Splendid film

Rating: 9/10 (23 May 2007)

When I first heard that Helen Mirren was playing the role of Queen Elizabeth, I shuttered. Mirren has had a very sleazy career and certainly her abominable life style is far beneath that of the Queen, who I have admired since she was a child. However, despite my reservations about Mirren, she did a superb job of playing the Queen and looked remarkably like her. Her performance was really a highlight of 2006 and the performance was hands down the best of the year The movie only briefly touches on Queen Elizabeth's illustrious reign and that is the period immediately following Princess Diana's death. The story has been so exhaustively reported on and in our recent movie, that the story is very familiar. For many there are no surprises. In reality, the movie is really just a docu-drama.
The movie clearly depicts the disrespect that the Royal family had for Princess Diana. She was in fact a tramp, and a glory seeker. Unfortunately, too many in the public didn't understand what was going on and they idolized her for all the wrong reasons. That is not to say that her ex-husband was any better but clearly both failed as royals in their relationship. However, her conduct was such that she did not deserve any respect as a royal.
For many, the movie gives a somewhat inside view of the life of the royals. It makes a hero out of Prime Minister Tony Blair who handled the situation in a most judicious manner. Unfortunately, because of his pushing England into the Iraq War, which has made him extremely unpopular in England, his moment in the sun will probably be forgotten although this film will certainly keep it in the spotlight.
The movie is so well done, that even though I am giving it only nine stars, it will remain a classic. The writing is just as superb as Mirren's performance and it wrings just about as much out of the story as could be done. The subtleties are magnificent and it is a movie is one I will watch again and again. My only reason for not giving it a ten was that some of the supporting acting wasn't as strong as the film deserved.