The Best Period Films

Elizabeth

It seems certain actresses were born to play the Queen. Cate Blanchett leads that pack (with Helen Mirren and Judi Dench as close runners-up). In her Oscar-nominated performance, Cate plays Queen Elizabeth I of England during the early years of her reign, and we witness her transformation from a kind-hearted girl to an assertive—sometimes even ruthless—queen. As any successful period film does, Elizabeth reminds us that though modern-day existence is a far cry from 1550s England, certain human emotions—lust, jealousy, rage—transcend time.