The King's Speech - A Jolly Good Show

Rating: 8.4/10 --> Put this on the top of your Netflix Queue

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Typically before the Oscars I make it a point to watch a majority of the films nominated for Best Picture.  Ever since 2010, however, it has become a little more difficult to do that, since there are now 10 films nominated for Best Picture instead of five.  Let’s put it this way, between classes, attending ragin’ tea parties on the weekends, and just being a poor college student, I don’t find myself making it to the movie theater very often.   This is why I’m giving you my shpeel on Academy Award Winning Best Picture – The King’s Speech, three months after it won the infamous award.  Fortunately, life during a college summer permits you to do absolutely nothing all day but watch movies and television, so let’s do this thing.

The King’s Speech, directed by Tom Hooper, and starring: Colin Firth, Geoffrey Rush, and Helena Bonham Carter, attracted me thanks to its great achievements at the Academy Awards.  It won Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, and Best Original Screenplay (although this is slightly confusing, since it is based on the true story of King George VI of Great Britain, but I guess it’s not truly an adaptation in the eyes of the Academy).  Naturally I wanted to see a movie with that much success really badly, so I did… three months after the Oscars… my point is, it’s a movie that I really wanted to see, so I did, and it definitely didn’t disappoint.

Colin Firth was absolutely amazing.  In fact all of the acting was, but it was his ability to create a believable stammer that wins you over. I instantly sympathized for his character Albert. The uneasiness and nerves of Albert can be felt in the very first scene, as he stammers while trying to give a speech for his father, the king.  Firth’s acting range is evident throughout the film.  He does a great job of conveying how stressful and aggravating it would feel to be one of the most important public figures, but not be able to speak publicly.  Firth definitely deserved Best Actor, since it can’t be easy faking a stutter, and he carried the film on his shoulders.  His performance was magnificent and inspiring.

Geoffrey Rush and Helena Bonham Carter were great in their supporting roles.  It’s hard not to think of Captain Barbosa and Bellatrix Lestrange when you see these two on the Silver Screen, but their performances allowed me to dismiss their other memorable characters quickly.  The strength of The King’s Speech absolutely stems from the chemistry between Firth, Rush, and Carter.  They did their job as supporting actors by never taking away from the film, instead they fortified Firth’s role through their own great acting.

From a visual standpoint, Hooper’s choices were exactly what the film needed.  There were great shots where Albert would be sitting on a couch in 1/3 of the shot, but there would be complete empty space filled by the wall in the other 2/3.  This type of shot increased the level of intensity, by evoking the stress felt by Albert when trying to fix his stammer.  The film had great pacing too.  There was never a dull moment; I always wanted to see what was going to happen next. 

One little note: The score for this movie is awesome.  There are great themes throughout, that made me think of the greats: Bach, Mozart, Chopin, and etc... It certainly kept the mood of the film, and added to transporting you into England during the 1920-1940s. 

Basically this is a great film.  There is a great balance of humor and drama.  The acting, writing, directing and cinematography are all worthy of their awards.  The King’s Speech is worth the 118 minutes of an English monarch babbling.  So pop some corn, find your Snuggie, and watch a great movie.