Review of A Royal Affair (2012) by Jon C — 24 Nov 2012

In 1766, Caroline Mathilde(Alicia Vikander) is living the life of luxury in England when it is arranged that she will marry King Christian VII of Denmark(Mikkel Boe Folsgaard) without having ever met him. At least, he sounds cultured enough with his reputed interest in literature and the arts. However, he turns out to be nothing like that in his childish manner. Ignorning that first impression, she takes the advice to invite him to her bed chamber on their wedding night. And that goes disastrously bad. So, while they have a son, Caroline pretty much guarantees there will not be a second by not inviting her husband back.

As bad as any of that may sound, Rantzau(Thomas W. Gabrielsson) and Brandt(Cyron Melville) want back in to court, which is no surprise considering they currently reside in the armpit of the universe in Germany. To that aim, they recruit the least likely conspirator ever, Johann Struensee(Mads Mikkelsen), a local doctor who is very interested in the ideas of the enlightenment, to be the new royal physician.

While not being exactly emotionally resonant, "A Royal Affair," unlike most other period pieces, is a movie of ideas. Sadly, most of these ideas feel imported from a more recent age, as Caroline recalls events from her exiled future with perfect hindsight. As she makes clear early on, this was a very different age of the monarchy ascendant but not naturally all powerful. Take Christian VII for example, who vacillates between childlike and frat boy, at the beck and call of the nobles before Caroline and Johann conspire to take him in their direction, even as they are on the side of the angels. So, ironically enough, the movie is also not necessarily anti-monarchy; it just asks for a responsible ruler, while pointing how hard it is to rule even a small country. It is this system that Johann finds appealing, as a reformer is naturally drawn to the seat of power.