True Stories 13: 90s—Elizabeth

Last week I said we’d be looking at a “true” biopic this week. What does that mean exactly?

It means, more than anything, historical—a biopic that sticks to the historical facts without too much embellishment. Oftentimes, major events or people are so well known that to make up details about things that never happened or characters that weren’t part of their life would be something audiences might tend to reject. So a word of warning—when you’re working with history, beware—your writer’s imagination may have to go into how you tell the story rather than going into creating events/characters that liven up your story.

The other thing to remember about history is that it can be boring. People don’t go to the movies for a history lesson they could have been forced to read about in high school. Sure, audiences go to be enlightened, to have their world view expanded, even to learn about something they might not have encountered in their schooling or reading. But most of all? They go to be entertained. You need to really engage them with your bit of history.

That kind of engagement is just what you see in Elizabeth [1998] by Michael Hirst. To understand the background of this film, let’s go back to the 16^th century.

It’s 1553 and King Henry VIII has died. His sickly son rules for short while before he dies, and then the throne falls to his eldest daughter, Mary. Mary is a Catholic, she has no children, and her successor is her half-sister, Elizabeth, who is a Protestant. Mary threatens Elizabeth with treason charges if she refuses to go along. But Elizabeth rebels and says she will not uphold the Catholic faith once she is on the throne. Under Mary’s reign Protestants are—literally—being burned at the stake because they’re seen as heretics. Not a happy place to be, England at this point in history, if you’re not a Catholic. Take a look at the trailer for the film:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OXvynZYWbg8

Now, if you’re going to tell this story just based on the machinations as to who gets the throne, it could be a bit dull—doesn’t have to be, of course, it’s all in how you tell it. But how much more interesting will it be if you can get inside your main characters—especially your lead—to enhance the telling of your story?

And that’s just what the screenwriter did. He knew from his research that when Elizabeth took over the throne she was being pulled—in many directions—by her advisors. She was told she had to show strong leadership by establishing a Church of England, marrying, and producing an heir. And that is the interesting part of this story. How’s she supposed to deal with this? Which advisors should she listen to? And what if she’s in love with someone who is not considered suitable marriage material?

Once you can put your character in that historical situation but let us see the human being who is dealing with their life as well as their job, you’ve got a story that has the potential to keep an audience riveted. And that’s what happens in Elizabeth.

Next week we’ll look at a more contemporary biopic—A Beautiful Mind.

Copyright © Diane Lake

04Sep22

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