Review of The King's Speech (2010) by Thomas B — 30 Jan 2015

When it comes to subject choice in movies, one of the most well-explored areas is royalty, which raises the question, do we really need another one? We've been through everything from butlers to monarchs with results varying from good to terrible. However, The King's Speech is not just another royalty flick. It stands tall among the very strongest of its genre through the strength of its script, direction and especially its performers. .

The King's Speech is the story of King George VI, Bertie (Firth) to his friends, and his ascension to the throne after the death of his father (Gambon) and his brother's (Pearce) abdication. The only problem is his stammer. Bertie can barely blurt out a sentence without st-stuttering through every word. In order to overcome this impediment, his wife (Carter) enlists the help of a slightly unorthodox speech therapist, Lionel Logue (Rush). This may seem a thin premise to hang a film on, but the themes explored with admirable confidence are more than enough to fill two hours with. .

The entire cast, bursting at the seams with talent, put in oscar worthy performances, with the fiery yet burdened Colin Firth incredible as the King, the demure yet commanding Helena Bonham Carter as Queen Elizabeth and the inimitable Geoffery Rush as Lionel Logue. Leading the cast is Firth whose entire career is littered with brilliant performances, and he outdoes himself yet again with a beautifully restrained, utterly human performance which you cannot help but feel for. He also pulls off some welcome flashes of humour and brings on the fire and brimstone with fantastic conviction, all the while maintaining a perfectly imperfect stammer which pervades, but never gets in the way of, his towering performance. And the chemistry which he finds with his co-star Geoffery Rush makes for one of the more believeable and exciting male partnerships in years. Rush's own performance matches Firth's in terms of subtlety and nuance as well as the same level of perfectly judged restraint, yet the two never seem at odds, finding a rhythm with each other in their slowly building friendship which is at times flat out hilarious and at others brilliantly intense. It is an breathtaking display of two top-class actors working seamlessly together. Helena Bonham Carter plays the ever-supporting Queen Elizabeth who, in the hands of a lesser actor, could have turned into a stereotype but is instead a strong, quiet character in her own right. She is able to command a room with a look but also able to guide her husband through some of the hardest days he has had to face, showing a beautiful light and shade in an entirely selfless performance. Guy Pearce, though lacking a lot of the screentime his co-stars are given, makes and incredible impact in every one of his scenes. His slimy Edward is the unofficial villain of the piece and he manages to be spitefully real at every turn. It's one of his finest performances and, in comparison to his co-stars, he barely graces the screen. .

The script which all these performances hang off is a thing of beauty. It manages to combine reality and creativity seamlessly with never a moment devoid of the reality it deserves whilst never missing out on an opportunity for the humour and intensity which the film is strewn with. Unexpectedly, the film also quite a bit of abbraisive language, but the context which it's in means that even the most sensitive of viewers won't be turned off. But its greatest achievement is the very real characters it helps create and the relationships it helps to extend. .

Tom Hooper nails the direction, despite the tremendous leap forward in terms of content and responsibility. His biggest venture before his latest is 2009's The Damned United, so it's quite a step up in exposure, yet he never seems to show it, taking bold risks with confidence. His use of fisheye lenses is reminiscent of Kubrick and he uses the effect sparingly and effectively. He also pushes the rule of thirds to the extreme, making for some eye-catching shots which are either genius or annoying depending on your point of view. I'm for 'genius' by the way. .

But the greatest part of the movie is the tangible connection created between characters and audience and the pounding in your chest when Bertie takes the microphone or Lionel oversteps his bounds on a morning walk as every part of the film works together in a beautifully restrained piece of filmmaking. .

Defining Scene: .

Any scene where Colin Firth and Geoffery Rush are onscreen together. But more specifically the ending speech, conducted by Logue.