THE FILM

Out of all the movies to sequelize, "Elizabeth" was near the bottom of my list of usual suspects. "Elizabeth: The Golden Age" appears to agree, turning up the volume on the elegant, glacial original film, serving up some serious visual bombast to throw off expectations and charge ahead with a sequel that wins hands down as the most defiantly outlandish, thus most delicious film of 2007.

Now fully entrenched in her reign over England, "Virgin Queen" Elizabeth I (Cate Blanchett) has found herself weary from constant isolation and the burden of royalty. When Walter Raleigh (Clive Owen) returns from the new world with treasures, Elizabeth is charmed by his stories and blinded by his honesty, leaving her with romantic feelings unbecoming of a queen. As Spanish forces grow and the choice is made to attack England, Elizabeth rises to the challenge, setting aside her demons and disappointments to take England into battle with their greatest foe.

It's been nine years since the release of "Elizabeth," and so much has changed. Star Cate Blanchett has stepped into her destined role as the preeminent actress of her generation, director Shekhar Kapur tossed away his industry goodwill with the lethargic "Four Feathers" remake, and the very genre of period royalty chess games has been brought up a few notches due to outstanding cable efforts. There's so much against "Golden Age," I can see why Kapur decided to blow up his sequel to deafening Wagnerian levels.

While surely not a complete departure from what began in 1998, "Golden Age" whisks the story away from youthful heartbreak and hardens it to an overwhelmingly stylistic brick. Kapur takes the pageantry of the original and turns it into a fine arts museum, with cinematography that feels more like dabs of paint on a canvas and a production design that beats epic drums and drips with details so great, a second viewing should be required just to stare awestruck at the backgrounds. "Elizabeth" was a more controlled creation, where "Golden Age" rides off the rails, taking the legend of Elizabeth to the next level of mythology. Frankly, the acceleration is bliss.

Returning to the role that made her a star, Blanchett is in full control, embracing a second shot at bringing this historical persona to life. William Nicholson's dialogue rolls off the actress's tongue like bullets and buried in impossible costumes, Blanchett is able to register Elizabeth's torment and lust, trying to remain accessible to those close to her, but using the spine-severing snap of her royalty when her feelings are trounced upon. Blanchett matches Kapur's scope note for note, but demands little moments of vanity or vulnerability to keep the performance grounded. It's an exquisite acting effort that grows to ivory spiritual levels when the Spanish invasion subplot rolls in.

However, the new film is distancing in ways "Elizabeth" avoided. Kapur is looking for larger-than-life arrangements of betrayal, heroism, and romantic entanglements, and continually mounts his picture with a ferocity you might find in an Andrew Lloyd Webber musical. Scored with wall-of-sound detonation by Craig Armstrong and A.R. Rahman, "Golden Age" recounts/invents Elizabeth's tussle with Mary, Queen of Scots (Samantha Morton), the rise of the Catholic empire of Spain (led by a stalking Jordi Molla), and a love triangle between Elizabeth, Walter Raleigh, and the Queen's confidant, Elizabeth Throckmorton (Nicole Kidman look-alike, Abbie Cornish).

The sequel also furthers Elizabeth's relationship with adviser Walsingham (Geoffrey Rush), explores her fatigue with suitors, and climaxes with a final stand of sorts, as Elizabeth not only has to defend her crown, but the very life and liberty that England stands for.

THE DVD

Visual:

The anamorphic widescreen (1.85:1 aspect ratio) presentation of "Golden Age" is gorgeous. The DVD handles the difficult desaturated images, retaining the detail of the insane cinematography while also showing off the impressive color scheme of the costumes and the magical lighting of sets to splendid effect.

Audio:

The 5.1 Dolby Digital sound mix boils over stupendously when the film kicks into rock opera mode, with the soaring score and exploding cannons shaking the surround channels. The intricate dialogue and score are separated wonderfully throughout the track, but this film is meant to be played at top volume for best sonic force. The DVD meets that demand wonderfully.

Extras:

To begin with, the main menu of "The Golden Age" DVD uses the track "My Name is Lincoln" from the score of Michael Bay's "The Island." I mention this just in case the mysterious use of this tune causes anyone else crippling "soundtrack distress."

A feature-length commentary with director Shekhar Kapur is an exercise in keeping up with a motor-mouth. Kapur, with his slight accent, sprints through the track divulging production secrets and artistic choices, making it occasionally difficult to understand what he has to say. Mostly, he discusses his "Shekharisms" (visual thumbprints), the fudging (or embellishment) of history to suit the mood, and the emotional bullet points of the picture. Kapur is a wise man who knew full well what type of madness he was creating with "Golden Age" (he describes it as "mythical"), and this talk emphasizes his strong artistic choices. That is, when he enunciates clearly enough.

Also of note: Kapur is reluctant to end his commentary, openly suggesting that his track is the first "layer," and he wants to plunge deeper into creative discussion. Take that either as a promise of a future double-dip or a failed attempt to pin down Blanchett for a commentary track.

Deleted scenes (9 minutes) flesh out Morton's role as Mary, including a disturbing 11-second shot of her severed head on a cold stone floor. The other scenes are merely connective tissue and emotional beats already covered in the final product.

"The Reign Continues: Making 'Elizabeth: The Golden Age'" (11 minutes) is a standard EPK featurette, interviewing cast and crew about the experience making the film, their thoughts on the original picture, and the psychological profile of characters. Extra fun is provided by short snippets of "Elizabeth" juxtaposed with "Golden Age" footage.

"Inside Elizabeth's World" (7 minutes) takes a quick peek at location shooting; capturing the wide open space of cathedrals and palaces for the first half of the shoot. The featurette then spotlights the work of production designer Guy Dyas, who had the awesome task of building sets of a similar scope. The details are jaw-dropping.

"Commanding the Winds: Creating the Armada" (12 minutes) is more magic from Dyas, who oversaw the creation of a single colossal ship that would eventually be duplicated through CGI and turned into the roar of the Spanish Armada. It truly is a wondrous mix of unsteady practical effects and smooth, evocative CGI.

"Towers, Courts, and Cathedrals" (10 minutes) focuses on location shooting and the massive buildings the crew had to work inside of. "Golden Age" shot in real working cathedrals, which allowed the film tremendous scope and an air of authenticity.

The theatrical trailer and teaser are not included on this DVD.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Kapur takes every thematic and emotional twitch seriously, and "Golden Age" embraces its sweep in a major way. I was enchanted by the breathlessness of this sequel and the way Kapur takes protracted historical data and snowballs it into a gorgeous flip-book, even molding the final battle into an Errol Flynn-style adventure. Whatever "Golden Age" lacks in delicacy and subtlety it more than makes for in ambiance and a thunderous appetite for drama and sensory overload.