Dreadfully boring - only for people fascinated with royalty

Rating: 2/10 (4 October 2008)

My girlfriend rented this film and I was unfortunate enough to watch it with her. While I have little interest in the British royal family, I knew the movie had received high praise. Understandably, I expected a lot. After watching this painful piece of cinema, I can honestly say this is a terribly boring, overrated film.
My sense is the film has been highly-rated because it cashes in on the bizarre, unjustified fascination with Princess Diana that exists even today. Honestly, she's just an average person who married into a life of extreme privilege without ever accomplishing anything on her own merits. She was able to do extensive charity work and jet-set around the world because she had little else to do with her time. I was never sure what made her so remarkable. The same goes for the rest of the royals. They are people born into privilege, simply given power without any qualification or reason. If these are the type of people that fascinate you endlessly, The Queen will seem like an amazing film.
I can only tolerate so many scenes of British royalty acting self-important. This movie is scene-after-scene of tedious, rigid dialog. At its core, The Queen is an empty story about empty people. It's not much more than a simplistic docudrama rehash of the controversy surrounding Diana's death. It also offers a very obvious illumination of the struggle between traditional British government and new British government.
Ultimately, this is a story that ascribes great importance and attention to people who just aren't all that interesting. If celebrity-watching is your passion, you'll enjoy this film. If you're someone looking for a movie of substance and depth, avoid this nonsense at all costs.