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Elizabethizing
May. 15th, 2009 10:03 amDave and I have been watching movies/miniseries on the life/times of Elizabeth I. Since Dave is practically allergic to ordinary television programming (in this house, we have never had cable, and there's no reception otherwise), it is a rare and special treat to find something we can watch together.
We began with the Glenda Jackson miniseries, and have just finished the Helen Mirren version. "Shipping Today" from Netflix is THE PRIVATE LIVES OF ELIZABETH AND ESSEX, with Bette Davis and Errol Flynn (1939), which should provide an interesting contrast. Helen Mirren's Essex was played by Hugh Dancy (of DANIEL DERONDA and THE JANE AUSTEN BOOK CLUB). After that, a 2-parter with Cate Blanchett, a 2005 Masterpiece Theater version with Ann-Marie Duff and also HENRY VIII with Ray Winstone (remember him as Will Scarlett in ROBIN OF SHERWOOD?), Helena Bonham Carter and a bunch of other cool people.
It's fascinating to see how different writers/directors/actors can look at the same set of historical records and come up with such different interpretations. Also to see what points they do agree on.
We began with the Glenda Jackson miniseries, and have just finished the Helen Mirren version. "Shipping Today" from Netflix is THE PRIVATE LIVES OF ELIZABETH AND ESSEX, with Bette Davis and Errol Flynn (1939), which should provide an interesting contrast. Helen Mirren's Essex was played by Hugh Dancy (of DANIEL DERONDA and THE JANE AUSTEN BOOK CLUB). After that, a 2-parter with Cate Blanchett, a 2005 Masterpiece Theater version with Ann-Marie Duff and also HENRY VIII with Ray Winstone (remember him as Will Scarlett in ROBIN OF SHERWOOD?), Helena Bonham Carter and a bunch of other cool people.
It's fascinating to see how different writers/directors/actors can look at the same set of historical records and come up with such different interpretations. Also to see what points they do agree on.
