Defending the Queen

Rating: 5/10 (1 November 2006)

To understand the very notion of monarchy and duty in an episodic script is highly ambitious and ultimately, tragically manipulative and boring. And the Stag scene of the Queen in isolation (are we kidding here?)is absurd. Why was this film made? To rectify the throne of the British empire through the remarkable Diana story is short sighted and boorish. I do believe, however, that a story about the live, historical, relationship of the Queen and Diana through Diana's death would offer more material which would lead to a greater historical understanding, ie, truth, than a premise of Hey Guys, the Queen is really just doing her job after all, and is really a very nice person despite her upbringing.(a message that is repeated and repeated and repeated in various forms....) Helen Mirren does..a ..good.. job... with the script she is given - but as a viewer I wanted more truth - more meat - more humanity - than the script gave. The Queen is still living - so this is a very tidy piece of propaganda that is easy to defend - but I am not buying it. The filmmakers made a film that I suspect they know is not whole - with a script that is easy to excuse because they were so intent on doing the right thing. Is this dramatically correct?