Regal Speech a Kingly Achievement
King George V (Michael Gambon) is nearing the end of his days. His eldest son Edward (Guy Pearce) is next in line for the throne but that doesn’t mean he isn’t going to do his best to make sure younger son Albert (Colin Firth) is prepared for royal duties just in case. After all, Edward seems more content to gallivant the countryside with his thrice divorced paramour, so there is the real possibility he might not fit to be the King of England as it stands, anyhow.
Colin Firth and Helena Bonham Carter in The King's Speech © The Weinstein Company
Albert isn’t sure he wants or deserves to be King. While he loves his country, he’s not sure he’s fit to be the titular head of it. Thanks to a horrible stuttering problem his public speaking skills are atrocious, and while he and his wife Elizabeth (Helena Bonham Carter) have just about everything they can think of to solve this problem no treatments, no doctors and no therapies have ever proven successful.
Enter Lionel Logue (Geoffrey Rush). An Aussie speech therapist whose tactics are hardly orthodox, he believes he can help this unconfident member of the British Royal Family. Soon the pair verbally spar in a way that is hardly proper, the Prince and the commoner transitioning from pupil and teacher to a couple of friends whose relationship will last for decades.
Based on a true story, The King’s Speech is a gloriously old fashioned historical drama that the British seem to do better than just about anyone. Directed by Tom Hooper (The Damned United) and written by David Seidler (Tucker: The Man and His Dream), the movie is obvious Oscar fodder that doesn’t so much rise to the occasion as vault right over the top of it. It is one of the best films of the year and a clear Best Picture frontrunner, while Firth is a virtual shoe-in to walk off with the Academy Award for Best Actor.
None of that means a darn thing, however, if the movie itself isn’t a crowd-pleasing winner, and in this case The King’s Speech is all that, a bag of chips and the contents of the gosh darn refrigerator. For a dialogue heavy picture this one is exhilarating, and without even realizing it I discovered when it was finished I’d gently moved all the way forward in my seat to the point I was leaning on the one directly in front of me. Like a great thriller I was on pins and needles. Like an uproarious comedy I was chortling out loud. And, most importantly, like the best in drama this one had me shedding honesty earned tears of joy during the breathtaking climax.
Seidler’s script is astonishing. Literate and heartfelt, intricate and complex yet intimate and relatable, this is the kind of writing for cinema that can take a person’s breath away. These are complex, three-dimensional human beings, all of them breaking forth from the confines of the screen in a manner that ends up making them almost seem as if they’re sitting in the seat next to you. I was captivated and enthralled, and there didn’t seem to be a false note or beat anywhere to be found.
Needless to say this is an actor’s showcase. I’ve already stated the fate I feel Firth is destined for, but he’s just so gosh darn amazing here they’re just aren’t enough superlatives to describe his accomplishment. He’s been so good for so long a person almost takes for granted just how great he is, but after last year’s A Single Man and now this in 2010 I doubt I’ll ever do anything like that as it refers to him ever again.
Rush, with the far more showy role (at least on the surface) rises up to meet him, matching wits with his fellow thespian as if they were both expert fencers tipping lances. This is the type of character the former Oscar-winner could easily have taken over the top and into the stratosphere, choosing instead to underplay his more offbeat tendencies making his outbursts all the more emotionally effective.
There is a long history of British period costume epics standing out from the crowd, relatively recent examples including Howard’s End, Shakespeare in Love, Pride & Prejudice and The Queen. But just because it feels familiar doesn’t mean anything going on is sub par or not up to snuff. A good film is a good film, and this one is absolutely marvelous, and I seriously doubt those who appreciate quality cinema are going to find much of anything to nitpick.
For my part, The King’s Speech was rousing entertainment that made me feel energetic and alive. I left the theatre in rapture, and it was all I could do to talk about anything but it as I made the trek back home. This was a movie that had me wrapped around its little finger so tightly I never wanted to be released, the end result a crowning achievement all involved can feel honored and proud to have been an integral part of.
Film Rating: êêêê (out of 4)
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