The world remembers Queen Victoria as a staid and stately dowager in black, but Victoria and Albert shows the other side of the monarch who gave her name to an era - the emotional young queen whose reign was shaped by her passionate love for her German-born husband, Prince Albert.

Disc One:
Kept isolated form the court by her domineering mother, Victoria seems unprepared for the throne when King William IV (Sir Peter Ustinov) dies. But the teenage queen shows surprising strength and resolve, and puts her full faith in the political counsel of Lord Melbourne, the Prime Minister. With the help of Belgium's King Leopold, a meeting is arranged between Victoria and her cousin, Prince Albert of Germany. Though initially reluctant, she falls utterly in love when she sees him, and they are married after a brief courtship.

Disc Two:
The changing political fortunes of Lord Melbourne finally afford Albert the opportunity to become involved in the affairs of state - a role Victoria had previously resisted. Soon, his wise counsel leads the Queen to call him "king in everything but name." But their joint rule would not last long, as Albert's tireless work on the Great Exhibition of 1851 comes at the cost of his health. He never fully recovers, eventually succumbing to typhoid fever in 1862, leaving Victoria to rule alone for nearly 40 years.

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The first episode is good drama and fairly good history. The young Victoria is shown living a cloistered life in Kensington Palace, used by her ambitious mother and others to maintain a toe hold on power. Then, after the death of her uncle William IV, Victoria's early reign is also depicted accurately as she took on her responsibilities with a dutifulness which characterized her entire reign. Her daughterly relationship with her first Prime Minister, Lord Melbourne is also well done. Finally, her meeting with Prince Albert and their hesitant courtship, engagement, and marriage is both compelling and true to history.

It is with the second episode that the drama begins to overwhelm the history. Victoria and Albert are shown with a family of six children (they really had nine) whom they bounce on their knees, cuddle and nuzzle in public, and obviously adore. Unfortunately the real Queen Victoria was not fond of children, and Prince Albert saw his progeny as useful tools for carrying out his long range plan for the liberalization of Europe, but not a whole lot more. The whitewashing of their troubled relationship with their eldest son and heir Bertie is really ridiculous. Bertie could never do right and was a constant disappointment to his parents, as they never ceased telling him. While Prince Albert's last meeting with Bertie, in which he says something like "I'm sorry we've been so hard on you" is charmingly acted, nothing like that ever took place. I also found the scenes in which Albert repeatedly ponders whether he really loves Victoria a bit unbelievable. Finally, Victoria's composure after Albert's death is completely at odds with history, which records her retreating into deep mourning for the next four decades.

Regardless of the inaccuracies, this is a beautiful piece of work and well worth the price. If you like this Victoria and Albert, may I suggest that you also look into the mini-series Edward the King, produced in the mid 1970s, which covers Bertie's life and times. It is just as well written and acted, and contains a far more true to life depiction of Victoria and Albert.

43 of 44 found the following review helpful:

A royal cinematic feastOct 21, 2003
By Michael J. Mazza
"Victoria and Albert," directed by John Erman, stars Victoria Hamilton and Jonathan Firth as Britain's Queen Victoria and her consort, Prince Albert. The superb supporting cast includes an impressive band of acting veterans, among them Peter Ustinov (as William IV) and Diana Rigg (as young Victoria's governess). The film follows the courtship and married life of this royal couple.

V&A is a visually stunning period piece, but ultimately it's the fine performances that really make the film work. There is a wonderful chemistry between the two leads, who furthermore capably rise to the challenge of portraying the pair over a long span of time. It's an onscreen relationship that is complex and tender. The supporting cast is great--Ustinov is especially entertaining as the cantankerous King William. It's a juicy role that Ustinov plays with relish.

Although it's a period piece, V&A seems remarkably timely in light of the continuing saga of the British royal family. The film raises a number of intriguing issues--the politics of royal marriage, the relationship between the royal house and the citizenry, etc. This is a classy, well-made film--a must for those interested in British royal history.

56 of 60 found the following review helpful:

An Abundance of InaccuraciesJun 23, 2006
By John
For the past eight years I've been working on a project on the Romanovs. A sizeable part of my research also included their British relations, particularly Queen Victoria and her daughters.

This BBC movie as entertaining as it was was probably more damaging for the uninformed than informative. On a superficial level, Queen Victoria was never considered a beauty or even attractive in her own time, even when she was young. Although she did have a narrow waistline. So picking such an attractive actress to portray her was probably as bad as when Catherine Zeta-Jones (one of the leading Hollywood beauties) was picked to portray another monarch, Catherine the great of Russia, who was notorious for her plain looks. Albert, I should admit looked more like the real thing.

I can't tell you how vivacious and energetic the real Victoria was, since the actress in the movie was quite lively, but she could have never been so indiscreet in public as to kiss her husband and even show affection publicly. She gave great importance to decorum and would have never screamed in the hallways when others could hear her.

In the movie she also appeared to be almost a modern mother who let her children enjoy their lives. Nothing could be further than the truth. She certainly loved her children but she was very tyrannical towards them. At the table her children sat very quietly and minded their own business. She made her daughters' later lives especially miserable. Therefore, they were all much closer to their loving father that to their mother. Also from the very beginning Albert took control of the palace affairs, more or less like our Prince Phillip. It's rather unfortunate that the only scene that showed her at a theatre was attending a comedy play. She did watch comedies, but she had a rather low opinion of them and would not have burst into laughter like that in public. In many ways she was a boring person. And her last sentence in the movie which says that she would move on with life because Albert would have wanted her to, is also rather inaccurate. All of us know, that after his death she withdrew from public and her duties for years, until people finally convinced her that it was doing so much damage to the family's image that she finally gave in. Although she never took off her mourning black dress, wearing it even at her children's weddings. An entire ultra-conservative era was not named after Queen Victoria for no reason, and not just because she lived in that period but that she was the personification of the mentality of the time, somewhat of a U-turn from the 18th century Enlightenment. I think this movie was made to change the popular image of Queen Victoria as a strict, dogmatic and inflexible woman (which is definitely more accurate), though, I admit, she had a kind heart. And perhaps to boost the current queen's image too, who is also believed to be dry and dogmatic. But in her case I think it's rather unfair.

14 of 14 found the following review helpful:

get this movie ! You will enjoy it.Feb 04, 2002
By Maureen Ogorman "leneker"
"Victoria and Albert" is a stunning costume drama concentrating on the early part of their marriage with some brief scenes in the later years culminating in the death of Albert. The film is well-written and well-acted and well worth seeing.

So many films about Victoria concentrate upon the long years as a widow. It is refreshing to see her here as a giddy young teenager just handed the keys to the largest empire in the world. The adolescent battles with her mother would rock the kingdom. She is clearly reluctant to share her power and majesty with a husband, especially her dour straight-laced cousin Albert whom her family wants her to marry. However the 'arranged' part of the marriage goes out the window during a visit when Victoria conveniently falls in love with Albert and desires him for the many qualities that she perceives in him.

Despite her great love for him the early years are especially tempestuous as Albert struggles to fulfill the role that his family has raised him for. Victoria's ministers despise the German prince and struggle to keep him from becoming the power behind the throne (a position they want for themselves). Albert serves as something of a gigolo to the young woman and this is the cause of many 'storms' within the palace. Through hard work and ability Albert is able to bring the Queen around and become a key figure in Victoria's reign.

Sure this is not a history book, and many things go by the wayside. Their shocking inability as parents to view their children as more than diplomatic tools is a sad reality. In the movie this gets brushed aside for the most part (although Victoria is shown as being more concerned about doing her duty and having a son than about her child). This can be easily overlooked as the movie is "Victoria and Albert" not "Victoria, Albert, Vicky, Bertie, Alice, Affie, Helena, Louise, Arthur, Leopold, and Beatrice". The fact is that Albert mostly saw his children as ways to expand his power throughout Europe and into the future, Victoria mostly saw her young children as people who made Albert happy or cross. Since this movie is mostly about their early years of marriage the short shrift given to the children was understandable. It is a love story about two people and in that it succeeds.

Give that this show attempts to compress a marriage of over twenty years into a little more than 3 and half hours, it is a remarkable accomplishment and I highly recommend it. It is captivating from start to finish.

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