Mary, Queen of Scots

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Mary, Queen of Scots

PG-13

Released Feb 2, 1972

2h 8m

History

Drama

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Popcornmeter

67%

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9 Reviews

55%

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500+ Ratings

Mary, Queen of Scots (Vanessa Redgrave), teenage wife to the king of France, returns to Scotland after her husband's death. Elizabeth Tudor (Glenda Jackson), believing her cousin Mary and her Roman Catholic beliefs to be a political threat, creates romantic dilemmas to distract her. Mary's subsequent marriage to Lord Darnley (Timothy Dalton), her relationship with courtier David Riccio (Ian Holm), and a third marriage to Lord Bothwell (Nigel Davenport) lead to her abdication and exile.

Alexander Walker

London Evening Standard

Under Charles Jarrott’s direction, it’s essentially a tableau serie, but it whizzes by like a murkier Peyton Place.

May 31, 2022

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John Russell Taylor

The Times (UK)

It is not all that bad, in the sense that it is never less than quite respectable, reasonably literate, but it is certainly a long, dull plod.

May 26, 2022

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Roger Ebert

Chicago Sun-Times

Historical dramas can be fun if you approach them in the right spirit.

Rated: 3/4

Oct 23, 2004

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Eddie Harrison

film-authority.com

…a proper Hollywood historical epic in the traditional style…

Rated: 4/5

Jul 15, 2022

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Madeleine Harmsworth

Sunday Mirror (UK)

Wonderful shots of our green and pleasant land. Plenty of drama. Two top actresses working hard to do justice to their momentous roles. And yet somehow it's a bore -- an antiseptic view of history.

May 31, 2022

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Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

A royal flush of a different sort can be found in this gripping period piece in which two queens try to sweep each other out of power.

Rated: 3.5/4

Jun 21, 2020

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Amir A

For Someone Who Is Studying History For GCSE This Was Sure Interesting And Useful

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

06/23/24

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Alec B

Slightly better than "Anne of the Thousand Days" previous costume drama, but mostly because of Redgrave and Jackson who, of course, give fantastic performances.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/10/24

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Audience Member

Slightly better than Jarrott's previous costume drama, but mostly because of Redgrave and Jackson who, of course, give fantastic performances.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

02/13/23

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steve d

Tries far too hard to rework history to make Mary a hero.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

03/30/23

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Audience Member

No its not completely true history.... few films are. But its great drama with two giants of acting at their best. Redgrave and Jackson are tremendous, as are all the production values. A delicious flick.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

08/10/19

Full Review

Audience Member

The tumultuous life of passion, betrayal, and death is wrapped in to a movie worth watching. Charles Jarrott captures the life of Mary, both queen of Scotland and France and her confrontation with her cousin Queen Elizabeth I. Everything about the movie pulls you in.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/11/23

Full Review

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Charles Jarrott

Director

Vanessa Redgrave

Mary, Queen of Scots

Glenda Jackson

Queen Elizabeth

Patrick McGoohan

James Stuart

Timothy Dalton

Henry, Lord Darnley

Nigel Davenport

Lord Bothwell

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Synopsis

Mary, Queen of Scots (Vanessa Redgrave), teenage wife to the king of France, returns to Scotland after her husband's death. Elizabeth Tudor (Glenda Jackson), believing her cousin Mary and her Roman Catholic beliefs to be a political threat, creates romantic dilemmas to distract her. Mary's subsequent marriage to Lord Darnley (Timothy Dalton), her relationship with courtier David Riccio (Ian Holm), and a third marriage to Lord Bothwell (Nigel Davenport) lead to her abdication and exile.

Director: Charles Jarrott
Producer: Hal B. Wallis
Screenwriter: John Hale
Distributor: Universal Pictures
Production Co: Universal Pictures, Hal Wallis Productions
Rating: PG-13
Genre: History, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Feb 2, 1972, Original
Release Date (DVD): Sep 18, 2007
Runtime: 2h 8m