Ceticultsot Beautiful, moving film.

Iseerphia All that we are seeing on the screen is happening with real people, real action sequences in the background, forcing the eye to watch as if we were there.

Janae Milner Easily the biggest piece of Right wing non sense propaganda I ever saw.

Ava-Grace Willis Story: It's very simple but honestly that is fine.

Red-125 Fire Over England (1937) was directed by William K. Howard. It stars Flora Robson as Queen Elizabeth I. Robson wasn't a great beauty, which meant that she had to bring real acting talent to her roles. Talent is what she had, and this talent is evident in the film.Robson makes Queen Elizabeth come alive for us, as a powerful woman, who could be cruel and demanding, but who truly wanted the best for her people and her country.The historical Elizabeth was vain, and Robson portrays this well. She demands an "unblemished mirror," although she is aware that the mirror reflects the blemishes on her face. Her scene at Tilbury Field is shortened in this movie, but it's still powerful. (Incidentally, the Spanish Armada--the key historical event that drives the plot--took place in 1588, when Elizabeth was 55 years old. Robson was 35 when the movie was made, but looks older, so historical accuracy is preserved.)Vivian Leigh plays the ingénue role of Cynthia. It's not a great role--she mostly simpers. Laurence Olivier plays Michael, the dashing young hero. Of course, their future together is part of cinematic history.Look for James Mason in a minor role, and Raymond Massey as King Phillip II of Spain.The film was shot in black and white by the talented James Wong Howe. It will work better on the large screen, but it worked well on DVD, which is how we saw it.

blanche-2 I admit not knowing much about the part of British history conveyed in "Fire over England." The main interest for me was seeing the two young lovers, Vivien Leigh and Laurence Olivier, who began their affair during this film. What a beautiful couple, what a great love, and what a sad end to it. You'd never dream looking at these two what life had in store for them on the personal front."Fire over England" is a 1937 Alexander Korda film that takes place in 1558. Relations between Spain and England are terrible, with the British capturing Spanish gold from the New World. When a scheme to get her off the throne is uncovered, the Queen (Flora Robson) sends a young man, Michael Ingolby (Olivier) undercover to the court of Philip of Spain. Pretending to be a traitor, he is able to get the names of the actual Brits in the pay of the Spanish and learns they want to send the Armada against England.He goes to battle, leading an attack by night on the Armada ships. Meanwhile, he is in love with one of the Queen's ladies in waiting, Cynthia (Leigh) and has the affection of the Queen herself."Fire over England" is an early acting film acting assignment from Laurence Olivier. He is super-handsome and an exuberant, energetic Michael Ingolby, perhaps a bit overdone in spots. This, however, can be forgiven because of the nature of the role. Leigh really doesn't have much to do. Though Selznick allegedly was introduced Vivien Leigh by his brother Myron when Atlanta was burning, a historian made something of the fact that he evidently saw this film beforehand. If he did, there's no way he would have a) remembered Leigh and b) thought of her for Scarlett.All in all, a very interesting film.

rsternesq This is a great movie with excellent production values, performances and exposition. These were very complicated times and neither Elizabeth nor Philip was a simple ruler. Neither was good nor bad and both were permitted by the mores of their times to be outrageous. Given that Flora Robson did not resemble Elizabeth in the slightest and was far, far younger at the time of her portrayal, she presents the great Queen as she should be portrayed except that Elizabeth was a beauty in her youth and permitted the illusion of beauty to continue long after it was lost. See it, hear it and enjoy it. It is a mountain beside the current portrayals of these people and their times as a bland pageant of farthingales.

Igenlode Wordsmith I'm afraid I was disappointed by "Fire over England", having pinned too many hopes on this film of all those in the Olivier season: based on a novel I'd loved as a child, starring Flora Robson as Queen Elizabeth with names such as Raymond Massey, James Mason and Robert Newton among the supporting cast, and featuring Vivien Leigh as the real-life love interest of a Laurence Olivier described as channelling Douglas Fairbanks and John Barrymore as he does all his own stunts, what could hold more promise? Like "The Sea Hawk", it was a picture I'd heard of and had long since been waiting to see.But great anticipation places an insuperable weight on a film. "The Sea Hawk" disappointed, and Olivier is no Flynn. The character is petulant and callow, admittedly -- but I couldn't identify with Michael emotionally (not aided by the fact that he appears to be trifling completely untroubled with the affections of two ladies at once, which deprived the love scenes of their conviction: it didn't come across as a conflict of loyalties, but as having your cake and eating it), and I found the action sequences uninspiring. The stunt dives look like belly-flops (presumably with an eye to the angle of the safety nets), the 'storm-tossed' ships wobble along with their sails obviously providing no propulsion whatsoever (would it have cost too much to have someone blow on them?), and the palace guards at the Escurial display a degree of stupidity in their pursuit that even in the context of cliché is less thrilling than ridiculous. The only moments of the Spanish adventure that worked for me at all were the double-edged dialogue at the dining table, and the 'spy' scenes with Raymond Massey.For the true honours of this production lie not with the adolescent hero but with the ageing generation. Massey invests the workaholic, melancholic Philip of Spain with a lethally plodding efficiency that makes him truly to be feared. The quietly-weighted exchange between the older Ingolby and his friend-turned-captor holds far more emotional impact than young Michael's histrionics when he finally cottons on (about a reel later than everybody else, audience included). The Queen's relationship with her boyhood's Robin is far deeper and better-portrayed than Michael's with Cynthia, and the memorable struggle is not Laurence Olivier with a sword in his hand but Elizabeth facing the loss of her youth.It is the grown-up drama that is worth watching here. But unfortunately this is not the main focus of the motion picture.