Even on her lead debut in My Summer of Love, Emily Blunt had a haughty air to her and she's predictably good casting in this rare attempt to pit Victoria against box-office queen Lizes, Helen Mirren and Cate Blanchett.

Blunt gives a subtle performance amid a supporting cast of palaces and carries the film with ease, though she never seems very 19th-century. The problem is that, beyond her youthful struggles against a weak mother and manipulative men (a one-note Mark Strong and a nicely devious Paul Bettany), Blunt becomes a monarch at 18, and has already met the right man, so half of the film is the "happily ever after", traditionally supposed to follow the end credits.

Julian Fellowes's script sticks close to the facts (that assassination attempt was one of quite a few), but I would have liked more of Jim Broadbent's irascible King William, Victoria's uncle. Directed by little-known Canadian Jean-Marc Vallée, it's a pleasant watch, though casting Miranda Richardson as Blunt's mother acts as a reminder that you had a lot more fun when she was on the throne in Blackadder. Extras are tiny.