Fairly good overall, but inferior to other recent dramas of the Tudor era such as Henry VIII, Elizabeth (1998), Gunpowder Treason and Plot in that there is recourse to melodrama - a hint of a cult of personality that is absent from e.g. the 1998 production. Unfortunately this tinge of melodrama brings an overall feel of shallowness to the production which might otherwise not be there. At the same time one cannot fail to note that characters other than Elizabeth's are underdeveloped compared to the 1998 film, especially Walshingham's, which appears in both works. Well worth a watch but a little disappointing. Blanchett's Elizabeth is the recommended choice over Mirren's.
Review of Elizabeth I
