Victoria, Princess of Kent, was born in 1819. She became Queen Victoria in 1837, married Albert three years later and gave her name not only to a roster of English royalty but also to a half-century, a style of living and many other things,
"The Young Victoria," a modest entertainment, stars Emily Blunt and Rupert Friend as Victoria and Albert, but true to its title, we see the wedding, but little afterward, and to be frank, Victoria was not the same person in later life. Blunt and Friend are quite good, and he shows his love for the woman who will be his superior throughout his life. He will be a guest in his own house for his entire life.
Victoria, a grand-daughter of King George III, was in the midst of royal intrigue from the time she knew the meaning of the word. Sir John Conway (an excellent Mark Strong) was a protector who helped prepare her, and Lord Melbourne (a wonderful Paul Bettany) was another key player, along with Jim Broadbent. Victoria's first cousin, King Leopold of Belgium (Thomas Kretschmann), was a key matchmaker for the German prince and the English queen, though it's obvious they were deeply in love. Miranda Richardson, as her mother, the Duchess of Kent, also is a delight in support.
But while we may know a little about the activities of Queen Victoria, the film, pleasantly written by Julian Fellowes and nicely directed by Jean-Marc Vallee, does't show enough about Victoria. Of course, most of what she did came after her ascent of the throne and the untimely death of Albert, but we need to know more about the Queen.
Opens today on multiple screens.
–Joe