"Elizabeth," the first film, was about a young woman coming to the throne in a period of great turmoil, and how she dealt with that
It was love in the context of power, betrayal, and survival
In "Elizabeth: The Golden Age," we're dealing with the most famous aspects of her regime, the Spanish Armada, the Babington Plot, which was a major plot against her, and Walter Raleigh bringing back the very early understanding of the New World, and the horizons beyond Britain
It is the exploration of unrestricted power
Elizabeth, as cultured and as intelligent and eloquent as she was, had never left the shores of England
And into her court, strides an explorer who has literally been where the maps end
The gallant Raleigh (Clive Owen) was a free spirit who thrills the queen with his tales and discoveries at sea
The classic 16th-century adventurer who doesn't play by any official rules, and he does bring into the world of the court something very alluring, enigmatic and charismatic, which has a big impact on the queen
The relationship between Raleigh and Elizabeth was very complicated
There were things holding Elizabeth back
"We mortals have many weaknesses; we feel too much, hurt too much or too soon we die, but we do have the chance of love." These words were spoken by Sir Walter Raleigh to the Virgin Quenn
It's very rare that the Queen takes interest in a man, and she does
At this special point, England was very weak militarily
Elizabeth had discharged the navy
And once again it was the old problem of religious instability, which harasses the human race frequently
Anybody that's interested in this period of history will find it fascinating just how capable Elizabeth was in regards to how she dealt with the captive Queen of Scots
Mary Stuart (Samantha Morton) had great respect for the Protestant Elizabeth, and was remarkably intrigued by her, and desperate to meet her, and fascinated
For several years Elizabeth suffered about her execution because she really believed two things
She believed that any queen was divine
She accepted as true that her Catholic cousin was there by the will of God, and therefore, Mary was there by the will of God
And in executing Mary, she would disintegrate her one belief that she herself was divine
Mary found it in death
Elizabeth had to find it in life
So if you look at the Armada, Elizabeth finally does become divine, and that's why we had to admire how the scene of the Armada is shot, by Shekhar Kapur, in that way
It's not actually a fiery sea battle between two countries
It's a 'Holy War' with Spain
Therefore, the defining moments of the Armada is when Elizabeth walks up across the verdant cliffs in flowing white nightgown
She's no longer the Avenging Queen
She's instead a supernatural being, a disembodied soul defeating the enemy, dominating the fearless of the waves, the force of the storm, and the strength of fire
Dripping with intrigues, plots, battles, mysteries, and strong emotions, the film captured the ecclesiastical spaces of the cathedrals to look more like a palace environment
It also captured the feel of the16th century architecture, linking and matching it to the proper locations
