History unmade: Dreyer's Unrealised Mary. Queen of Scots
One of Dreyer’s great unrealised films was an account of the life and loves of Maria Stuart, or Mary, Queen of Scots. Dreyer’s archive contains extensive research materials and notes towards this film, many of which were gathered or developed during trips to Scotland in 1946 and 1955. This essay samples the contents of the Maria Stuart collection, outlining Dreyer’s research trips, reading, and efforts to have the film produced, and contextualises this unrealised project in the years between his films Vredens Dag (Day of Wrath, 1943) and Ordet (The Word, 1955). The article also discusses Dreyer’s mediation in his unpublished screenplay of his extensive knowledge of the historical facts and historiographical controversies surrounding Mary Stuart, examining the resulting tension in the unmade film between the historical record and the psychological realism of Dreyer’s queen.
