• Network: Channel 4
  • Series Premiere Date: Sep 29, 2005
  • Season #: 1
Metascore
81 out of 100

Universal acclaim - based on 21 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 19 out of 21
  2. Negative: 0 out of 21
  1. 100
    "Elizabeth I" soars on every level from the writing, to the directing to the acting.
  2. 100
    An explosion of fireworks. [1 May 2006, p.39]
  3. 100
    The lavishly beguiling historical drama is pumped up on passion, wit and the majestic fire of Helen Mirren's thrilling performance as one of history's most intriguing rulers.
  4. Mirren's Elzabeth is emotional... But with that comes soemthing as rare on TV as it is rewarding--a love affair involving people over the age of 50. [21 Apr 2006, p.67]
  5. 90
    Elizabeth I features two of the finest actors [Mirren and Irons] in film and television inspiring each other to some of the most spectacular work they have ever done.
  6. Elizabeth is mercurial, powerful, unpredictable - qualities made real, and a bit frightening, because of the intensity with which Mirren commits to the role.
  7. 88
    As Elizabeth movies go, this version has neither the sweep of Glenda Jackson's Elizabeth R nor the easily digested entertainment value of Bette Davis' Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex. But it has Mirren, and that's reason enough to make it and watch it.
  8. 80
    Mirren, a true virtuoso at the height of her powers, is what makes this excellent two-part film worth watching, but there are many other pluses as well.
  9. Reviewed by: Matt Roush
    80
    Mirren... hits a dazzling career high.
  10. Reviewed by: Brian Lowry
    80
    Somewhat plodding through its opening hour, "Elizabeth I" gains steam and then soars through its concluding installment.
  11. Impressive... Ms. Mirren leaves her authoritative stamp on the role of Elizabeth.
  12. 80
    No matter how opulent this production, Mirren is never upstaged, and she is the best reason to keep watching.
  13. Elizabeth [is] portrayed by Mirren in as brilliant a performance as you're likely to see.
  14. An engrossing, humanizing portrait of the British monarch.
  15. [Mirren] delivers big-time... Congratulations should also go to Nigel Williams, whose screenplay for Elizabeth I is as sassy as Tom Stoppard's was for Shakespeare in Love.
  16. "Elizabeth I" was made for television and is not a lavish, big-budget production. Visually, it is no match for the 1998 movie. But what "Elizabeth I" does offer is not insignificant: a richly drawn portrait of a powerful woman who is both ruthless and sentimental, formidable and mercurial, vain and likable.
  17. It is a great performance [by Mirren], strong enough that it overcomes the flaws of "Elizabeth I."
  18. 63
    Irons and the rest of the cast are spot-on. The writing and directing are fairly crisp. Perhaps, though, tracing Elizabeth's life for 20-plus years subtracted from my becoming intently involved in each period of this biopic.
  19. [It] would be an above-average Masterpiece [Theatre] installment.
  20. The film as a whole is a strange case of mostly excellent parts that make an overlong and tedious whole.
User Score

Universal acclaim- based on 15 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 9 out of 11
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 11
  3. Negative: 2 out of 11
  1. kelseyw
    2
    Take away the costumes, set and cinematography, and you have an overacted and overwrought movie of the week. The writing is actually embarrassingly bad at times, and it's obvious that Hooper couldn't control his actors' performances. A dressed-up sappy love story, masquerading as History - with a capital H. Full Review »
  2. RandyM
    10
    Elizabeth I is an awe-inspiring, terrifying, work of brilliant art. Definitely one of the best shows you'll see on television this year. The acting is absolutely astounding (kudos to Helen Mirren) and the show keeps you mesmerized until the very end. Amazing. Full Review »
  3. K8rpot8rFaith
    10
    I thought this movie imptomized what Elizabeth the I was all about....Oh and about the Music aspect...I am going to school for music and the music was exactly what you would have heard back then! I just wish I could have been a fly on the wall for this movie in the making!! Full Review »