The Young Victoria

From Alexandre Dumas' The Count of Monte Cristo to the horrors of the opera house in Phantom of the Opera to ABC Television's Alias and the WB's Buffy the Vampire Slayer and within the pages Shakespeare and JK Rowling's Harry Potter, the love triangle has been one of the most effective tools for drama utilizing manipulation, politics and seduction. Of course, the most controversial and fought over love triangles of our time comes from the pages of Stephanie Meyer's Twilight Saga. Defined, it is a situation involving three people in an emotional relationship involving a couple and a third person with whom one of them is involved. For instance, in Alias' season two finale, Michael Vartan's Vaughn goes to retrieve Jennifer Garner's Sidney from a yet unknown location after a vicious fight that knocked her unconscious for an as of yet unrevealed period of time. She wakes and calls in, meeting him at a safe house. And, in one of the series' most shocking points, he reveals his left hand and on the ring finger clearly sits a wedding ring. And so, for season three, she finds her world rocked to her discontent and the drama is so brilliantly stretched that their love triangle is one of the most memorable on television in the last decade.

And for Victoria, young queen of England, an unconventional love triangle brews for the novice queen. After the death of her uncle, the King of England, Victoria (Emily Blunt) is crowned queen with little to no experience. Seduced by the sitting Prime Minister, Melbourne (Paul Bettany), into trusting him alone, her choices seem all controlled. However, she is being advised by Prince Albert (Rupert Friend), a poor prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha who must wait for her to decide whom she will choose.

Granted Melbourne is not in love with her, nor does he compete with Albert in the same way that Albert competes with Melbourne. Nor is Victoria aware of this behind-the-scenes competition, waiting to wisely make the choice of her lifetime, which history tells us lasted only 20 years of her 64 year reign, the longest in British history. And they were so in love. And for this film, Albert does not seduce; he serves and provides a balance to her work that supports her in every way. He is exactly the counter to Melbourne and makes for a smart match for her, providing wisdom and confidence that makes him the clear choice for her trust, winning her over completely.

And for this piece, this story, the love triangle serves its purpose well, creating a beautiful love story against a very turbulent and dark time in the historical landscape of England. The rich colors speak the passion of the story as the perfect counter to the times. The music is emotional, as are the performances. And the calculating coolness that is the British style of cinema sculpts the emotional landscape with richness and depth, recalling the exact reason why I love British Films. The creative way that the writers utilized the Love Triangle paints a beautiful way to balance personal and political choices, making for a wonderful and stunning love story. And, as you may recall, I am very picky whenever I engage a love story; The Young Victoria is one of the best I've encountered in the last five to ten years.

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IN: Mark Strong

OUT: Paul Bettany

Coming Soon: Legion