the mode nl narration copied and the way in vv|ňcb il. had been organized. EfiaiM/i is presented as a fairly complex, mulii-l,iyci :;,., embracing as il does both a love slorj and n story of political i anil infighting, while al the same linw trying to Ik* reasonably faithful to Ium,,rv Michael Hirst, (he scriptwriter, stated in his introduction to (he published scrip! that Ik-'warned die film lobe (hick with plots', since ibis indicated something 0f (he complex, labyrinthine and bizarre' politics of lbe Renaissance period ami of Elizabeth's circumstances: 'By allowing into the script .1 number of plats, raih.« than teasingoul the thread ol one. 1 knew I risked leaving the dôórof confusion if not oven 1 then al least ajar. Hut the risk seemed worthwhile* since it allov/ed 1 k isihUity of the period to come through-"1 Narrative complexity was tlms intended riot asa self-conscious stylistic llourish (it is after all Very often ima of an-housc cinema), but as a symbolic representation ol conti inpui,try politic, Unfctrlnnalcly at least one otherwise sympathetic reviewer found intention did not haw the required eiTect, in thai (he film seemed to avoid the didactic and iln ovei explanatory 10 the pum', of being occasionally obscure' The action within each scene of llie film is often hut the plotting is pisodic and the overall pacing artfully slow, This pacing again left coin- is divided. For the celebrants, while'This may be considered a slow ride fot some— so are novel»and they usually read bcttui than movies. Like a novel, thi'- story come across more finely paced than rnosi of the rushed i hour jobs out there uiilay.'1" For some of the dissenters, on the other band, ibis was indeed. 'despite all the gore and periodic melodrama.....i very slow paced film with a rather confusing plot—unfortunately often consequences of attempts I" keep, hoi vci vaguely, to historical facts.Oftcn.il ended upasjusl a sericsof tableaux of beautifully shol scones in large churches.'"'' At the other extreme, for aiwlhci type of dissenter, the adrenaline rush of MTV was too evident ill the ': f.the giddy plotting1: 'Michael Mirsi's scatlersbol.oftcn tUsorienling a , coupled with the breakneck pace of Kapur's narrative, drives you crazy. Von wish lliirt.'lntiwduciion . i lendi/AiMithcrFjiicDa ." '......'j- ■' : ■ lll''iillIa,(;1mlh,;.|(1,u.-ail(il.;,Msm..vl^.KU(,.MU>^Kil'U|. A.;:aii(%,h(:ull„1,V|J(llKllw ;ilo||li|tii:|iii, ..'"7 "'-■'"■'■■ h»w.paOulcoinc is uncicar.uie film also po * . laiivdy ... hermeneutic energy. This dual function was again intended hv the jtni '.wine! 1 wanted lhc film to be intimate and personal..'.to vibrate with tik i,m „t „ «lung woman . . but also to have- a sense ol scale, of grandeur, for the young -. un also a Queen, for me, the niidsuntinvr pageant on llw Thames pcifoimed both tl 1 is,nrid wis always .1 pivotal and sirninal scene. Hirst goes on to explain that he Satt the pageant as át\ intensely romantic niotnenl for lilizabeth and Dudley 'one of the great romantic images in Em culture'); but he also wanted to interrupt the scene with political intrigue in the ihapeol the assassination attempt. ■ I ;«ncs have a resonance for inc over and above (heir narrative impotlance., rbui lince this is a film, they must also carry the narrative forward, serve i fin ilia point wc decided to interj ujit the idyll, to reintroduce political real ■ intiion altcmpl. itui to hotel these two things in tension -the independent and fltoit of lIk scene, and then us narrative function-is, 1 ihWfc one ol the pnnopii «tool the screenwriter.1" Kapur in fact felt 'the plot should be simpler... but Michael Hi« aS^m «''ke a setpent, slithering around you all the time", and so Hiccamcra ... ftec ^ ^«tpemandaco-consptoior;^^ i—% didn't und,, „and/ Kapu, .bus SOUebftO tell die plot «*£ ^3 «*- nttwedV« If for some of the ctaUefl «he hhn «^K^ ,Wc'H'«pisodic. this wilS in parťblaiiieil on Kapur, who« panacne 1 . .. í>'li>rd.M,Sluiwl)iv. Movie Guide (online): Tíjřk.1 U *,''"Jiii»vcbiiic, u, 'i,,,''limoduct.ion',íi..io. ibíJ.»: u^u*.iř "'"""^t.'A.dorl.....co.un'.í.omwcl.silfl^'i'í '"'" 4635 9089 60 ^,,^1,l,l,.,uUloimu aU>US; UJSI j \ ,'•' ASi' MM, I'.AMI'HA i v) - li jí not ÍP*1 llu" narřáúw organisation li! l!^ AUii thai is dií aching, ta pin what i*a stake here is the «esthetics ol spectacle. 1- .ulu, i„ «riůdfiiíiwamkoitiune^ ^is-jcvcíopetl on aesthetic that was ideal for the spectacular displ heritage properties. > we> e sein, this meant slovr-p* ed narratives;.. sl-nv Cutting raic. ami á preponderance of long shots arid medium shots lailui tli which allowed heritage icpnogi i|*H> to Hngoi on the screen, the ^iffcrcn« oi some ol the shots^lhc length of time they are on toe sereeti, the &pcctacu1a, vantage point fwrni which many of them are framed, their dctachmem from ilic classical ŕonventíons for marking establishing shots and ijoini m* view shots— [miles .i reading of them «s t weeding narrative requirement. This gap between ňamlivt requirement and the attraction oi the misc>cn-í(pie thus allows the image to come to the fort precisely as image, as spectacle, as, the unťeilťrěd display of heritage properties. I lisníifííi adopts a very different aesthetic. U has a much faxtet moving mm live, given its ihrillei clcments.There is much mote editing. and there are fai mor? ups than in most of die earlier 'British' Costume dcamiis uf the Hjfios ami 1990s. In other words, there is less scope for EHzixhetlts caiiier.il to linger ova pi display heritage iconography. Where the average shot length of fímvardí l.v.il was í.92 seconds» the average shot length oi Elizabeth is little more than half that, .u ;'.- seconds (with oik montage sequence cutting logStltw nineteen shots in isUtccii Seconds] EliZutc/Ii k ihus up there with the fastest cut America» film» f when ii came to making zippy movies, the Americans were always in front' There is consequently much less time (or die spectator to ivw Uninterruptedly ''-spectacular architecture, landscapes, interiors, ami cosiutn.es by comparison with Howoni; Etinybutthis doesn't stop the film appeaiingdeeidcdty spectalhal we arc faced with, bovevcn, is a very different regime oi spectacle Where the Merchant [vory films are contemplative, EHa»]telh is freuetie. The speed of developments ami the constant bustle of activity leave no room for the camera to care« period details. It Would however be misleading to reduce the spectacle ol Etiaibctl) to a dynamic 'anting tale or 10 narrative energy. Spectacle is more p'i the baÜlefieU, ; casdelooming.bcbind.focinstance.lii.pitrt.xvluuis«slakeWthis^ «travagaivce is ti\c Size oí lbe budget and the «nséquendy relatively high pro- i, vahies, certainly for a Ľuropcan film-But thesenseofviiiual extcawganct . «»nljf-tíic resull ôF'the t xyeKivCly and self-íonsdously styiu.-d way in which ibe film-makers put the ňím together. Oůspíť: this eclectic range ol itylistic inllucncc;,. F.hz>.iWtU siill shai ■ ■ inie i.irnal and iconogtapiitc charočterisiics with earlict heritage films, There are for iPsian« still plenty <>i* bériiage cpsttíroesj properties, and landscapes on display [Htmeven ífihí«! is nwth less sense ^; thecanieralingeringofiihôscpiop-.... mainly because Of i\\& ťelative brevity of tiw -hots. And if some dftfie shuts ait brief, somö are also vory tl.tmhoy.mt—and once again i'rc-nicnOy db from the cdiiveniion.il mcins of establishing space orcharactet point ůf,view; Che Most marked shots in this respect arc the ftcqUent towering vertical shots: seme »ithem bird's eye Shots, uthci'S taken from ail esttcme low ;üi*;le looking vertically up.Hie film also uses a constantly moving camera, which oíw- seŕtiľ» to ■"-, iikingthroughoi;aro\indsoinetlimgaťlh.eprocecdiiigsrshuoťin^^ iflJ other materials, or round bar J stone carvings, ui vasi pillats, oi through «chitecturai frames within the camera frame). Such shots can again he under« «>xnl as attislically rather than ri;irn»tively iriotivated, although they clearly m h«-c 4n expressive function (Kapur bilks about -hem as expreß die voice a\ ■»Hoi something greater than the mere individual Fhus they accťtwae tstbetic difference of the film while at the same tunc creating a sUťfl«» ■ ^ľ'-iichiíclv relaied u> the uw of heritage ptopeCies. -,-,,« The uiisŕeji^ji« throURhout the film is rid. and ariful. Many ot the ."ten > 1 Ii* cflstlei, aud while there are obviously some cavernous >p- ■ ■ - '""•■»»Ws h,vc ,|so cfca|al s0-mc [Vightemngty dark ami fitawrt^l«* tc a. as. «Wmwpcc ryjiHiwiit,«y lt< pťovklci k> llw Will <"'ll!t A",C,K during Mar; . inn Hi/abeih líie ihtwňc.nioíc liglil is ihn >\ the proceeding*, "lite ........ i' . .-: while liiere j 10 d< «.null. As I've ahead 'i f" in ;lli* -pcrioJ (If dm '■'■;:... provide a dicgel ig, hul ii must .'i lv historically lilm-makers will alsocnsurethal.lhi y-m im* is» notli ■:■..: i ' .;!:■ rial ralivť weighi i i ■ lions will noi ' ii necessarily operate in uiiiv f/ii nol uiw* petlcdh . ..i... .hi,'vi- ngful blend of function*. nivl is the prubkm ol h< ■ in authentic period louki i|' i»»: instance untainted by modern developments; In ihi*toiite.«. Ili idshoi ihe film in heril ■ i >perlie* underlined uhwiutivciKadül úVproductio I dráma, ihuiigh. ihe aulhcn ■ ■ um .■»■ n ,■■! i ■ nth century Imgland does noi i» we bad to create'ii. I'hai process ofretre......gihep-»' ■ ■ . :■ i i,y ,owith well established convcii : ' !I"J| lr Eoricii!. in attcmpUliRI» create an authentic Im* ! M,. ■ ■ , . ■ ■ ,il,„.•:<•••■■■■ "l"d'v ■' ,„,linM„l,,l,n; IftjTUUU , .„ many penud mow« Ii ■. flamed pro,..... " . r|,nd isbenuiil'il,bul m i ■ itl . , ■,,,... , bi-l loi transiucssive realism: ihi : .,. .. fc ., | , selecting Norlhuwl.ciland.lnH ihe acknowlcd» mil isalsoueaiiHfuFl should remind us ., ime ■ ■! i m ii ihcrcal , ■ .., iri . ,.!iii4 ľio„iOiibnal materini was nol do« i people to tbc claim lhal ,„ „.is lilmed'awid snmcol lb mos) .pcclacuW hlSlu ,m, m . ..,„„ rfi,sil sl«w '" M^i-'" ■" "'"; l'lm'inakcisaimimľtlicworld that jucüiisidci usini ■■■■ ' Fiji un a í earlier,»' ^eaicularbutliada p; m tli d ■ „n loo: In- film delivers splendid!;. In ibe way ii looks. England i ' .,1,1i „f wonderful. ton-buiy negletud location.! and they offer i mar* rfTutiK for the big ■'■ !':' r "»«-■maiograpli revels in ihe English- if the settings' on -hil the spectacle of the locations ■■ ■ ndoubt.ihei'ewnsa deliniti .com* th.it the imse-en-s ŕliúliurr'loisol the pageantr thai gn ■stiadilKHwH) with the territory ol ■ jj chronicle. .- |much m it! «t .iniiingMumiing shots of Merťhánl htrita«! locations sucha* Ha I and Durham CathedraT.^l-o Hwauhe mixture of the un« lilmedinthevihrantcoloursandrii i Indian cinema' ■■ m-re predict* bl^'stunning location* from i, Hall in Derbyshire i inOithcdral -thalnwdc'tbeeiiliKinovK .i sensual adventure. Another of the undoubted pleasure* ol .■■ ■ ■ irtobleforhOlhineii - and their sdendoui I! melie» had ilOlalol a,- ailTcreai costumes fm her role, ranging from relative!)- simple smocks to Fan-. . elledgowns. Indeed 'this him is all about , succession ol coslumcs and mu:^ tike a music video, ' As' «suit, " " ,,.,.. I, ...I. .. Sil i: ' : ■ -'■ ' MKhl ■■"■:■■ ■ ■ ......i lolml lti*(«*l' '■ " .... , 'i.- . ■ il.....! I»».. IIi/aKi!. C .' .,,./ 1\ l.i.r'iti.- It""1 -' v'l'"i' ■' ...Mi ■■'.!-"WK,iulii ■ '■■■ '■■■'' ■ : I IKlWI, jttiheVirgJiťQurtit*>«*'....." ■:-«. fWd/Ui/jWuY, Irf; U ,K.....'All 111' '■■ :.'i»-" ,.. "'»itK-iViwwi (.niuneiusj; poWil«»" Iní«"*1 Älnvlfl iBn r 0 20 58 74 41 88 A1A ■ a -- í::i h re sionc li i «i nol him......... .:, ,:],Vlmd.lomc.,.-llK^ll^'-^.^ spa.es speak ol pco| f0l high «okcs-fliul for k,vľs/"- Similarly, while the photography and d^J ind'lkw.onalu^M!í.s,,!o,.;as.iiHU.ni.ld.l-I,ls.»rc*MMnptuo,i,',illťv'.1!Mí|1.,1 ,ü ,,r,v pan ..i the Ininlen of explanation, as this Is a world in which objects am| architecture spal; as loudly as words and glanc ,n ,,,. j, dan, intention and effect are in unison. According lo the i website foi Uic film, Kapur. and his production designer, lohn Myhre, Were infl„. - kfcdw'4;'* 'When 1 wakhedMiicííťí/i'Myhr,; ported as saying.'! knew exactly why Shekltai wanted me to sec it: the use oj The film literally stalls on Uic stone of the castle, which looks like it )UJ arved out ofa cliff. 5hekhar loved lint look: lo him, the stone represented England and destiny. We use«! this look for the Whitehall I'alacc scenes in pariic- ular.' Myhre found oilier narratively useful delails in the architecture of Durham Iral, one of the main sellings for the film's interiors;'doorways that fell like id teeth, and windows lhal looked like eyes peeping in .., We wen- trying ; i hi ihis feeling that Elizabeth is never alone—even when she is alorte—arid id . this whole reeling of conspiracy and intrigue thai is převaleni through- oul the Palace." (llcarly, then, settings were chosen for reasons til both historical authenticity and narrative meaning. Mylirc underlines Ihc narralivily ol mi«- m-schte still further «hen discussing the influence of anollui film, fuscfvoň bergs The Scartei Evtprcsi f 193-11: !n TJif S ■ ■ ■■• ■., ihc I'rince» leaves her beautiful home 10 live in this wonderful ■ nl) 10 find ihal Ihc castle is a ľiíghtcňing"place to Iw. full-of umeltliiiR ima| cry lr a vqj> this iswhai goes on with Elizabeth. She leaves the security "I Hatfield lluuscfoi the : of Whiiclu!! I'alacc. Shekhai also latched on iu the way thai loief voň Slcnibcig photograph scenes ihiough veils. I thought (bis would be -i very inter«*ting look ghlcn the intrigue of ihc romantic scenes.between Elizabeth and [Jud VVhal emerges from this quotation is 1b.1i ihc narrative functionality of props and settings is in part a question of (heir presentation in filmic terms.The reverential and tasteful tableau shot may be typical of heritage cinema, but tilizafath is certainly not a film in which ihc camera stands hack and .simply observes the \ pridcful Queen Cuts lo lite CMue*. írurn w«b*ik Prcflch/Aiiullici !!■:.■■ . I lí«bú»h" f»i du1 Age*' in»" ''**i>'i Marshall.'Elizabeth", ig, 1 lolin-Myliií, fliwtcd on ilic oflfciit! mhúte I.....i ■■-''■ '■' I llW M'i jolmMyliieíntlť ■ ,wi«ns,costit.n0S,aiid.pßrformancw.O.vihcl ■'■l,K,V S,Km'' '^IH'-l.-lv in licctl nf,, [j, ;hiUld.|obril„itSliÍH'-ri.lcSlr,lulS.oBcthcr: .,., ^mixuircoflhe^uv^lionaUnd Uiť «„„„. ,,,..(_ táÄe^eW^.....ll.......... cJ,hrü»ßllou«iho,no,leia.e«lH«c^rWic>W,,uCovC: h .. I Ad» -MtWtXt WÍXb »k'W'nl0lÍOn ««P«1«« '""' »>»»"">« '» Much CHHci . ,,c Wcaclicd wiih lighi- ľhis melange snnwtime« works well.and-wmnln» .. This is noi nutrighl di5niiss.il, bui an anxiety about ivh.il is« typically poslm0d. cm mixing ofgenrCS and st>"lcs, the ímposihon ol an ulim-mqdern npproa« , ,., ^ereprcsciiiaiionofihepáil.biiuIsowagciircwithuTlI.acnncdcoiivcmioi«, Under lhc pressure of this of-dic-moment siyk -.. ihe picture, begins lo unravel. Kmite scenes scetn oni ol chano« f,.r ilic »mod ol iíie film—like -'lioiv nf,. Vaiican spy skulking through ensile dtadows m aciion m.-- if sľyl ilow-niwion w.an . .1, m in. desire lo leave in«"! English costume dramas, well, in ihe clusel ;,,'Theproblem is thai ; uoa '■ ■ highly rcsisiihlc artincss thai may put oíf m nun) moviegoers as ii ailracis, Qnt minule the screen hhns and hlccds it» while, the * —ü Kapur indulges in .1 horror movie tccliniquc or iwo that suggest .1 rortieicd ctjuivaleni ul ffuHimwi,,.. Like its star, Ľlfaibtth is smari and savvy and more than a shade knowing: llit weren't mi determined to be tool, it might even generale some heal* '•-j'-\ This sense thai style had erased all feeling was not atypical. For one reviewer»'A f^i'j Mark montage of corpses on a battlefield feels too art-directed really to shock.'foi «nother,'despite the sumptuous regalia, exterminating priests, misty castle rany parts, feverish couplings and occasional violence, the conspicuous lack of cnio-lionnl resonance nukes Oils film Queen Margpt's poor cold linglish cousin' A third w.i s also left told. [ hadn't been able to invest emoiionally in the protagonist because I didn't understand hei motives ... I didn'i know whi 1 ' 1 mu coming from, or what she was ifter- l,;-■■■ ' '■ ' ■"■" I.....«hsii«WalWv'ltuiriuiirecVa7;Knufiniui.*KoyAlHudiV3' ■ '■■-.■l.l-i.,|!1/.in.:til. f mm wet,,,, Ibid. »< ■ ^h^illl-ikwcl^ pumbelli iS largely a diaracier study, and if I didn'i gel , ,,m,i i„ . ,nanřf'',ulCC L\icouldlutvconl.y.beeri moderately.tu Qijiit t-'"'"1" , ;, ," 'i ^^^^ (vnipttlhclli reviewer puis it, Kapur s mistaking intervention in ,-lii"'r,':,C' ,,hc costume drama al its best 'captures the danger ol the t.mcs,, aiCS 1 ilnerabilily that extends lo gender and sexuality ... what Kaput 1 '''" ni,,. moment.' Bui risk-taking is a riskybtlSincSsi'Chaoscuisboto ;a'flvic is sometimes clumsy and crude: . 11J lhc " Icarn ivom this dissent amongst commentators on mizabahl At \\V\ <""1 vVC s|l0l,|d note thai form does not determine meaning, th.it inter-IC*d oleasurc are n"i bound by the structure and style of ,1 film, that 3 1 necessarily dictate effect, thai one's man's meat is another man's stfiitiön c*inn ( (ncan simply thai there's 00 accounting for taste, or can wc piton.llu °CS j^ „n which the dissent lakes place; in very broad lerms, fl|iUin »,c & . ( 1|10SC who favour lhc film's Stylistic innovations do so in SUßk . ,| j„ ,jlC West 1 more or less an art-house or cult-film context "lul lv ',ľľ'\\vilcs, (atman, Crcenaway, foreign-language ßlm-making). Many ;li""SUll,|' tledly not all) vvlto dii/ifre the film, however, seem worried precisely ' ""/ii to be m art-house film, or at least a sate, upmarket quality film, ****?' '"'f t n, ,i,c confines of the specialist circuit and into the multiplexes, 'the MTV generation in what seems a pretentious, flashy, attention-lJSmanner too much a pari ontemporary consumer cultUM. There is hl.lv a «ru«glc over taste laking place here. : ., ,|S0%rhaps a struggle over what sott of film we are watching, a '! c which is surely symptomatic of a period film which tries 1. Sk like THiřwpuílHiií. but which, al the same time, does no. wa,. lo be Sent, docs not wan, to break entirely with the convenuons of h^toncal «fcanidty or with Ihe taste of the Merchant Ivory »utoiKC. ľasie wars are in . thrill«» in Tudor dress and a romantic period costume drama, rheduler-iponses of dissenters and celebrants are in «his sense the product ol a l.l.n iddicsscd to markedly different audiences at the same time, CAM läOSi C AS! 1 NiJ AND STAR ■HA l. thcituompl to ntaximiac audience reach isevideni loo in the eistingoi hcfln ^ "•I :pin Ihe strategy came in for some criticism. In some ways. Hu P ' kam one of the tension between the discrete attraction and the '^ J «'rfc'iovyhaicxtc.uarc'lhcauraciionsofslars.localions.producl.oi '»»«, music, romamic plot, and so on. integrated into an organic, a ■ ľ>*!'''«-í pokut M üntfay, «C......„„...'clitl. UiWrrupKď. from «A*iw '"u |t,K ' ^7* vw review), posicii lo rce.arK.niovjcs.ieviewi newsgroup. ' "ly.'Vhßii,Kécord^, i) ■• 3055 nr »n Mftvmi % ,-d -i ■'■*! a - ivcrofľ/ii ■■ . Michael 1 first haughtily into ihe camera, wílh ihc shadowy ligureol n would-bp iissusftiu behind lur. Although this is similar to Ihc image used in American publicity; it i* different to the main publicity image used in Ihc I 'K, rhc CI) provides .1 typical example of .tlie way in which the modem media since ii was publish.«! by the Dccca label, which was owned by I'olyOram, who also funded the film, Film arid CI) thus led oil cadi »titer 10 ihc mulu.il benefit of PolyGram. While iheCD was available in the usual outlets and bought U. f^cfilm.iio |go had d more specific, upmarket mped U|V,,, u. . '" :,:,un. thecomposer ol &t« I d lii.^ťcU«,, IT^D ' £ "í itůipoted in classical music nutlets. which Nth ensured tl,a, ,hťGh '"i .ul.-vcl, ii «old qui ol us lust UK imprint),and pil((iici/C(! lht ,.|lm \u Ü*1 M •■ imniarkcl consumers wen as ihc core audience lor the film .■■-■: "■ ' of rcachihg Ihnl audience was throutfi literary n'c-ins Unlike Al,< (the Enrf'* hcri,ilgC filmS °ľ lhC l9-°S and Vm- U,:"'"'"' w« B01 " 'y(| on a liWWy smno;' bul the «w^in« »or Ihe Ulm still managed J " i tjdi llicraťyconivccliurts for the film. First j there was the published screen- i,,,M u,,, formal, beautifully designed book, with aWns ol wonderful pro- !'! HllSiiIls and portrait photographs in colour, and a sei 10us iillrotluclu n |nol|,cr words, it was a relatively upmarket publication, In his intfoduc- ihc screenplay. Hirst further invokes a literary heritage, noting that Ihe !Wn,cofElizabeth and DUto narrative episodes or scenes ol pag.-anlry and ritual; ancient inie-"t5'°"de ihe magnificeni settings fcr nuiuepus scenes both inlimate and ."»c camera will often foreground arch i led u rul details; and the costumes an kfírsCIiHfóduciioii' S- ■!. i A-A 41 38 97 , v,,;, ífioiinarftptiy v«.s ihci careful y ^'lotted m »y i!,,,! ill(í Mle r, *?i£ioi Simply IN« ihb «"n* W'« wmpuiww tôiwcd droniV, bul ..!„, „lal i, •;' tl W...W ,£ lOih «itiůry líííland i; iiu* hrable rcsuJcnce*; „ i, Hl)l ,lni|l| ' iu. mm was 'an astoundmg M™cfl spectacle, o «tfume romp, bul lim, h „..,lxi ox^itaiion oi fosí&ÍÄ sperte m discoursesgrounding ú.c lil,,,. Afe-»« SÚ» one- way of opeiuttg »>e «lni up. engaging with different audience interests, encouraging different «Vs '"' ?(!SU?,U,8 ??»W spociMis, specuue lil8l nvilv be detached from narrative requirement. H « also ai tins point that /;;,-.v-;, ;H.ai)llc, more lhan a film, n.orc th-m something to be appreciated in ,|w confines of the cinema auditorium. Through iu textual formation-its aestl.eiic of display *«d through the discourses thai circulate aroung it, 1I1.11 vaunt ami valorize it, Wsabcth becomes a tourist hraéhurc, an intervallum in the wider lK-r-ilaw culíme. The Press booklet, the official website, and various oilier promotional organs-listed all twelve >4»xť'"locations, Indudin^laddnn felalUlmvick Casilc, Hamburgh Castle, Warkworth Castle, Raby QmI-, Chillihghnm Casilc, Durham Cathedral, and York Minster, giving details of their history, their architecture, and bow they were used in the- iilm."" Perhaps this d« x suggest a gradual change in the secondary discourses that circulate around heritage films,.. shift from seeing costume dramas, historical film*, and quality: library adaptations in terms of a culturally refined, object venerating museum aesthi i í« U wing them in more populist terms through tbc discourses and pra. 11. .. itage travel and cultural tourism. (\Scen the film?' asks lbe Daily Mail. 'Mow ■• iwi the location ... jandl relive the movie*.""5) Al the same lime, there is Slilj a cicaj Sense in which heritage materials become the focus of secondary discourses in lite promotion and reception of the film. And as we've seen this discourse was already being mobilized around the much more culturally refined Honiinh Hiiil: The discourse of hcri|agc tourism; the presentation pí Bkubath as heritage showcase, is foregrounded in two lull-page articles in British newspapers; bothol which were ureanbwd around UlizabdHs spectacular historical attractions, Hie Daily Mail devoted a page to situating the lli-.ibeih experience historically tkig-Z9), Alongside a long article on the making of the (ihn, the Mi«7 presented leadeis with a tour guide to the twelve period' locations. Under the headline.'Heel hisloiy. How you can visit the historic locations used in lil'mibidN, the article idciitilie« !'(■<■-. Iinin (..mK Hi KnltV, ütWi'^-ii, 'All the Qu«.'»»! I .ill..' ľ... ' S«' CfrlllC ľfCt!lk>UMfl.iiM,4náAll"*i)ľ,'|;IÍ7i.l1)Cl|, ľ,.-,;. L'iitiediifJ dijipfng.flnilicyUwaJieill'-ficlli at ihf Uriifcli filr»-ftisiüuic S;iiicii.il IjIx'O- ' Aímiti '■■■■ :;.,... ,each p'^u J1I1U B',vc -3í";T '" '".'w M,KM»aw«ns could he vj ■ i each pia1--- "•-• t........ ■ "*««»»í»st)««m ncyisuM 0**?V,* numb«.'" The ar» was lüns.ratcd wi.h v ,. .,„;-'; ?• (he locatsons an«! glossy postcard linages of Bamlmŕgh t^tle md ' ■..iv.ii-l- ' i rXt^ il1 lllC 7hn"" t"ť" pdfhai» ":n"- Preciselľ' ,!"-' «^irog^oim: ','■,; . ius; ŕrito:;l,rti,,-ruany films lO be made in Nonhuinbria. The ÜramaUc castle* and ' I !llfS' ■ rd to l,o;!,; cctllurícs of keeping marauding Scott at bay has i,f, a f' !hL filni industty,' The article was illustrated with á huge half-.iilth«11^ . (ogriipli of Warkworih Castle seen across a lake ant] greenery ..' ■"lourJ. . iiriiish Tourist Aullm rity;-. it u anspires that the lo,,:if,,s have a lei»"101"' (ls locations: 'Shakespeare, as well as Shckhnr Kaptir, knew Wark-ľ J,' . ,: as one of the sellings in Henry IV, IVirl i, describing It as"ihis ^Siín hold of ragged stent >|i which gels into ;ill the films.The splendid ... ndi.wílhlhe.com* yiihti."!1'11"' b .uj|is j!tc,[,ij!,|,; hi location managers,and has it'i rfi i fviiii/wc, fiiiJ PWCCMlf'V. 7C| f iff ofli'ii PllWttlg* Derek larmun made his acclaimed .film TÍiP?Lv)ipť!f ipflf"'' "..j',-,1 starring Gljarfton (lesion, bas a shot of Bambui le Inside the :'"'lt»■' '• �108 06 53 Etujifh Umtose. ««F«" tmcmn é*' reel history U ■■. fj ■■ fllm.rtou uile': a full page'heritage mumm »pec (.•vcnlbcfv more polilcadn|)iaüoi«orihü work iifJaiicAuslcn. í M. lwstcr,.Öscai Wilde, Henry James, arid J-vclvn Waugli used hcrlM» Do»-«:, mailers ol class, gendery and ethnic oppression were explored and UlwH Kxual liaisons look place in heritage settings. Al tlie level of llic narrative. i1k' national pasi was almost alwaysdepi'i i i (roublcd, will» inheritance ■""' utoV i even dies a *£ of medieval death t>hcri"li' lUac^d with a sword by Charles Wiio OX! mavetn li 91I rtoLwUhsiandin». ihcic is no denying ihat the move further ba tf h #*!»*!LPK/:»iř/ťí/i—'íul -,u" '" "l",|"jr Working Title filmi j'i,mr,.ri 1(I|(/ *'■'-'i'^',n ' sfroin genteel drawing-rooms tq vast «one '" . nlorc overil) threatening passions don be played out. In effe ^^"'''"Luresque landscapes mid building* of so many other English Z ;ui'l'1,il-' r .avc been reworked according to the aesthetics of the sub ""hifi in scale from ihc rclaiiveinjimacy wing-room I .1. tiř*s. lt[C 0f ihc caSlle. In pari, it is a question of sěňsifeilíty, the rc-^n, of iht-' Citrlic-i films replaced by the (error and aslon-.v//,'s sublime imagery, As the English costume drama ^eiiloi'!''' jjK. )intf nand and retreats towards medievalism on the other, her-':l"': ^dVconies a far more dangerous space in inhabit. But that has by no ,1 prance to the tourist industry; for all its differ from earlier i" Vliztilieih was still taken iip within the same discourse of heritage o'sn»' j -j ,554— s») Si 1 '■ ' DONALD S, THEN MQ Dli UNITY, 1 ■ iní Kiíľiu:) \ h'»m 61 histo-mK iqg . iíiitage industry repacka; ({.The same impulse— to re .■■nil ol what one ol tin pii laracler*. Their view was lli.il crnaAidieiice. (Apparently t1 American distributors I . . identity meant thai the in rn-day consumers and partiemi« history—lay behind the 1 ■'.■;.'■' 111I .1 hislor-. had 50 much potential tur a 1 originally tided'Elizabeth I". ie tin film seem moro datcd'.M11 This .-■ were nót overly concerned to.cstab-■:■ n urative. There IS f»0 ínser- lorical accuracy during the unfi ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ if dates as new developnien foi instance, and ill any case logical time is quite rail it»I in the lilm. Although (cil probably cover about twi 1 ol official hi there is lilt!» en* nepassing'in this manner; Ľli/al ielľhardlyseemstoagc;furinsui <"* Nm thus often glosses over the U k j.s ihey are accepted by most historians, producers and distributors ol" the film made Utile oflwt i" suggest other-Wr approach is neatlv summ.11 Ucd in one of ihc taglines used in public-ic film: Porgct About Pulp lotion Anyone For A Slice Of Pulp I'-'Ct 'Ji«betli'(i '"»Hicofi-KinlwcÜiiu StUV.M, ,.„.„., , ...... ■Vi hi iti S. 65 Hus is .1 clever promotional gambit, given its reference lo one ol ill about and influential cult Ulms of the 19yi)s, us frank a< populisl md its play on ihc relation between fad ,11 ihc publislu crceoplaj was presented us 'a masterly weaving 0| fiction Ycl ai ihc same time this ha historical lilm and h is presented assiiehii allowed to l>tcomeä fetish;Ťheiitli ningaiideii tablish dates and facts m actual historical personages, chronology ma) be condensed but iľ! slili in broad terms maintained^ and costume and p i I ■■. n design (!ii mhelacedl authenticity. The historical d ■ .,-■ , fUrihci im ■ ■■ ihc film, which . ■:■ ral| ig • ol ptoj round to ihc film, covering tht period f p fHenry Villi cirlam« imilar parade of historii il could, bt found on tli the'tarot cards'distributed by the.Anieri it's ill ibout givinv badegn ui ■-■■■ '^■■■^ nCi ■'' mc t'1'"'1 -",j "' hisi nsiderablc debate; it.will, I ho| to examine the terms of thii co debate in his intra I • ■ Many« ,- \<: based on hfsi - '■ lCl'<|l11' ",:; Ol CO':: . ' ■ ' '■■<■'"' ■ hui th< t material, a kro ■ ■ ■ . jranuu What' ,i ' ■ ;i-'- '; »ihn dramali rrauVevbut is not the narrative i natisrwrftii ■ trade papers, and ll qiiirementsol iking tl aiiön of hjstoi ■ ■•":■ docs, not constitute J problem: 'The life of i ' r',m lory congesting tlv dram*. H : ricflyntheni iis the important tl ream ™d*n« torical vhkh can gel in the rvayol ■! nheart', «ih Prso ■ . ■. ■ ■ ■■ ,. . ■ . omthenatioi ■ na. Th< ■ ■ ..... . ■ ■ ive hi&ton ■ • I it is hard to : ttthei word ..: the \\c film far níal cast and crev . from the pri&Gn o| hisl ■ '"íl r.lThCT ■"■■■ " ' ■ : ■ ■-■:: ■ ' ■ - . . . ■ ■■.-.■. ■ ■-,,. «d inthe] mes of Glcnda ,u ■ '■ to vyafih It -. He . .. ... >$iiggChleilihdUhcdchievcmcn(oťEfíäil ■ ■■■ fin ling hand mor* il reaiing .1 new niask in the light of comeniporat í mores and 1 «tod movies inevitably reflect more on the period, in which they're lion',; V>*itmfo «nimiimeni i" «not» ird 1111 \,ii: 1 ■. I - - 1 tO, -ItVlfl-l. vilturV HiJoi I .ílľ<„hjť.i. mul i.»K-lv h.iN Ui.*i l;tť( l»ťť., ,n, »b with; * n*M ■■: . I ,rf^nUHl m that generation ill «ray» that a« meaningful i0 ,, ,hli rf.Ihmughil»%wiflUscii««iaUfim|H!iwh«tion»(,řihřllllw nbhonj«d.BciicDBW*i»i!w-.IWtt .1.ll.:,1Kl,l..vkM,nllM|HMl. ;í71.Vlih,Uu^:n:!1,!-^lv'í,J«.1);o,.,.ull.Hl,!,r.,!ll-.. ,,,,.. „ ; ■'' • |si, dnfWi atwjys mih something apposite lo say in hex own «,«„.■ ,.,,„„ ,,,;, could he seen by J sympathetic liUiori,,, ,„, .. h, lu.th iruc and Hmoty" ' Mu- liiuchncss >vas twofold: »n n,e ,. ; ;,u,<( ,jlc .,1m chimed with the (hen-current post-rcininbi discourse «r BJll ijs . 0II ,1m other hand, several commentator* saw echoes ol anothci u«f0|j. ,tivc about the private life of >i powerful public figure, sloce fifaMi W(l„ laiions aboul President Clinton's sexual transgressions seemed "2 ' ii to bring him do .JlOW.COuUl : -iu«;,„,!lril| ;3» „„.„.. . i «oryiclle. workingal ihe end ol themillenniumand nm emergen«! .^j allegorical blend «Í sex ■ ,m and melodrama? S. i n historian* may Iraye, a virgin. Drihat*be.atte^dcBencsihc benefit til ihťdoiibi Hut ibi* i* no« the Golden Age, or even n perioďol pohled) dim i we cm unup a silting president, w< ■ r a dead queen c& All niN'fJOVI INC THE FICTION Hf>w does the film's modernity accord with the discourse of authenticity? ün the one hand, .;n authentic representation of the national past is surely at odds with ijnodernized pastiche, t m the other hand, an aulhcntu representation is still pn? ^H v thai: nothing mote than a representation.'What ; ' ■ 11 ■ii.iilitudinoiri y;J in such representations is often the conventional; thai isto say, il is ol ten designed lo reproduce a familiar version of ihe past, lomatchaudieno ationsralhcr than scholarly rigour, toadhcre to a prc-conslructpd vision-Thecodvsol authenticity, ihc conventions for establishing a realistic representation ol the past, are not fixed in stone ln:t are subject to change- In this sense, a period film will tell us something about both the period represented and ihc period in which Ihc film is made, in this sense, too, it is possible for lilizabcth to seem both true' afid'timcly'.both authentic and modern.1*. A more commoh view is thai period authenticity and modernity are at odds with each other, Mjlhtwi/A I'cidctul Quicn Cuiiioibi CWne". from websi.e. UwRI'SlMtccy/'niv' Drama CJ ■ ľimrf, icciiun -* «• ,: ■■•'■■-■ I l»| ■ I. ,■■ :,.:■,. ■ ■■■■ I'iir.-l.-rT.! -1. . uiiť. from wbMtC. ir Kapur, qu«ied in Charily, 'Virgin lift n I iiiccii t uis'tp.ihc< . rum websiw. ' '-■ ' ' ' ihe, cialwi'bMtc, ., . , FAhnciMcmaKc-vi* arii», quoted In -Iteacilk:! Cuv«r.'Benl»nii Mold the Pwpcj Pench ?m* "fr-WM«iliiit.,.IiVurici\'.coin{i2Mar, iv<>9* ^■«''íoriMyi-Jíľoabeih'foi iho Ago", from wxbsite. ' u»l« fit for a -Celluloid Quec 933768 IS J>i,vMi lit ■■''h Lin,/ pi,; :.!■;■: ,. -.-.■„■.■ nc i-bv. ami evVU thl!cas«ťs ll.ul u» ,'IHB» j,,,,,., . ■ , AlnWÍŕlí t .isllc m.lMUK'ihUiiy. .is M,,.. (,f | ,.,,....'.,- " ; *j l'"" «I hold nr ■» i- alsti the pi.mlem »f n,.,i i,, ,.. I.i,|'^ :i ÍJ' ;; liw.iiions wjih scenes in |>e uhol at &h»?|>p.ertmi SluJio»i.'()n iW«. ^! lo bt one cohesive tvhnfc. lb achieve this, Myhre and in. .,,[.: ' ' " ■ created sculptural elements and l"\\': curved wall piece-.« which \.Vi ■ „, '''' inio h. vere used lo enlunrc Uw production design ..hi,, ,;. nmhei' und ideiit to which the pasi '•■..:-. retreated in iilizuln t) km (he extent, io w',. . itj •...»• achieved through illusion i i■■-.-. ■■'■■ ■■■■.■:■■ J hosiers are «old on fhevi!>ibilii\ ul their speciuUlVci:t? is one of their main iUiactions, Pyr; a rsci'tot! i tizabeth, it was i t'Wr special effects which -veje required, since the) 'allow filmmakers loachieve i pi*«Jiictioii less money"* »me time noi öVnwine attention to the means by which the . tUizubah is a good example oi the use of invisible effects tö enhaöo: the nai i .live and the [pcříodl wtting ri»iter than asa hasls'tor the irtovií i special cfTectsc,ompaiíyiMcil in WhiteO iqiics-su&tfs.tôjvvd replication and tv aisíWMl-ttirogoslKWfcJcre« row»! ,ccnes by shoot ing much smaller crowds ii: díJ'f< renlpo ling mem togethcr.al in« post-prod u ciio r| stage; Tor the coronation ■ i ''»'^'i Men'" VVŤiiltí ('.»laispuiinla-.ers.iveroriginal foougf.adiliii;;. >t;i ■; : ■ additional Sunlight, raised scaling Hers and removing a nt .....ruing a sparsejyi>o|Uj- lated York Cathedral into a fulMo-bursling v. lei Abbey'.'" One "»' ť* v.r.- in which the.} created these effects was through Domino, a Quantel pincr software package providing cr< :oi»posiling for films. A full-page advertisement in ä British trade publicatiojn celebrated the way in Which. tJoimiW had been used 'to recreate this bygone age .;. The result is a movie o\ louncii* style and dramatic impact, brii [in 0 lift ihc queen's coronation- «t-.Piev battles, and royal pageants-*!! with stunning uulhenlidiy. And iliiniiuWu, Doiiuno i^. transparent, etihaiicing production values and building .m «-I story -' M( I ■!."" aMkjniW,nCťlluluHlQuccn"7, ,...,,: ,-;,:-,,.:, \m '.M,,, ,|l|l|l (lO'ldal ■.r'.-lO; -.ll-l IH lIlC '■ *• -■ . ' An.jn..'Siayí|tB/SIÍMÍ*'wmíiiiíriiiHWfw/i2.iy ■ ■"" 'N''" "'w" ':■■'.'■ I Ii .,■ -ífV. Unuiifnitf ('><>(l. ľ.'j' &1 iUpplcme«l.'!»i lying Alivi' .'■■. ruinn. Men iik While CqAis' ■!■"■ ■ «I* tnimnicson «lisplaj ľli/abeiívwiihíi i ■ :;-w.nt:n; ' Authŕlilicity an past would have look< ih a narrative spuccainlahiito/ical Mcml ol narrative requin . i- ul and period look <4fi fj.e wen in-Jhä'ifc '■'■ of the coilumeslbr the fiJm.bm tb.il blend also ífěáťccl L ofauthenlicíly 0:ig. l<>!. q0 the one haiiU, CüStiuhe design ilM 8vmv «anted io a-seateli the period thoroughly; on tile btliei haiid,.'evcty lime I ■ teatliiig a reference book . . Mieklur would tell met» .!•■■ i -: Qwajisc he didn't warn u, to be lied to the Ucx ,uul realil l-,ll,; "■ ' >rch was important, however: "1 felt that I needa! lo iiiiöally make the apdi- ■ -I wfe in a world thev ^núá be ex^cting from a periód nitu. I authenticity in il„s sense is thus pieciselj afcont r^i./.tur.cihc l.u»ii..it. «mwniionaliy, Living to meet audience expectations. For the ' ' ^«'Ccinenu.tbctíeconvxMdiomandexp^lationsltadioalloKsp^ "« nqúiicfncms to l>c fulfilled. 'I ims VUh ( ;jim ' Nenchctt! J '' wW'nilcar codes to what m were doins'. ^e «xp ....-■•: « ^'''M !KcW'»e starts ]DW lUKi ^„dually closes up and op- «wik«W iconlook'"1 ■MťXrtiidrn Hyi ne. »Iv««»''! ľii oííK*oJ 2465 92 1 : rii<í*swi»1 k iv.is m som« ways omvnuniMi. aiut .Iclihn.m-lv sn. in .mm „„omvcn.uma, - Uhu oí 'Ins P-rtícuř* pcnod bad no* Wen don, lo, . r/^;;,o^wlun,on1r,-^uunHl,p;,.odMnMľH'M..n,ln^ Lupina^^yor.loU.Bi tewflh theduncc oHocaltons,ik by doing a loi ol reading and looking u painting* Irvine lo understand ihc period enough so üml I can then nlinosi slop looking ji it, 1 iricd to ^ out wbal mm the T-shirt and jean«' ol Elizabethan limes—wluil they would luve worn when Ihcv wcren'i formally dressed hut wire formal enough to nicei and coplc. Us that kmd ol tiling 1 really 11 (Hiking the cloth«, I (tore « no refer- rnrt for it. S'i> one is p in ílwť* wrong.' Providing you can erealff a world lhai is believable, um can be much mote theatrical within thai world, and make a stslcmenl about the character without btfng distracting. Tbc bid [or authenticity conies through very strongly, but so does the desire to make Üie costumes narratively and themaiieally functional. Unfortunately fur Byrne, there were some prepared to say 'That's wrong" Costume expert Belly Goodwin, for instance, complained about (lie lack of historical accurac) in an artlclcoiicostumcsin the U Times,arguing that onh/lhe gold brocade dress from Ihc coronation scene approaches authenticity, that no white gown was ever worn by Elizabeth, regardless of what the final scene shows, and thai ihc curved co i worn by women in tlie film did not become standard until three centuries later— true Elizabethan corsets were ruler straight.2*5 The question is, did such details detract from the belicvability of the world created by the film? For Goodwin, clearly they did. For riiost audiences, thai is unlikely to be ihc case: there is enough in the costumes that meets the expectations ol most audiences about the details of period dross. Still, the tension between historical accuracy and a modern approach was dearly fell in the production of the film and, fór all her own back ground research, Byrne could still remark lhal 'all the actors were very hooked into (he research they were doing on their characters. They would come in with all this academic research, which I had to gradually unbutton, as it were.''" It was important not to undo too many buttons, since the film-makers bad decided to use certain standard historical references; 'we knew there were moments of portraiture thai we were going to achieve, like the Coronation and the Icon, so Um.e weľC landmarks'." The use of painiings fa's historical reference - ■ o» oifirial website, Br'«-^ouídonoffKÍ3|Wd.siienndmP,eíoTÍ;klci Ibid, ... . ...,-,....i,,v!.,, ,,i nim a slrongSense of art-hist I ^principle underlines ihc extent to which 12 ysenu.r!i enjojNsd the way in which the bulk oi ihc film broke whWwľ °""' film through filmic eves: 'only at the end duos she reinvent he J ■ ' llUe, forbidding figurehead . . we're familiar, with from Ucrľ SdÄ Robson or Belíc Davis'.'The b,i/ahe.h I we usually sceincngrav n „be later Mh the one who had locked hLlfl^S never let the facade chip. (Think Helle Davis in The PrmWe IJmýWáfoth ml B-.xp'" I he use ol such familiar historical reference points is a way örjftuaiini the film's audiences, though sonic found this superficial and preferred the neverení side of Elizabeth; 'Occasionally Kapur seems to fall back on research in orcVi to reassert the historical basis of the slory, simplijtícally using famous portraits and miniatures as the basis lor costumes and compositions___But much of the lime he approaches his subject with fresh eyes, and gives the film a dynamism tooled in difference.' The mix of the familiar and the different caused more upset with the with several commentators bemoaning lbe mix of authentic sixlecnib « music (Thomas Tajlis, William Byrd, Tielman Susauft:wfth music from later RCriods; the use of'some misplaced Mozarl (wrong century, I think}' was'very Unfortunate'; and while some found the tiseo/Elgar'ínspircď.Oihc Vum' al best;'hopelessly inappropriate' at worst.1* r'cw however commented on 'lie music specially wrilten for the film by David Hirschfelder, ihoughow mušte* connoisseur thought it 'a pastiche of a pnsliche, with all the h.mK-rmy dullness "' »nwnjf had period costume diamas of the past'.* The eto m« <* "»*'* Mel »ild ! Pw further discussion uf this iww. ** "-«ten. ^'"J S '""mic, Taking taborii^^ 1 B«ni lcd».-j-, liriiijh HbiofMil <■<<""»« ,ll,,:Jo" ,!l P «« e.g. Walker, 'litiff lustlCP ■' - ■■ ■ ' '•.....<*A»K< tilkcr.'Unfi' lusticc'i -ľ- , ii-Kiš'fioi /"■"l-li/ah.-lli'. 48/ 'rity; 'Virgin Recwdŕ.iSl Bernard, 'EliaMii. «*«> *■ a| »"'li.'Kliwbeth: ,8, ,„j.« iniftnfi ■»»* '™ľ V»""'"--"«). posted.....MDb.com.^Oa^i^*1»^ "" m IH:,it>cth\ IA Tí........IW ,<>.».* fmliinKÍ '^"t.'iiii^ditcď; l<»)*"' SS *««-*" ",iil","c,m",,;,",ll"ii,J"1111 ,1......Hh.n!Nn..Uou,,^h^uK.l.iinhcm.ulv.c..hcr,„,,, ...,,,.- ,tíSiraĽlslroMu.mopr.Mclypvr.od.»nuSlc, rhi irreverence :, lia^Ufnid-*(^for[wihm|wpih*ccniurytiH.SK*nü muricŕifM^rumlFJ^r^iwd«ppn»priaift|hcu h , outd bo iiKttufed. Siu'h music i^yihw signify mear^tti^.«iŕdo*sicaliiind í„ ■, jicih-m! sense; il may also Signify bpih Hie regal (Mo/art) .ml the i M i R-s or pop iiistokv: CREAl INC A Mt» KAI. PANIC reverent 'rein vein ion ofhistory', meant 'an Oliver Stone-like stance -. ind 'gaping hist0ric.1l errors' then il was, tit the very least, 'unhkclv to please historians or historical purists'. This waá"historical dran anyone whose idea of histon is back issues ol Vogue'. Bui even non-historians were advised to 'dose youi eyes when" (he last scene fades; to ktyov. what Lizzie leceni textbook'^'.The right- wing press were not slow 10 respond1, lo the question of historical inaccuracies, but also to whal 1 - ucti) unpatriotic behaviour,cspcííally the depiclion.oi l-Iizabeth I, national irgin Queen, engaging in .1 passionate sexual relationship. Both (lie Onily iuiuttty wem mil ol their way to brand the him con- nerale í moral panic. In a piece on liic news pages rather than the ud some monlhs before ilic lilm was released, blued 'Film changes sexual history of Elizabeth !, the Virgin Queen. The reporter explained thai * 1 he reputation of Kli/abeth 1 as the Virgin Queen is called Into question by a new ... lilm depicting her life, to the chagrin ol many .. .That [Kapurl hasnow seen fitio lampeiwiili linglish historj down badl) with some eminent british historians.' I>r Simon Adams, 'a šenku Iccturei at Sir.nhclyi.k- University and an expcrl on the 'ftido tthe'l eatn ■ ol Elizabeth I'j sexualantics there is no doubí antone serious historians thai Elizabeth i died he problem was that 'many popular mwsgavc the impression ol being historically accurate, ""nun is why they arc so dangerous"'."' The struggle was continued by the paper in m\ editorial commcM on the same .,K,']..ltsl. šUlasbn.-AiuourindlIiehDiiJiieoiuiiaOsileofOiw ■' i_-.FI «h*, an . li/.itKih i, nv virgin 1 -.1 ftfismpM ■Yi' SÄŽSt^.......,;'js:-r^,a ;;^clh,„ KngUshmcn was Imbued ,,,,, a ».S** J** !ltl,ťaiK.vH^nUy.1simKlslul,nc,1,h<- film ihc MM found a díňeicnt, um« positive interpretation nf tľu; rhr iilmuv«Ídťb«ť.inin8 ■ '......»■ W| Ws mo^'° '"' '!'* <,:,',l'nl •"' WmciIw. 0,„ it ihai the owl divWbn ol n rulert life between public and pnvaw h on linpra ^v, lak« precedence, whether »ne lik» n »i not. ll»% „ a leswu, vnunan mcmlwsol oni Royal femttfei*nd tiuac whu feci colled to high government. „,.iy do uvil ,o ponder li htw clearly conic im laic fór: Presidimi Clinton; Here, apparently, was .1 film dial could speak 10 ihe greai and the good, and tu .ill thinking people ITlis seems o risky line tot the /Wy Mm/ to have taken, given die danger s.igps m) many others li.nl fell it necessary to erect in order lo warn audiences of what was in store lor [hcrft. In fact, there were sonn- danger signs: the film'will irritate some historians'; it was 'certainly no masterpiece und noi to be token altogether seriously as hisiory'; it was marked by 'occasional c (1i taste ^ imprecision in story-telling;; and it 'plny|cd| fast and loose with chronology, compressing events thai took years to unfold*. The overall tone, however, was that Elisabeth was to be welcomed, 1h.1t it remained 'commoudably true to the spirit of iis heroine, and indeed thai it could be used as an obje :t lesson lor the British lilm industry as a whole: iii(thigh4imcirut:otii film industry made more movies about »riiain's heroes. Ii Lvridii 11 louuilm only in wartime do the Brltishproduce films about iheir grcal comma nders.'sucli u SeliOn, when die French and Americans make film aft« film about their national.herocs, VVhj are there no halfway decent pictures about such fascinating figures iii Welliiiglon or Sir Fronds Drake! Feminism, pacifism, Marxism and just plain cynicism have .ill con-11 ihuicd lo Itriiish filmmakers" habit o[ heckling our heroes, or .simply ignoi inj: 1 hem . - - llic liilc of this article "loni», for heroine addicts'—suggests ii .should be seen in part as a riposte to the success of Trainspotting. On ihe one hand, tUizähctli is a film which will appeal to those who want lo see theirnation.il heroines depicted nn the screen. On the other hand, it is the perfect antidote for a country thai first produces a film about heroin addiction (JtaiiispoUiug)., then allows d lo become one oÉíls biggest ever box-office successes. Ii seems almost perverse that the Unity Mail should both advance such an interpretation of Elizabeth, and ose lhal inler-preiiition for such old-fashioned, patriotic ends. F01 cultural historians of a «lil fcrenl persuasion, it was the film's old-fashioned qualities, and its attachment 10 well-trodden myth which were its downfall, For such commentators, the flint did mil do enough by way of developing a revisionist historical perspective.'This film's queen is predictably and uninterestingly "normal"; suggested one critic; it the writers had ituck to it. and been willing l(, s)fi the sources crealívelyi they might have come out with .i genuinely modern psycliodrama... An emotionally damaged young queen, datiglnci of .1 psychopath, who had suffered sexual abuse-and was herself strongly »uspected ol toiupliehy in murder, would have nude a far more intcrcsiing heroine for lodný../*" «MiIones.'ŠvlvIlich.Cŕ.ílŕmHing'l so.vn , iii]|miMhynow|)eele!Uid1a.,irM,nuM1);lml,|j,/,í(,(;i l'adusilu,..... B*H, ..l... fliM'/u.W.«'/ WnAUu, ........ ,, '"' '" "* CmnnUi... -TN -nul .1 dehKiU.ulty so. That a pro^1Vc | . of the film u.HniTO,lnglyimnildi,1(| p'>.i!.w,, iilllin,on.pcaledl-n,h,hnessA » AbJ.^^^****^ the film >nd to ihe way „ wtaefc meaning „,„, i^**** lHAWecn reader and text. What this study of ,|K. crirK" | ' "' " MWŮ|s is ihe extent lo which any film is 0pcn ,„ a|{c ' ;"P"°" of' An l0 w|iich a text is .1 contested terrain. r«dingj, „!ť CMCTtl The discourses circulating around the film providc -a scries of mutes into, through, and away font the film ul , ""'^ brochure; upmarket historical drama wiih an artistic h*nr'*' coat par: conspiracy thriller for the hoys; cosUmiC romance for the Bi,k"?,T! l"1" Wnr/toto/i constdun,, ,hc«me time an in^K^ and a selling-poml, an audience engaged with the film am|, in,, revenue, lo some extent the lilm has to be open to alternative ,<,Kli4 tab, able to appease different audience interests, 10 lie accessible in díiTcřcnt m The details of the production and marketing of the film confirm the extent i0 which these diffcreiil versions of the lilm »ere explicitly encouraged to responsible for the success of the film, in their efforts to create a mid-bitducl crossover film. Their goal was to produce n film thai could appeaíto thecon Haue cinema audience while at the same time attracting new audiences. So is it still appropriate in label Elizabeth a heritage lilm? Labelling a j key means of containing the polysemy of a text—though it can .: the text up lo other interpretations. In this case, to label Eliaikth ,1 hcrtt 1 is both to limit our understanding of the way Ihe film operates, ami to offa explanation about how the film works, as a lext, but label limits our understanding of Bisabeth since there are c-thci ways in -.duch the film can be taken up which do not situate i. as a part of the heritage industry 0. link it to heritage discourses. The reading of the film in terms ol gal |»w« » perhaps (he mos« obvious example. That is not l" deny that the M«*"«* adaptations ofli.M. Forste, or fill» vcrsionsof Jane Austen aboha«; u , P'otag0niSlSl w work on a romantic level, or appeal lo tak ^^ «knowledge simply thai the heritage label ío^é .^ ^ ÍĽí;rÄlm>l 1. It drawsatWiwon.lotnflW ,0'f«indt.slry;t;ilKongoing'lascina.innwilh^ ?vilhcmicityi and to discourses ol national identity > ^ 0cl Joes no, exhaust the meanirigrultiess Ol the '^v/^^^^iaacHh) context of a debate about heritage does however help u iclllil)nshiľ (o .1 fsP«tofthcappéalofthemm.lidrawsaltctinp^ uéetlľs eclecticism, its hybridizing o{ l'lť,,lťn,s »' Uimdli..g.qiioicílín'l'llíw,-i 82 61 96 00 15 09 4 Conclusion ., the Ii»ic of writing, a new Ľnglísl, herita ř fi]. . j,,,M pff.CC i., bolh Ihc USA and the UK.The flirt S J^ bltfmt« „ ii|]J.1l,o:iHcwcokcnJp,.ly.:,M;!,nljcolin|rytio^i^^1v;,, ^ ^tiheJaÄor*rJOTcratfcEn^ Krvanls as we sec of the hosts and gUCSlS( i\\ÚY/h ^ f. «wmwu JInv,oi ;1Lľ,vccn the different classes, if we are looking foi m !fl ;,. .'ľ £ôútd suřdy coventrate on the narrative that lai^mf? ***** McC0rdlc> owner of the country estate and host «ľlhc hnrVľ" t """k" fliai >'c '"d sevení>i,m,i,s with wwfciris-ífo» girU ttho w^ jľľ ftns ou! m of whom «"t- now on the siafí at his estate, One of these álľalri n "' »n, who turns up at the house parly as valet to britf oi the guesis' rheL '' ently murder, the lather, although in fact his mother, now Sit WuliWs ■ keeper, has already poisoned him. ilut there arc many other little narratives circling around this one, and , tÜcgreat attractions of the film is its huge number of protagonists, itseiioroious ensemble cast of mainly British thespiiins, including such heritage film "smí-, r ,is Kristin Scott Th'ojniisi James Wilby,MaggieSmiibvandjeremj Noilhani! I .:.:■■ ate imuiy other familiar ingredients of the heritage film loo: the narrative ««la-lions about Ihc seedy underside lo the aristocratic vcdwií the. jeňse ofťLisí exploiialiooj 'hi- ti . j ssivc, cross-class Sexual relationships; the ennui and eccentricity of the financially troubled upper classes; aristocratic concerns aboul society intei u ipers Americans, media types/new money'; and so nn.afetrátiveíy, England is in Ilux. Visually, though, it looks splendid, even if the country is only ever seen in bad weather. The heritage iconography is all in place, llie dres inioľihcsetswídihe.eostumesofrh^ 'heir costumes, and the production design. . - II should come as no surprise lo le;»n thai .he film won lUhfAAwo ^ ■* MliiÜh Film and Res, CWUllK V*& '»«' * "'"^^ 5 Barlamlcd wj,h prestigious nominations and prtfes;.mlllltl^ " ]s |hi . bfJth sides of the Atlantic. There is nomine. ^b^'"*^ifi»fitai-iiate *«£ new in Ihc fact Hut. the film »8^**^^ ^tAltiron-.wíioac-pro^^ !,K'll^ol^|,cfKTUuVmm.OiKTj.iaiu.a"''i---:>,-t'u;;.jliSii. itruihjessl) ;"1 «uilicntic version of the lingfish national chartficf a - ^ fl!)11 too. J^c is much that is familiar about the «'5,^ ^ 9" """f **film was in pa,. financed by letter.money,m*J»«^nKl„„lrťJ1„6M* 1 ,c««cre Fund, set up to itippoi t rW#* «»'«l,crtW" 4 80 19962972 96