Mary, Queen of Scots (1971, UK)

After I saw Anne of the Thousand Days and didn't fall in love, I didn't have high hopes for this one, which was also directed by Charles Jarrott. But it was great.

Of course Vanessa Redgrave is a wonderful actress, and I've seen her in several films, but this was the best role I've seen her in, I think. And Glenda Jackson might be my all-time favorite Queen Elizabeth. I love Cate Blanchett, and I loved Bette Davis, but Glenda Jackson's Elizabeth was the most "real" characterization. She seemed like a regular person, but grouchy and headstrong and not entirely likable. Probably how she really was. (Side note: Jackson is now an MP. How cool is that?)

I liked that this film spanned many decades of their relationship and took the opposite approach than the usual one. I wish that there could have been more of everything... But that seems to have been the trend recently.

The score was typical of all period pieces from the late 1960s and early 70s, but it was still good. And Ian Holm as a young man with black hair and beard... too strange.

So overall, this was pretty much what you would expect from a film of its type, but a bit better. If you like this kind of thing, you'll like Mary, Queen of Scots.

Rating: 4.0