The Queen

Using a sometimes unwieldy combination of archival footage, dramatic re-enactment, and talking-head commentary from biographers, journalists, palace staff, and government officials, ABC's five-part series manages to offer a reverent portrait of Elizabeth Windsor and her near-50-year reign (with five different actresses—Emilia Fox, Samantha Bond, Barbara Flynn, Susan Jameson, and Diana Quick—portraying the monarch over the decades) without whitewashing her often tumultuous relationship with political rivals, other members of the royal family, and the British public at large. Narrated by Steven Macintosh, The Queen begins with the 25-year-old Elizabeth's coronation in 1952, a time when one out of every three British citizens was convinced that the queen was chosen by God. Throughout her monarchic rule, she is confronted by modern familial and political dilemmas that she attempts to deal with via staunchly traditional means. Although the first episode shows her at her most influential, especially when curbing her sister Margaret's scandalous desire to marry a divorced man, the stormy late-1960s period sees her reputation on the wane, her finances dwindling, and a left-leaning Parliament seeking to abolish the monarchy altogether. Although The Queen claims to be about “one of the world's most powerful women,” these episodes, despite a commendable effort, can't make a case for Elizabeth being much more than a political figurehead. Rather, they make clear that although Elizabeth has always had some degree of sway over the public, her losing battles with Margaret Thatcher in the 1980s proved that influence is nothing compared to genuine state power. Likely to appeal to Anglophiles, this is recommended, overall. (M. Sandlin)