The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex (1939)

A depiction of the love/hate relationship between Queen Elizabeth I and Robert Devereux, the Earl of Essex.

Director:

Michael Curtiz

Writers:

Norman Reilly Raine (screen play), Æneas MacKenzie (screen play),

Stars:

Bette Davis, Errol Flynn, Olivia de Havilland

Nominated for 5 Oscars.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Bette Davis	...	Queen Elizabeth
Errol Flynn	...	Earl of Essex
Olivia de Havilland	...	Lady Penelope Gray
Donald Crisp	...	Francis Bacon
Alan Hale	...	Earl of Tyrone
Vincent Price	...	Sir Walter Raleigh
Henry Stephenson	...	Lord Burghley
Henry Daniell	...	Sir Robert Cecil
James Stephenson	...	Sir Thomas Egerton
Nanette Fabray	...	Mistress Margaret Radcliffe (as Nanette Fabares)
Ralph Forbes	...	Lord Knollys
Robert Warwick	...	Lord Mountjoy
Leo G. Carroll	...	Sir Edward Coke

Storyline

This period drama frames the tumultuous affair between Queen Elizabeth I and the man who would be King of England, Robert Devereux, the Earl of Essex. Ever the victor on the battlefield, Devereux returns to London after defeating Spanish forces at Cadiz. Middle-aged Elizabeth, so attracted to the younger Devereux but fearful of his influence and popularity, sends him on a new mission: a doomed campaign to Ireland. When he and his troops return in defeat, Devereux demands to share the throne with the heir-less queen, and Elizabeth, at first, intends to marry. Ultimately sensing the marriage would prove disastrous for England, Elizabeth sets in motion a merciless plan to protect her people and preserve her throne.

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Plot Keywords:

queen | earl | throne | ireland | nobility | 

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Taglines:

Elizabeth I's love for the Earl of Essex threatens to destroy her kingdom.

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Genres:

Biography | Drama | History | Romance

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

11 November 1939 (USA)

Also Known As:

Elizabeth the Queen

Filming Locations:

Stage 14, Warner Brothers Burbank Studios - 4000 Warner Boulevard, Burbank, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

106 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Vitaphone)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Bette Davis had originally wanted Laurence Olivier for the role of Lord Essex, claiming that Errol Flynn could not speak blank verse well. She remained extremely upset about this through the entire filming, and Flynn and Davis never worked again together in a film, but according to Olivia de Havilland, she and Davis screened the film again a short while before Davis's stroke. At film's end, Davis turned to de Havilland and declared that she had been wrong about Flynn, and that he gave a fine performance as Essex.

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Goofs

Elizabeth completely smashes a mirror but in next shot a large shard of it still remains in the frame.

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Quotes

Robert Devereux, Earl of Essex: And now, may I go? This dying sticks in my mind and makes me poor company.

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Connections

Edited into Adventures of Don Juan (1948)

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Soundtracks

"The Passionate Shepherd to His Love (Come Live With Me and Be My Love)"
(posthumous 1599) (uncredited)
Written by Christopher Marlowe
Music by Erich Wolfgang Korngold
Played on piano by Erich Wolfgang Korngold and sung by Nanette Fabray

User Reviews

Like going home again

I think the last time I saw this movie was probably over thirty years ago on the late-nite movie during Errol Flynn week. The local PBS station just showed it tonight and I was very impressed. I hardly knew who Bette Davis was back then, but now that I do know her, I was pleasantly surprised not to see her in this movie. Her Elizabeth was so unlike what I've come to expect from Davis that it was like seeing her for the first time.

Flynn, of course, is Flynn, and I refuse to say anything bad about a guy as handsome as him that wears thigh-high boots throughout the movie.

I thought the script was intelligent, the dialogue realistic, and the pacing pretty good. Yes, it flagged a couple of times, but never for more than a moment and the next scene picked it right up again. Except for de Haviland, the supporting cast doesn't have much to do and Vincent Price is more or less wasted. Those are minor quibbles, however, as overall the movie seems to have held up amazingly well.

I gave it a rating of 9 stars. It's not perfect, but it's very good, and Bette Davis is outstanding. And did I mention Flynn's boots?