The King’s Speech-Movie Review

TTTThiiss mmmmovie wwaas fa fa fa abu-lous!

Imagine yourself in a theatre full of people who are all collectively holding their breath. In the opening scene of the film we see the Duke of York (Colin Firth) standing in front of a mammoth microphone in a sporting stadium. Everyone is on their feet waiting silently for the Duke to begin his speech. The hush is deafening. Everyone in the audience of the movie theatre, and Wimbledon, hold their breath and waits for the Duke to begin. After a painful minute the first tentative syllables emanate from the loud speaker. We watch the Duke stumble through this speech and see the pain in his wife Elizabeth’s (Helena Bodham Carter) eyes as he bumbles along. The camera pans to audience members who look at their feet in collective embarrassed diffidence for the Duke.  

Bertie (King George VI) stammers. We see what disturbing neglect and abuse at the hands of royal nannies and emotionally distant parental figures can do to even the most privileged members of society. The future King of England has endured a childhood of pain. Viewers gain insight into his early years through the masterful telling of this poignant tale. Your heart can’t help but bleed for this man. We feel his pain through the empathy of his wife and watch him learn to find his own voice with the help of his speech therapist turned friend, Lionel Logue (Geoffrey Rush). Rush’s portrayal of this character is exquisite. He says more with his eyes and body than most actors could manage with an hour of soliloquies. Firth’s portrayal of King George VI exudes angst, frustration, and fear.

At its heart this is a movie about the friendship that develops between the King of England and his unconventional Australian speech therapist Logue. It is set against the turbulent backdrop of the 1920’s and 1930’s and Great Britain’s entry into World War II. No longer can a King lead by simply being seen in the society column of the newspaper. Now a King must be heard on the radio and seen in the newsreels. Although these events are important, the true focus of the film is the relationship that is forged between the main characters. Logue becomes the King’s friend. The viewer is left with the distinct impression that Bertie, or King George VI  has never had a friend before. He is unsure of how to react to the familiarity that Logue shows him. Ascension to the throne does not come easily for Bertie.  The film chronicles the debacle of King Edward the VIII (Guy Pearce) abdication in favour of marriage to the Baltimore divorcee Wallace Simpson.

Throughout the trials of his speech therapy the King’s greatest supporter is his wife Elizabeth. We see the future Queen Mother in an entirely different light than in other royal movies. Here we see a loving wife and mother who desperately needs to help her husband, but doesn’t know how to turn her emotional support into practical suggestions. This portrayal seems to cut through the mythology surrounding this story and give us a glimpse into the hearts of the main players. In many ways this story is one of tragedy, but it is also a film that speaks of the perseverance of people and the power of individuals to overcome adversity.

            The biggest drawback with this film is its venue. It can only be seen in Halifax at the Oxford theatre. I understand that many Haligonians feel some nostalgia when they think about the Oxford, but as a foreigner to South End filming traditions, I can tell you that I find this theatre to be an archaic relic. We stood outside in sub-polar temperatures for what seems like a lifetime before the lone ticket agent was able to process the crowd, my husband had to park a few blocks away and then find me in the crowd. The line up at the tiny popcorn stand seemed endless, and the seating felt as though it would have been new when Ben Hur was the latest film sensation in the city. I really can’t fault the film for the theatre, but I can fault the theatre for creating one reason for criticism of what would have been a perfect movie experience.