QUEEN MARIE: A Slightly Dented Crown

A granddaughter of Queen Victoria who was fated from birth to rule somewhere, Marie of Romania ended up many miles from her British homeland when she was chosen as the future wife of Crown Prince Ferdinand of Romania. When he ascended to the throne, she became queen and a beloved figure in her adopted homeland. Never one to sit quietly at home, she spent World War I working in a military hospital as a nurse before venturing to the Paris Peace Conference of 1919 to lobby for post-war recognition of an enlarged Romanian state.

Directed by Italian filmmaker Alexis Sweet Cahill, Queen Marie chronicles the ruler’s attempts to convince international leaders that the “Romanian question” was deserving of their attention. And while lavish historical dramas laden with European accents are increasingly out of vogue with moviegoers, Queen Marie isn’t without its charms—including its fittingly regal lead.

Queen of Hearts

From the moment we first meet Queen Marie (Roxana Lupu), it’s clear she cares deeply for the Romanian people. Despite warnings that it’s not safe for her royal personage, she accompanies vans of much-needed supplies to the outskirts of the country, where repeated border skirmishes mean that for them, the war has still not ended. Romania is in desperate need of not only more aid for its people, but also recognition of its newly enlarged borders; if international leaders agree to officially recognize a united Greater Romania, the country may finally find peace.

However, Romanian Prime Minister Brătianu (Adrian Titieni) is not having much luck convincing men like French Prime Minister Clemenceau, UK Prime Minister Lloyd George, and U.S. President Wilson that the problems in his small country are worthy of their attention. It’s suggested that Queen Marie—already a popular figure at home and abroad, not to mention fluent in English—travel to Paris with her daughters to try a different, softer form of diplomacy. Many of the men in the Romanian government object to sending the queen on what they presume to be a fool’s errand, none more so than her eldest son, Prince Carol II (Anghel Damian), who resents his mother for trying to end his affair with an unsuitable woman. But in the end, Marie’s desire to do her bit wins out.

So, Queen Marie kisses her husband the king (and her lover, Prince Știrbey) goodbye and boards a train to Paris. Beautiful and outspoken, she instantly casts a spell over the French people and the press—but her efforts to win over Wilson, Lloyd George, and their ilk present a whole other challenge.

Heavy Lays the Head

I knew next to nothing about Queen Marie before watching this film; in fact, that was the main reason why I wanted to watch it! It seems like certain royals, such as Elizabeth I and Marie’s grandmother, Victoria, get new movies made about their lives nearly every year, to the point that one feels like one knows everything there is to know about them, but a quick bit of research into Marie and her reputation as a strong, intelligent ruler made me want to know more about her. And while Queen Marie isn’t exactly a deep dive into the life of its subject, hyper-focused as it is on one very specific period in her life, it did open my eyes quite a bit.

When one hasn’t left a small apartment in quite some time, the grand European palaces and promenades of a film like Queen Marie are extra enticing. The film is gorgeously pieced together, from Nora Dumitrescu and Laura Russu’s ornate art direction to Claudia Bunea and Ana Ioneci’s swoon-worthy costumes. (I especially enjoyed living vicariously through the scene in which a dressmaker arrives in Paris to provide Marie and her daughters with new, stylish gowns to replace their more old-fashioned wartime wear.) However, I did laugh quite a bit at the way almost every man of a certain age was sporting the exact same mustache, to the point that it was hard to tell the men apart; it didn’t help that most of those mustaches looked like they were about to come unglued from the actors’ faces.

The biggest issue in Queen Marie is the incredibly heavy-handed script, co-written by Cahill with Brigitte Drodtloff and Maria-Denise Teodoru. The story itself is fascinating if you have even a passing interest in history and the women who helped create it. But the film too often tells, rather than shows, us why someone or something is important, right down to using newsreel-style footage and voiceover narration to begin and end the story. While this may be designed to serve audience members like myself who are unfamiliar with Queen Marie’s story, it ends up feeling like a university lecture. The weakness of the dialogue is only further emphasized when it is in English, as several members of the European cast struggle to make it sound believable when not acting in their native tongues. While one imagines that the complex international relations portrayed in the film probably did involve many of the central figures speaking English as a common language, that devotion to accuracy doesn’t do anyone any favors here.

However, one must make an exception for Lupu, a UK-based Romanian actress who speaks English well and with a dash of the prim British accent that one imagines Queen Marie may have had. Despite being saddled with many repetitive monologues in which she states over and over again how much she loves Romania, I couldn’t help but be won over by her performance. Lupu has played British royalty previously, and with her timeless beauty and natural regality, it is easy to see why she keeps getting cast in these roles. It’s a joy to watch her deliver an angry speech to Lloyd George over lunch before storming out, even if one wishes the speech itself was a bit better written. When she charms the press in her first meeting with them upon arriving in Paris, one feels charmed too. I found her Queen Marie incredibly easy to root for, and that kept me watching the film to the very end.

Conclusion

Queen Marie is at its best when it stops trying so hard and just lets Lupu—and those costumes—shine.

What do you think? Are you familiar with the story of Queen Marie? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

Queen Marie begins screening in virtual cinemas in the U.S. on May 7, 2021. You can find more international release dates here.

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