1997 Redux - Sad, Brilliant, Searching

Rating: 10/10 (4 November 2006)

If there are really spoilers in this review, it's hard to tell. We already know the overall storyline. Even so, I checked off the spoiler box just in case.
I met Stephen Frears, the director, last year while he was promoting "Mrs. Henderson Presents". He was filming "The Queen" at the time. I am delighted by how deftly he handled such different material.
This story is a fictional explanation of why the royals, Tony Blair's cabinet, and the press reacted as they did upon the death of Princess Diana. It is not a critical look; rather, it is a "fly on the wall" perspective and, oddly enough, is very sympathetic and forgiving to all concerned. It had me in tears several times.
If there is any argument made in the piece, it is that the royals must abandon their distance from the people if the monarchy is to remain relevant and, perhaps, continue at all. Diana, the people's princess as Blair called her, demonstrated how much the royals can positively affect people by making continual contact. Distance subjects them, instead, to misunderstandings by the public, criticism by the press and public for perfectly reasonable responses and, in this particular case, and calls by the commoners for an end to the monarchy. And yet, accessibility got one of them killed by the paparazzi. It is a paradox, and Frears is not afraid to explore it.
There are some historical twists I did not know, and I'm glad the film embellished them. It is strange to imagine that Blair's wife is so pro-Republic and anti-monarch and he was still elected Prime Minister by the Labour Party. The contrast is stark between how the Blair's and royals live. As an American, the deference shown to the Queen simply turns the stomach. It angered me that the elected Prime Minister had to receive a blessing and permission from Elizabeth to form "her" new government. It was sad how she dismissed Blair initially as one of the ten other prime ministers who "sat in that chair," opposite her, the first being Winston Churchill. And yet while she was so critical of the PMs in general, she later walks by a marble statue of Churchill in Buckingham Palace. Nice touch, Frears. Nice touch.
The acting is nothing short of brilliant. Helen Mirren wins the Academy Award and BAFTA right now, if you ask me. Oddly enough, I saw the film "Calendar Girls" this week on BBC America. To see Mirren go from that role to this doesn't just demonstrate her range and skill. It shows that she inhabits the personage of the character she conjures. The difference in how she played Elizabeth I earlier this year on HBO and Elizabeth II in this film is stark, demonstrating how deeply she plumbs for the meat of her characters.
I could talk about the other actors all day. Being a BBC America addict, I am convinced there is something special about England's acting programs that makes their portrayals profoundly superior.
I can't say enough good things about this film. On a final, seemingly trivial note, the art direction is among the most detailed I've seen in years. Art directors Matthew Broderick and Franck Schwarz didn't just dress the set with meaningless nicknacks. The props, especially the paintings and drawings by Blair's children, comment on the characters and events in the story, much like a silent Greek chorus. On several occasions Blair walks by a child's painting of Picachu, the Pokémon who defeats adversaries with his, shall we say, "lightening" personality. It's an interesting comment on Blair's personality. And that, friends, is a sign of great film making.
Enjoy. I did.