The King's Speech -A Review-

I've finally seen all of the Best Picture nominees that I wanted to before the big night. Oscar is coming, and I know who he's awarding Best Picture!

Although The Social Network should prolly take it, I think The King's Speech will be the victor Sunday night. Why? It's incredibly well written, acted, and directed, and it's exactly the 'type' of film the old school AMPAS voters cream their pants for.

The Royal Poop:

Duke Albert, or Bertie to his family (Colin Firth), is afflicted with a lifelong stammer that greatly impedes his ability to speak. At the urging of his wife Elizabeth (Helena Bonham Carter) he seeks out the help of speech therapist Lionel Logue (Geoffrey Rush). Together they work tirelessley to overcome Albert's impediment, while also forming an unusual and sometimes strained bond; Logue being the first commoner Albert has ever befriended. However when the time comes for Albert to assume his brother's title of King, Albert fears his stutter will keep him from effectively ruling at a time when war is imminent and the radio is the new form of communication. How can he rally his people and the world if he cannot speak a clear sentance? The pressure of his royal duty and the expectations of his people weigh heavily as he pushes forth to the fateful day when he must address the world, via live radio broadcast, and deliver the speech that will define his reign as King George VI.

This movie was incredible! Colin Firth stutters and stammers so convincingly and at the right moments that you believe him from the very start and rally behind him as he tries to get over it. His speech impediment is neither over the top nor reductive. Helena Bonham Carter elegantly embodies a royal air, one that in real life becomes the beloved Queen Mother of our time, mother of Elizabeth II. After all, let us not forget this is the story of the Father of our current Queen. Aside: there's a playful reference to the Queen Mum's tendancy to put on weight early on. Cute. Geoffrey Rush is animated and down-to-earth as the speech therapist and a man who would become a lifelong friend of the King. Another notable performance was Michael Gambon (of the Harry Potter films), who is pure classic royalty as King George V. Director Tom Hooper makes each moment work and rends a real emotional response from every individual scene.

As the story goes, mere months before filming began a relative of Lionel Logue found a diary of his and this information was used as a tool to make the film as historically accurate as possible, even instigating rewrites of the script to be as faithful to the source as possible. Although this relative, upon seeing the film stated that he couldn't imagine Logue ever referring to the King by his nickname Bertie. Also, apparently the timelines, as is usual with historical films, is changed for dramatic reasons. Otherwise I have faith that this was the excellent rendering of a fascinating story.

Also of note: this was all going on while the King's brother, King Edward VIII was abdicating the throne to marry american divorcee Wallis Simpson, a much bigger story in the papers at the time. The fact that this has become the better film is only more praise to the creators, who surely will be awarded well on Oscar Sunday.

DO NOT hesitate to rent or buy this incredible piece of history when it comes out on DVD and Blu-Ray April 19th. (Thats a Tuesday, y'all!)

Enjoy.