THE YOUNG VICTORIA

 I saw an advance screening of THE YOUNG VICTORIA this afternoon, and absolutely luxuriated in this gorgeous-looking film about how England's longest reigning monarch came to power. Emily  Blunt gives a subtly vivacious performance as the young queen in waiting. She is unexpectedly adorable as the monarch whose name belongs to an era associated with overstuffed sofas and too many untensils.  The film is extraordinarily well-directed, scored, and wittily edited to convey the ponderousness of the times-- Victoria's stifling upbringing, political intrigue as thick as the drapery, the weight of all that history and encrusted ritual, and yet the lightness of this 18 year-old's spirit, as she tackles the schemers around her, even as she navigates her first romance with her great love Prince Albert (played by the beautiful Rupert Friend). They dance a waltz in front of the entire court on coronation day that is as smolderingly romantic as anything I've ever seen. 

And then it's all over- just as it's just beginning--only a 100 minutes and I wanted so much more. All the conflicts are too cleanly resolved, and the result is a drama which remains tepid rather than coming to a full-on boil. Blunt is enormously appealing here, and a very  FINE actress, with great range. She very well may be a nominee for best actress at Oscar time. 

Now check out this video.  It's a delightful response to the recent boneheaded government recommendation to hold off on mammograms.

Emily (MacInnes) Somers, created, directed and choreographed this in Portland last week for her Medline glove division as a fundraiser for breast cancer awareness.  This was all her idea to help promote their new pink gloves.  I don't know how she got so many employees, doctors and patients to participate, but it started to really catch on and they all had a lot of fun doing it.
 
When the video gets 1 million hits, Medline will be making a huge contribution to the hospital, as well as offering free mammograms for the community.  Please check it out.  It's an easy and great way to donate to a wonderful cause, and who hasn't been touched by breast cancer? 

Just click on the link below.
 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OEdVfyt-mLw