Royalty, 1930s Britain; a behind the curtain peek into the challenges facing monarchy

Rating: 8/10 (18 February 2011)

If Sylvester Stallone is your idea of acting at its finest and you think The Expendables was robbed by not being nominated for Best Picture then stop reading now, because The King's Speech has no action scenes, gunfights, no killings, no nudity and almost no swearing. So, seriously, stop reading. You'll really, really, hate this movie.
Are they gone? Good, Okay now let's talk about The King's Speech, one of the best films I've seen in quite a while. On the surface The King's Speech is a film about a man, a prince (played by Colin Firth) that was never meant to become king. A man who struggles against a debilitating stammer that raises doubt in himself and others about his ability to be the monarch for a nation facing difficult times. It's a story about the love between a man and his wife (played Helena Bonham Carter) facing and overcoming life's challenges. It's a story about two socially unequal men,the royal and the unconventional speech therapist, (Firth and Oscar winner Geoffrey Rush) struggling to find common ground that will let them work together. In short, The King's Speech is a movie about how friendship, passion and love can overcome adversity. The drama is played out with the backdrop of 1930s Britain during a time of an empire facing royal and public upheaval. The King's Speech is movie well worth the price of admission, but stay away from the theatre's overpriced day old popcorn.
James Inglis