Well-made and engrossing fast-based film.

Rating: 8/10 (1 March 2011)

The King's Speech tells the true story of King George VI of England, a man who became monarch in the most outlandish of circumstances. He was a notoriously bad public speaker owing to his stammer, and his remarkable story is chronicled here in a brilliantly acted and surprisingly entertaining low-budget film. I was somewhat dubious upon entering the cinema about exactly how the film was going to hold my attention for two hours. 120 minutes charting the struggles of someone with a stammer sounded like a tedious prospect to say the least. However, The King's Speech manages to be moving, funny and engrossing throughout.
As King George V (Michael Gambon) approaches the end of his life and reign, the world stands on the brink of a second devastating war against Germany under the iron-like rule of Adolf Hitler. George V has begun making addresses to the nation via the new medium of radio, a direct voice to the masses, something new and hitherto unheard-of for a monarch. His son George (Colin Firth) is impeded by a dreadful stammer which makes his public speaking duties particularly awkward and embarrassing. George consoles himself that he will never have to do an excessive amount of public speaking as he is unlikely to ever be king. His brother Edward (Guy Pearce) bears that responsibility, and is a relatively young successor likely to have children of his own to carry on the line. George V dies and Edward is promptly crowned king, but he soon decides to do what no monarch before has ever done – he abdicates from the throne to pursue his much-criticised affair with commoner and divorcée Wallis Simpson (Eve Best). Suddenly George is thrust upon the throne, the first man ever to be crowned without succeeding a dead or dying monarch. He faces a personal torment, knowing that his speech impediment will make him a figure of ridicule and uselessness at a time when the nation needs him to be a pillar of strength and integrity. At the behest of his wife Elizabeth (Helena Bonham Carter), he visits an unorthodox speech therapist, Lionel Logue (Geoffrey Rush), in an attempt to overcome his speech problems. Their remarkable relationship reaches its most crucial stage when George VI has to issue a flawless rallying cry to the nation upon the outbreak of World War II.
The King's Speech is especially memorable for its acting. Firth is superb as George VI, Bonham Carter wholly believable as his wife, and Rush an absolute joy as Lionel Logue. The film has excellent period detail and is shot in striking colour. There are some beautifully judged early scenes showing how painful and embarrassing George's stammer could be, especially the opening sequence set at the 1925 Commonwealth Exhibition. It's a thoroughly awkward scene to watch, just as intended! By the end the audience feels almost overwhelmed at the courage of the man as he gives the most important rallying speech of his generation. For me especially - a viewer who doesn't feel any particular affinity or allegiance toward the Royal Family - the film manages to be a winning and inspiring experience. It has the occasional stuffy moment and in parts seems to have been exaggerated to add to the drama, but overall The King's Speech is a highly admirable film.