The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex

The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex, directed by Michael Curtiz, was shot in Technicolor on a 1.07 million dollar budget and grossed 1.61 million. Bette Davis had wanted Laurence Olivier for the Essex role, and reportedly said that when she had to kiss Errol Flynn on screen she'd close her eyes and imagine it was Olivier instead; co-star Nanette Fabray recalled that the moment the director yelled cut, Flynn and Davis would stalk off in opposite directions. Even the title was a compromise forced by ego clashes: Flynn demanded his character be acknowledged, and Davis rejected the proposed title "The Knight and the Lady" because she felt it gave him top billing in what she considered a woman's story. Who it's for: anyone curious about a genuinely tense on set pairing between two major stars, in one of the era's expensive Technicolor productions. Who it's not for: viewers expecting a harmonious pairing of leads, since the real tension behind the film is a story in itself.