The Young Victoria is a 2009 British movie about the early life and rule of Queen Victoria and her marriage to Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Directed by Jean-Marc Vallée and written by Julian Fellowes, the film was produced by Graham King, Martin Scorsese, Sarah Ferguson, and Timothy Headington. It features actors such as Emily Blunt, Rupert Friend, Paul Bettany, Miranda Richardson, Harriet Walter, Mark Strong, and Jim Broadbent, along with many other performers.

Julian Fellowes, the screenwriter, aimed to make the film as true to history as possible. To help with this, Oscar-winning costume designer Sandy Powell and historical advisor Alastair Bruce were brought on board. The movie was filmed at several real historical sites in England to increase its realism. However, some parts of the film have been criticized for not matching historical facts exactly.

Momentum Pictures released the film in the United Kingdom on March 6, 2009. Most reviews were positive, but the film earned $31.9 million, which was less than its $35 million production budget.

Plot

Princess Alexandrina Victoria of Kent was the next in line to become queen during the reign of her paternal uncle, King William IV. She was caught in a political struggle over who would influence her. On one side were her mother, Victoria, Duchess of Kent, and Sir John Conroy, the comptroller of her household. They raised her very strictly under the Kensington system. When it became clear that Victoria would become queen, they tried to make her sign papers that would allow a regency if she took the throne before turning 18. This rule stayed in place until she was 25 years old.

On the other side was her maternal uncle, King Leopold I of Belgium. He used family connections to help form an alliance between the United Kingdom and Belgium. He wanted his nephew, Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, who was Victoria’s cousin, to marry her. Albert was taught about Victoria’s preferences. When the Duchess invited Albert and his brother, Prince Ernest of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, to visit, Victoria and Albert developed a friendly relationship, even though she knew Albert had been sent to court her. They began writing to each other after he returned home.

At a birthday celebration in Windsor Castle, King William expressed a desire to be closer to Victoria and insulted her mother. When he increased Victoria’s income, Sir Conroy refused it and physically restrained her in front of her mother, worsening their conflict. The King then sent Lord Melbourne, the Prime Minister, to advise Victoria. She agreed to make Melbourne her private secretary, and he chose her ladies-in-waiting from families connected to the Whigs.

King William died shortly after Victoria turned 18, avoiding the need for a regency. Now queen, Victoria showed her independence by distancing herself from her mother and removing Conroy from her household and coronation. During her first meeting with the Privy Council, she announced her plan to serve her country and its people. She moved into Buckingham Palace and felt free for the first time. Her aunt, Queen Adelaide, warned her not to follow Melbourne’s advice too closely. Albert returned, and they bonded further by discussing social issues. However, Victoria resisted a closer relationship and Albert left.

Melbourne resigned as Prime Minister after losing support in the House of Commons, forcing Victoria to invite Robert Peel, the Leader of the Opposition, to form a government. Peel wanted to replace some of Victoria’s ladies-in-waiting with Tory supporters, but she refused. Peel then declined her invitation to lead the government, and Victoria asked Melbourne to return. This caused public protests outside the palace and brought Victoria and Albert closer through their letters. She invited Albert back to Britain. Because of protocol, Albert could not propose marriage, so she asked him.

Their short honeymoon was happy, but Albert soon became frustrated by his lack of power. Queen Adelaide advised Victoria to let Albert take on more responsibilities. Albert reorganized the royal household and removed Conroy for mismanaging the Duchess of Kent’s funds. As Victoria’s main adviser, Albert prevented Melbourne and King Leopold from influencing her. However, Albert and Victoria argued fiercely after Albert spoke to Peel about replacing some of her ladies-in-waiting. When an anarchist tried to shoot Victoria during a ride in an open carriage, Albert was wounded while protecting her. His bravery led to their reconciliation, and Melbourne encouraged Victoria to share her work for social welfare with Albert. The birth of their first child helped mend Victoria’s relationship with her mother, who had earlier sent a supportive letter during the crisis.

The final scenes show Victoria and Albert’s successful partnership until Albert’s death at age 42. Victoria lived until she was 81, always honoring his memory and ruling for 63 years.

Cast

• Emily Blunt plays Queen Victoria
• Rupert Friend plays Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
• Paul Bettany plays William Lamb, Second Viscount Melbourne
• Miranda Richardson plays Princess Victoria, Duchess of Kent and Strathearn
• Jim Broadbent plays King William IV
• Thomas Kretschmann plays King Leopold I of the Belgians
• Mark Strong plays Sir John Ponsonby Conroy, First Baronet
• Jesper Christensen plays Christian Friedrich, Baron Stockmar
• Harriet Walter plays Queen Adelaide
• Jeanette Hain plays Louise, Baroness Lehzen
• Julian Glover plays Arthur Wellesley, First Duke of Wellington
• Michael Maloney plays Sir Robert Peel, Second Baronet
• Michiel Huisman plays Ernest II, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
• Genevieve O'Reilly plays Lady Flora Hastings
• Rachael Stirling plays Harriet Sutherland-Leveson-Gower, Duchess of Sutherland
• Josef Altin plays Edward Oxford
• David Robb plays John Russell, First Earl Russell

Production

Sarah, Duchess of York, had the idea for a film about Queen Victoria’s early life. She became interested in the queen after marrying Prince Andrew, Duke of York, who is a great-great-great-grandson of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. She wrote two books about Victoria with the help of a historian. Sarah was especially drawn to Victoria’s relationship with Prince Albert because she saw similarities between their marriage and her own with Prince Andrew, as both couples faced challenges in keeping their love alive while being watched closely by the public. A friend arranged a meeting with producer Graham King, who was looking for a project set in the United Kingdom. King, who had just finished working on The Departed, was impressed by Sarah’s idea, including a three-page summary of Victoria’s early life, which became the basis for The Young Victoria. King brought on Martin Scorsese, a director who knew a lot about British history, as a co-executive producer.

Julian Fellowes, the writer of Gosford Park, contacted King with ideas for the film’s script. King said Fellowes already had a clear plan for the movie, so he was allowed to write it. Three months later, Fellowes sent a detailed screenplay. Fellowes decided not to end the film with Prince Albert’s death because he wanted to avoid the dramatic style of other biographical films, which often focus on sad or shocking events. He believed that part of Victoria’s story was better suited for a television series or another movie.

King wanted a director who could create a film that felt different from traditional British costume dramas and would appeal to younger audiences. He was recommended to watch C.R.A.Z.Y., a 2005 film by Jean-Marc Vallée, and was immediately interested in hiring him. Vallée agreed to direct after reading the script. He described Victoria as a rebel who challenged authority and had a strong, energetic personality, similar to the spirit of rock music.

Sandy Powell, a costume designer who had won an Academy Award, was hired after hearing about the script. She studied Victoria’s wedding dress and coronation robes to create accurate costumes. Annie Hadley, a costume cutter who had worked on The Lives of Others, was also hired. Hagen Bogdanski, a German director of photography, was chosen for his experience. Julian Fellowes worked with his friend Alastair Bruce to ensure the coronation ceremony was historically accurate, leading to Bruce’s role as the film’s historical consultant.

Fellowes made sure the script avoided anachronisms, or mistakes about the time period. He was upset when actor Jim Broadbent used a phrase that was not common in the 19th century. Fellowes emphasized that the story was based on real facts, even though not many people knew about Victoria’s early life. He said he would not change important historical facts, like the real relationships between characters, but used events to show how the characters grew and changed.

The film is mostly true to history but has some changes for dramatic effect. For example, Prince Albert was never shot during an assassination attempt on Queen Victoria. Fellowes said the film added a scene where Albert was grazed by a bullet to show his bravery. Another change was that Albert was not present at Victoria’s coronation, as the film showed. Instead, the couple wrote letters to each other. Fellowes said the scene where Victoria throws a paper to the floor when she is sick is true, as is the scene where King William IV insults Victoria’s mother. However, the film did not show that Victoria’s mother and the king later reconciled.

William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne, was Victoria’s prime minister and mentor, but he was much older than her. The film made him look younger. King Leopold, Victoria’s favorite uncle, was not shown as the reason she was interested in Albert. Instead, the film suggested Albert won her heart.

Queen Elizabeth II, Victoria’s great-great-granddaughter, watched the film in a special screening. She liked some parts but was unhappy with the change about the assassination attempt and the costumes of British officers, which looked too German. Historian Alex von Tunzelmann said the film was mostly accurate, especially in showing politics and Prince Albert’s character.

For the role of Queen Victoria, King wanted a British actress. Emily Blunt, a British actress, read the script and worked hard to get the part. She admitted she knew little about Victoria at first but learned more after talking to her mother about the queen’s marriage.

Music

Ilan Eshkeri composed the film score. EMI Music released the film soundtrack on 10 March 2009. The soundtrack includes Eshkeri's score based on classical compositions and Sinéad O'Connor's original song "Only You."

Release

Momentum Pictures managed the distribution of The Young Victoria in the United Kingdom. The film’s first showing in the world took place on February 5, 2009, at the 59th Berlin International Film Festival. Its first showing in the United Kingdom occurred on March 3, 2009, in London’s Leicester Square. However, the film was shown earlier in the small town of Bridport, Dorset, on March 1, 2009, at the Electric Palace Theatre, where Julian Fellowes is a patron. The film was released in British cinemas on March 6, 2009. During its first week in the UK, The Young Victoria earned £1,016,053, and made a total of £4,538,697 over its six-week run.

A competition over the rights to distribute the film in the United States became more intense when the film was released there. The American distribution studio Apparition, acting on behalf of Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions Group, won the rights to the film. At the time, Apparition executive Bob Berney stated the film is "very audience friendly and commercial." The Young Victoria earned $160,069 on its initial release in the United States on December 18, 2009, where it opened in twenty theatres. It expanded nationwide on Christmas Day and earned a total of $11,001,272 by the end of its theatrical run.

Reception

On the online review site Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 75% based on 155 reviews, with an average score of 6.5 out of 10. The site’s summary states, "Emily Blunt shines as Victoria in this romantic but slow-moving royal story." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 64 out of 100, based on reviews from 29 critics, which means "generally favorable reviews."

Entertainment Weekly critic Owen Gleiberman gave the film a B+ grade. He praised Emily Blunt’s performance and noted, "The Young Victoria has a more gentle pace than expected, and at times it is calmer than some might prefer. Director Jean-Marc Vallée’s visuals have a smooth elegance, but this is not a glamorous fairy tale—it is the story of a young ruler learning to control her world, and Blunt makes that journey feel real and meaningful." Manohla Dargis of The New York Times called it a "frivolously entertaining film" and said it was "directed with some energy by Jean-Marc Vallée." She concluded, "Although the filmmakers try to show The Young Victoria as a serious story, and despite some tense scenes and gunfire, the film’s enjoyment is as light as its plot. No matter. Albert may never tear Victoria’s dress, but he does eventually loosen it, to her happiness and ours."

The Daily Telegraph described The Young Victoria as "a production of the highest quality with an excellent cast." The Times’ Wendy Ide gave the film 3 out of 5 stars and wrote, "It is visually appealing, but lacks excitement and drama." She noted similarities to the 1998 film Elizabeth. Ide found Victoria and Albert’s relationship "convincing and charming" and praised the performances of the main and supporting actors, especially highlighting the standout role of Bettany.

Peter Bradshaw, a critic for The Guardian, gave the film 2 out of 5 stars. While he was initially looking forward to Emily Blunt’s performance, he felt the "skilled actress" was "never allowed to fully express herself." He described the queen’s relationship with Prince Albert as "very unexciting," as their devotion "makes for a dull film." Bradshaw did note the film’s focus on Victoria’s power struggles but ended, "I spent an hour and 45 minutes waiting for this film to begin. Where was the energy and the vitality of Fellowes’s strong script for Robert Altman’s Gosford Park?"

Emily Blunt received several nominations for her role. At the 63rd British Academy Film Awards, The Young Victoria won the BAFTA Award for Best Costume Design and the BAFTA Award for Best Makeup and Hair. The film also received the 2010 Academy Award for Costume Design.

Home media

Sony Pictures Home Entertainment made the DVD and Blu-ray available on July 13, 2009, in the UK, and on April 20, 2010, in the US. The DVD included deleted and extended scenes, as well as four short videos about the movie's filming process and the history of its subject matter. The Blu-ray includes a feature that lets viewers access up-to-date information about the actors, music, film facts, and other details.