The director, John Madden, could have set this up as a minor tragedy, but he has the wit, especially in the first half, to play it cool and droll, and he is helped no end by finely gauged performances.

| Jul 19, 2021

Mrs. Brown is reserved yet spirited.

| May 6, 2016

Centering on a lesser-known chapter in the reign of Queen Victoria, this richly detailed drama about her intimate relationship with her servant that scandalized the country is extremely well-acted; Judi Dench deserves an Oscar nomination

Full Review | Original Score: B+ | Jan 29, 2007

Dench is magnificent as Victoria, a toy-sized, black-suited, dough girl of despair, a woman slowly recovering her wits and her expectations.

| Feb 9, 2006

Full Review | Original Score: 4/5 | Jan 30, 2003

| Original Score: 3/4 | Apr 12, 2002

Judi Dench's glacial, reserved demeanour contrasts beautifully with Billy Connolly's natural, rebellious exuberance, and their resultant spark of chemistry is undeniable.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Apr 17, 2001

Before you know it, you're caught up in a difficult but touching friendship, and enjoying a history lesson more than you ever thought possible.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Jan 1, 2000

Full Review | Original Score: 3/4 | Jan 1, 2000

Assuming that rich human insight, great production values, and topnotch acting still count for something, Mrs. Brown should have no trouble finding an appreciative audience.

| Original Score: 3/5 | Jan 1, 2000

A reordering of history -- an effort, beautifully realized, to personalize Queen Victoria and to chip away at the mythology and musty assumptions that surround England's most durable, influential monarch.

| Original Score: 3/4 | Jan 1, 2000

Full Review | Original Score: 3/4 | Jan 1, 2000

''Mrs. Brown'' transcends its period setting not only with a keenly observed struggle between love and duty but also with the kind of controversy that envelops the Queen and her servant.

Full Review | Original Score: 3.5/5 | Jan 1, 2000

Mrs. Brown' is a love story about two strong-willed people who find exhilaration in testing each other. It is not about sexual love, or even romantic love, really, but about that kind of love based on challenge and fascination.

| Original Score: 3.5/4 | Jan 1, 2000

Even as the film teases us with the underlying ''sensuality'' of the relationship, it fails to portray it as a convincing human bond. Mrs. Brown is stately yet depressed, like Victoria.

| Original Score: C+ | Jul 18, 1997