Lady Jane (1986)

Elizabeth: The Golden Age recently showed up from Netflix, but it's been a while since I'd seen Elizabeth, so I decided to watch that again first. But as the credits were rolling on that, I remembered that I've long wanted to do a Lady Jane/Elizabeth double feature since Jane ends with Bloody Mary's taking power and Elizabeth begins with her losing it. So, I stopped Elizabeth --to the patient indulgence of my wife -- and popped in Lady Jane.

I discovered Lady Jane shortly after seeing A Room with a View and becoming obsessed with Helena Bonham Carter. Much to my pleasure, it not only featured prominent roles by Captain Picard and the Dread Pirate Wesley, but it's a damn fine story to boot.

It has to do with the aftermath of Henry VIII's reign. Henry of course created the Church of England when the Roman Catholics refused to annul his marriage to Catherine of Aragon so's he could marry Natalie Portman. A lot of noblefolk liked that arrangement because it meant they got to keep a lot of land and treasure that used to belong to the Church. So, when Henry died, it behooved the nobility to try to keep the new religion going.

Henry's son by his third wife was Edward VI (I'm sorry if you don't find this fascinating, but I really do), but unfortunately Edward was a sick kid and not a long-term solution. The nobility (represented in the movie by John Wood as Edward's regent, the Duke of Northumberland) kept Edward alive long enough to figure out a way to keep Mary (Henry's daughter by Catherine of Aragon) off the throne because she was a Catholic and would give the monks and peasants back all their stuff. Elizabeth -- as the movie tells it anyway -- was never considered because she was the illegitimate daughter of the "traitor" Anne Boleyn. Historically, I think Elizabeth wasn't considered by Northumberland because she was only moderately Protestant, but Lady Jane really just skips past her without thinking about her too much.

Henry's niece, Lady Frances, was next in line to the throne, but the movie suggests that she abdicated her right to her daughter Jane because Frances was unable to produce any sons that would solidfy the Protestant rule.

Okay, that's a lot of history and I'm sorry if it bores you. But if you're still reading, here's the deal on Lady Jane. It's wonderfully acted, very funny in parts (especially Cary Elwes as Jane's at-first involuntary husband), and covers some amazing themes. It becomes a romance as Jane and her husband fall in love with each other, but the real story is about being willing to sacrifice for what you believe in.

Jane is a Protestant, but she's not at all like the hypocritical nobility around her. She truly believes that the Catholic Church is corrupt and wrong and is willing to go to great lengths to save England from it. Same goes for her husband Guilford. I'd do the movie injustice to try to describe how this all plays out, so I'll just say that it's incredibly powerful and let that be that.

The movie also talks about how Jane and Guilford are two sides of the same coin and complete each other. Not in a sappy, romantic way, but as Jane is a great thinker while Guilford is all heart. They're totally unprepared to rule the country, but they give it their best shot and make unpopular decisions based on their moral values and -- whether you agree with their religious beliefs or not -- you have to admire their courage. You really have to.

Lady Jane isn't an adventure movie and doesn't really belong here, but it is a wonderful movie and it nicely sets up Elizabeth, which is an adventure film, so that's why I'm talking about it.

Five out of five Keiras.