A Royal Treat

The King’s Speech

Tom Hooper, 2010

5 Stars

Being in the far reaches of the world, one often misses out on some of the grander film releases. Indeed my largest gripe with being out here is that I have lost touch almost entirely with modern cinema. One film of late, that even Japan was unable to escape is the multi-Oscar winning historical drama The King’s Speech.

As regular readers will know, I’m not one for the Oscar winners… To be frank, of the last few years’ nominees and winners, there have been very few I’ve actually made the effort to watch. Most of them, in fact, I have sitting, still in their cellophane wrappings, on my shelves. I’m stubborn like that.

However, when a delightful parcel from Blighty arrived last week, containing not only season 2 of Glee and some delicious new Percy Pigs, but also this year’s biggest international blockbuster, I was rather intrigued.

The King’s Speech is the moving and heart-warming story of the unlikely King George VI and his Antipodean speech therapist Lionel Logue, told with an enrapturing passion and humour.

Colin Firth, finally, at long last (thank God, shuttup mother) garnering a Best Actor Oscar, truly gives a remarkable performance as the king, fluctuating between the broken, stuttering young man, and the frustrated, terrified royalty he would become. His relationship with his brother David (an oddly cast Guy Pierce) is wonderfully portrayed, and the contempt he holds towards the disgraced king is believable and understandable. Geoffrey Rush, a perpetual favourite of mine, is outstanding as the eccentric therapist, delivering witticisms and advice with fluid hilarity. Miss Bonham Carter also sheds her becoming-rather-annoying “oh, I’m so crazy! No, really, look at the hair; I’m metal” routine, and goes back to her Merchant Ivory roots to deliver a beautiful performance as the lady we all know as the Queen Mum. And Timothy Spall? As a seedy, greasy young Winston Churchill? Well yes. Oh yes.

And Karen from Outnumbered as the young Princess Margaret is as sublimely wonderful as ever.

The story never loses pace throughout, and as such kudos to David Seidler for a witty and well paced script, and one which delivers some truly powerful scenes, most notably the first meeting between the two characters, and the revelation in Westminster Abbey. Indeed, at two hours long, this film almost didn’t feel long enough, and I could happily have sat for at least another hour watching such a fantastic cast delivering a top-notch screenplay.

The King’s Speech really lives up to its reputation. If you haven’t seen it, get out there and buy it. I shall be recommending it to the students for this week’s movie club.