Young Catherine (1991)
3.8 of 5 from 46 ratings
3h 6min
- General info
- Available formats
- Synopsis:
In the early 1740s, Elizabeth (Vanessa Redgrave), Empress of Russia, is seeking a bride for her nephew and heir, Peter (Reece Dinsdale). She picks the beautiful Princess Sophie (Julia Ormond), a teenager from a tiny German-speaking state. It's a huge change of fortune for the naive young girl. After arriving in Russia, she is received into the Russian Orthodox Church under the new name Catherine. Though she feels like an outsider at first, she eventually becomes devoted to her new homeland, its culture and its people. But her personal life is in turmoil. Peter is mentally unbalanced and sometimes vicious. Shortly after the couple's wedding, he makes clear that the marriage will never be consummated. Meanwhile, Empress Elizabeth, whose anger is legendary, expects Catherine to produce an heir or perhaps suffer the consequences. One of the troubled Catherine's few confidants is an aging, worldly-wise British diplomat, Sir Charles Williams. On his advice, she gives up her virginity to a soldier who is devoted to her, and bears a child, Paul, who is officially Peter's son and heir. As the life of the old empress draws to an end, Peter increasingly threatens to take "revenge" on Catherine, and on Russia itself, once he occupies the throne. Catherine and her supporters at court realize that action is needed to protect her, and some warn that ultimately, the struggle may come down to her life or Peter's. - Actors:
- Vanessa Redgrave, Christopher Plummer, Franco Nero, Marthe Keller, Maximilian Schell, Julia Ormond, Mark Frankel, Reece Dinsdale, Anna Kanakis, John Shrapnel, Hartmut Becker, Alexander Kerst, Laurie Holden, Katharine Schlesinger, Katya Galitzine, Rory Edwards, Chris Bryant, Joyce Simmonds, Terry Bamber, Jenny Whiffen
- Directors:
- Michael Anderson
- Producers:
- Neville C. Thompson
- Writers:
- Chris Bryant
- Genres:
- TV Dramas
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