I have a confession to make: I am a die-hard fan of corset flicks. Give me bonnets, horse riding, quadrilles and dialogues full of 'indeed's, 'petticoat's and 'upon my honor!'s, and I am happy as a Victorian clam! However, you can imagine that watching Pride and Prejudice for the 134th time doesn't bring as much as excitment as before. That's why I was so happy to get this week's dose of corsets from something entirely new: Jean-Marc Vallée's The Young Victoria.
This period film depicts the first eventful years of Queen Victoria (Emily Blunt)'s rule, from the young princess' ascension to the throne at 18 years old and her emancipation from her mother (Miranda Richardson) and her advisor/vilain of this piece, Sir John Conroy (Mark Strong) to her blatant favoritism of Prime Minister Lord Melbourne (Paul Bettany) and, of course, her love story with her future husband, Prince Albert (Rupert Friend).
Based on a somewhat static script by Vanity Fair and Gosford Park scribe Julian Fellowes, Québec's very own Jean-Marc Vallée delivers a piece that mirror its principal characters : restrained, but dignified. Victoria is clever, playful and outspoken and the moments she shares with Albert are especially authentic and filled with subdued passion, but on the whole, the movie feels a tad impersonal. Are we suppose to believe that all of these people were really that stuck up in private? No one hardly raises their voice or makes a sudden gesture, except for King William who throws a spectacularly embarrasing fit at Victoria's mother, but he's senile, so he doesn't count! But then again, contained emotions are a trademark of this kind of flick, though it does not excuse Vallée for not trying to make the supporting characters more relatable.
Environment-wise, The Young Victoria is filled with the stuff wannabe princesses dream about : exquisite and detailed costumes, grand palaces and gardens, fashionably ancient hairstyles, etc. As for the players, they all drip with aristocratic charm. Emily Blunt is an absolute star as the young woman working her way through Ruling an Empire 101 AND falling in love for the first time. Far from being cold and regal, Ms. Blunt's performance is engaging and will make anyone who's ever longed for the freedom of adulthood cheer for her. Rupert Friend's performance is above all genuine. Prince Albert is a mix of down-to-earth and class, but Friend's looks and manners, though always even, are consistently honest and speak as loud, if not louder, than the dialogue. As for the supporting players, the flick is packed with british star power (Richardson, Strong, Bettany, Harriet Walter, Jim Broadbent) but the intrigue doesn't allow them to really stretch their acting skills. This is clearly the Victoria-and-Albert show, no matter how hard they try to convince us otherwise. But Emily Blunt and Rupert Friend run it with such grace and charm, we can let it slide.
In the end, a good fix for any petticoat junkie, even though a wikipedia search will clearly show that Victoria and Albert weren't that pretty in real life. But seriously, who needs reality?
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