Terrific adaptation of Maxwell Anderson's play, "Elizabeth The Queen", and just one of many incredible pictures to be released in 1939. Featuring sumptuous color cinematography and production design, the film is headlined by a grand, deliciously brittle Bette Davis performance as hot-tempered Queen Elizabeth I, presiding over England in 1596 and battling with sometime-lover Lord Essex (Errol Flynn) during England's war with Spain. Hollywood's usual twisting of historical facts doesn't put a damper on the mercurial dramatic storytelling, and the film is colorfully enacted by a great cast including Olivia de Havilland, Vincent Price, and Alan Hale. Fans and critics alike continue to quibble over Flynn's casting and performance (Bette did too, famously at the time), yet he more than holds his own with La Davis, creating sparks with her in the calmer moments while putting up a roguish, devilish front for the rest. *** from ****
