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Costume dramas about British monarchs are like a sub-genre of their own. Now we get one on the early life of Queen Victoria, the longest reining British royal to date. Director Jean-Marc Vallee has two themes running simultaneously. One is of political intrigue and the other is a love story. The latter works very well, especially thanks to its two lead actors.

As a girl, Victoria (Emily Blunt, THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA) didn’t even know that she was next in line for the throne following the death of her uncle King William (Jim Broadbent, BRIDGET JONES’S DIARY). Her mother the Duchess of Kent (Miranda Richardson, SPIDER) has her secluded from court, as well as other children. She says that even a palace can be a prison. The Duchess is being manipulated by Sir John Conroy (Mark Strong, STARDUST), who spent years making Victoria dependent so she would make her mother the Regent, in turn giving him the power of a royal, until Victoria turned 21. Victoria refused.

When she became queen, she was naïve and had a great deal to learn thanks to Sir John, who she virtually banished from court. Prime Minister Lord Melbourne (Paul Bettany, A BEAUTIFUL MIND) saw a chance to have her as a political ally and ingratiated himself to her acting as her secretary. Each influence around her had a different suitor to recommend. King Leopold of Belgium (Thomas Kretschmann, THE PIANIST) is determined to get Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (Rupert Friend, CHERI) in bed with the young queen, so he can gain influence in England. Victoria is advised by King William’s wife, Queen Adelaide (Harriet Walter, ATONEMENT), that all suitors will come with agendas so she must be wise.

Upon their first meeting, Albert is dreadfully nervous having been lectured on Victoria’s likes and dislikes ad nauseam. Victoria is not impressed when she realizes he’s been prepped to say all the right things. However as Albert eases, he allows himself to be natural and the two find they have many things in common. In Albert, Victoria feels that she has found someone that understands her.

Blunt gives life to this royal figure, something that doesn’t come off too often in this sub-genre. She brings a fragile strength to the role, which is just right. Victoria was ill prepared to be thrust into the role of queen and too eager to take advise from anyone other than her mother and Sir John Conroy. Lord Melbourne was kind when she need someone to do just that, so she trusted him too blindly. Friend brings a genuine quality to Prince Albert, which feel the exact opposite of everyone else around her. This makes the loves story so believable and compelling.

While the love story captures the viewer emotionally, the political elements are less engaging. This thread informs the audience well, but does so with words instead of actions. Exposition scenes are obvious and we don’t express passionately what’s at stake for Victoria. Lord Conroy’s oppression over her is told to us in voice over quickly, so it doesn’t set a strong emotional groundwork for why Victoria would be so easily taken by others. Additionally, the dramatic flow peters out toward then end. There is a great deal of build up in the love story, which drives the film, but there’s more story after the climax of that theme that the film wants to tell, which is still interesting, but less engaging and more melodramatic in how it’s handled.

In the end I was left wanting more, but in a good way. Blunt and Friend made these royals likeable and interesting. I want to know more about what they did after the movie ends. Blunt finally gets a lead role where she can shine. With some nice help from Friend, she carries this picture, because she creates the emotional pull. She reminds us that there is a human being with feelings underneath those formal crowns and gowns.