HD DVD Review: Elizabeth, The Golden Age

THE MOVIE: 3 3/4 stars out of 5

In Elizabeth The Golden Age, Kate Blanchett reprises her role from Elizabeth released several years ago along with the great Geoffrey Rush as her counselor and protector. The new film adds Clive Owen as Sir Walter Raleigh and finds Elizabeth and her reign threatened by an assassination plot involving her cousin Mary Queen of Scots who she has imprisoned and an impending invasion by King Philip of Spain. While I enjoyed the performances all of the aforementioned actors, this film is not quite up to the level of its predecessor, lacking the drama, intensity, suspense and darkness of this first film.

THE VIDEO: 4 stars out of 5

Encoded with VC-1 and presented in its original aspect ratio of 1:85:1, I must say that I was somewhat disappointed with the video presentation on this release. The biggest complaint that I had was with the black level which was not black at all but rather a golden whitish color. The lack of a true black robbed the image of depth and I thought obscured shadow detail. It was quite jarring for me to see some of the shadows in the castle have this odd color. I am sure it was the intent of the director and was tied in to the fact that the title of the film was Elizabeth The Golden Age. Nevertheless I could have done without it and would have preferred the more natural look of the first film. Other than this complaint, the rest of the video presentation was excellent.

THE AUDIO: 4 3/4 stars out of 5

Presented in Dolby True HD, this film sounded wonderful. The overall sound quality of the film was open, smooth and dynamic. Dialogue was spot on and always intelligible and captured the spacious surrounding including the subtle echo of voices in very large rooms. The sound field is very immersive, making one feel as though you are in the castle and dungeons with the characters. Sound effects were also very well done. The sound of the blade cutting through flesh and bone during the execution scene of Mary Queen of Scots sounded very realistic, enough to make one wince. The same can be said for the cannon blasts and gun shots. Bass was excellent as well with a deep room rattling sound, especially during the naval attack sequences which were very realistic and very effective. All in all, there is very little to complain about with the audio presentation on this disc. Very well done.

IN CONCLUSION

While I did have a quibble with the video presentation on this disc, the film boasts excellent audio and wonderful performances by the lead actors. While it is not up to the standards of Elizabeth, I would recommend the film for fans of that film as well as fans of Mr. Rush and Ms. Blanchett, who makes you really believe you are watching the real Queen Elizabeth.

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