Mary Stuart's (Saoirse Ronan's) attempt to overthrow her cousin Elizabeth I (Margot Robbie), Queen of England, finds her condemned to years of imprisonment before facing execution.
This movie explores the turbulent life of the charismatic Mary Stuart (Saoirse Ronan). Queen of France at sixteen and widowed at eighteen, Mary defies pressure to remarry. Instead, she returns to her native Scotland to reclaim her rightful throne. But England is under the rule of the compelling Elizabeth I (Margot Robbie), who wishes the reduce the perceived threat from Mary. Each young Queen beholds her "sister" in fear and fascination. Rivals in power and in love, and female rulers in a masculine world, the two must decide how to play the game of marriage versus independence. Determined to rule as much more than a figurehead, Mary asserts her claim to succeed to the English throne, threatening Elizabeth's sovereignty. Betrayal, rebellion, and conspiracies within each court imperil both thrones - and change the course of history.Written by
Focus Features
Queen Mary lived in France from age 5 until age 18, and her mother, Mary of Guise, was French. She likely spoke with a French accent. Mary could speak Broad Scots, which was spoken in the big towns and much of the Lowlands, and was usually intelligible to English speakers. During Mary's reign, Scots Gaelic was spoken in the Scottish Highlands and northern and western parts of the Lowlands. The last Scottish king recorded as able to speak Gaelic was James IV. There is no evidence she could speak Norn, which is related to Norwegian and Danish, and was used in the Orkneys and Shetlands. See more »
I really wanted to love this movie. It was beautifully shot, and Ronin was, as always, very strong. And the rest of the cast was fine -- the problems with this Elizabeth were not Robbie's fault. The film was beautiful, but quite, quite dead. And it didn't flow, just a bunch of independent set pieces. Blame the writer and the director.
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I really wanted to love this movie. It was beautifully shot, and Ronin was, as always, very strong. And the rest of the cast was fine -- the problems with this Elizabeth were not Robbie's fault. The film was beautiful, but quite, quite dead. And it didn't flow, just a bunch of independent set pieces. Blame the writer and the director.