Assault on a Queen

I finally saw Notes on a Scandal over the weekend. It’s a marvelous, poisonous little bon-bon of a movie. It’s not nearly as great as some surprisingly gushing reviews led me to expect but it’s still a treat to see Dench and Blanchett going at it. And their final fisticuffs, which went way over the top, reminded me of the slap-down between Geraldine Page and Ruth Gordon in one of the greatest forgotten camp fests of all time, What Ever Happened to Aunt Alice?

Anyway, Dame Judi and Cate make quite a pair. And don’t forget, in this year when the Mighty Mirren is sweeping up trophies for her portrayals of both Elizabeth I and II, that these two great dames got Oscar nominations in the same year for their own portrayals of the Virgin Queen. Cate lost to It-Girl-of-the-Moment Paltrow for Shakespeare in Love, giving a performance that was truly lovely but about as meaty as Doris Day’s in Pillow Talk. But Judi managed to snag hers for the same film in which her eight-minute portrayal was, granted, one of the highlights. Forgive the tangent, but anytime I can gripe about Shakespeare in Love ruling and ruining an Oscarcast (like Titanic and Forrest Gump), I just can’t hold back.