The King's Speech

Rating: 8/10 (18 January 2011)

1930s England: Albert, Duke Of York (Colin Firth) has lived with a stutter all his life which makes the sudden intrusion of radio technology into the Royal life a nightmare. His wife, Elizabeth (Helena Bonham Carter), after trying every conventional therapist she can, seeks the assistance of a recommended Australian, Lyle Logan (Geoffrey Rush), whilst bitter conflicts loom both in Europe and in the Royal Family itself...
Tom Hooper's excellent film takes a subject matter which many can relate to - simply the annoyance of a speech impediment - and gives us what is essentially a high-brow bromance. In it he is aided spectacularly by a brilliant cast, a witty script and lovely cinematography.
Though Firth is gaining all the awards buzz - and rightly so, for his performance as Bertie is a wonderful example of a hard working actor - one should not step away from the importance of Geoffrey Rush in this film. His failed actor is constantly upbeat and funny, so that when he is made the victim of abuse or class snobbery we genuinely feel for him. The partnership that this creates is both charming and rewarding, and you feel that this is a proper friendship developing.
The secondary characters involved with this partnership are also very well played; in particular, Carter brings a quiet wit to her role of the future Queen Mother. Perhaps the least convincing role is that of Guy Pearce's pretentious Edward, though this is more down to the script forming him as the most 2D role in the film.
When the script works well, though, it crackles. The excellent scenes of speech therapy are both interesting and joyful to watch. Viewers should be advised that in one scene there is an awful lot of bad language which is one of the few laugh-out-loud moments of the film, feeling just right in the mixture; it arrives at the correct time.
The whole point of the film - the actual speech of the film's title - is perhaps the most depressing part of it, yet it seems a triumph, for the new King must tell his people that their country is at war again. We don't need to see what happens during the war, or hear the speeches he mad afterwards - for him this was the greatest point of his life, of his reign. He had fought the demons of his life and was now able to stand up and be counted as someone his people could fight the demons overseas for.
The film is always engaging, interesting and, most importantly, has a good heart with many chuckles. Thoroughly recommended.
8/10