The King’s Speech (Movie Review)

Movie Review
The King’s Speech
2010
Starring: Colin Firth, Helena Bonham Carter, Geoffrey Rush
Directed by: Tom Hooper

A special award needs to be given to the person who spoke up and said the world needs a movie about stuttering. Surprisingly enough, not only is Tom Hooper’s The King’s Speech actually a good movie considering its main theme but it’s actually quite brilliant. Aside from the problem with the ending lacking any real significance, everything about this film is incredibly well done.

The film is about King Edward VI (Colin Firth) before he was king. The King had a terrible time trying to speak as he had a horrible stammer. Conventional speech doctors were not making any progress and so the future King (referred to as Bertie by his family) simply gave up trying. He felt that since he wasn’t in the immediate line of ascension to the throne (his older brother David was) that it wouldn’t be a concern for him.

However, his wife, Elizabeth (Helena Bonham Carter) convinced Bertie to visit a new therapist who used unconventional methods. Lionel Logue (Geoffrey Rush) was able to make some major breakthroughs with Bertie although their relationship was quite rocky at times. Things get even more stressful for Bertie as his brother abdicates the throne making Bertie the new King. Proclaimed King George VI, the new King has to deliver the most important speech he has ever had to give as the United Kingdom is about to declare war on Hitler’s Germany.

The performances are top-notch. In fact, they are arguably Oscar worthy. Most notable are the performances of Firth and Carter. Firth played the role perfectly to the point where if the rest of the cast had not been as good, he still would have been able carry the movie on his own. Every tremble and every quiver made it feel like the person on the screen was having a terrible time doing what many of us take for granted. Carter too was quite good acting as Bertie’s better half. Carter did a fantastic job helping to tell the story with slight visual cues and the exemplary way she delivered her dialogue. She made the character feel incredibly vital to the story which helped keep the entire tale together.

The other actors also did very well. Rush did a great job as Lionel although it would have been better to have seen him display a greater range of emotion. This isn’t a problem of the actor though as the script didn’t really warrant him to go throughout the entire spectrum of emotions. The movie is only about three people: the King, his wife, and the doctor. Everyone else is only a pawn to help push the story along. They’re not supposed to be memorable as we, the audience, should only be focusing on the relationship the King has with his doctor. That’s the whole basis of the movie and this interplay makes the film very interesting to watch.

Then again, this is a movie that is about someone stuttering. There’s only so far you can take a topic like this and make it palatable for the mainstream audience. Even with all the effort put into the movie to make it enjoyable for all, it would be easy to see why some people would get bored with this movie. Even though there are not a lot of special effects or visual flair, there are still quite a bit of smoke and mirrors to make this movie more than what it really is about: a guy who stutters. The speeches sound more epic than they actually are (which is saying much because some of the speeches that King George VI gave were some of the most important speeches during the interwar years). The filmmakers did a great job with pacing the movie and implementing the right type of music at the right time to give the delivery of these speeches a strong impact. It made the speeches feel almost as epic as any fight scene you’d see in film today.

The major criticism of this film that I have is that it completely takes away the seriousness of important matters like the looming war between Germany and England. The way the movie plays out is like it’s as if the entire war will be averted if the King can make this speech without flubbing it. Even at the end there seems to be more celebration that someone was able to make a speech rather than the fact that Europe is about to be ripped apart by an extremely violent war. The gravity of the situation is warped and makes everything feel wrong.

Still, the movie is very strong because of the relationship between Bertie and Lionel. They go through their ups and downs which is all very intriguing. Even if one of the two in this pairing wasn’t the King but a normal person and this was all taking place in the middle of nowhere (like rural Nebraska), it would still be very interesting. Bertie’s brashness mixed with insecurity plays well against Lionel’s boldness and quirkiness. It feels like an odd couple pairing and works extremely well.

The King’s Speech is a great film…about stuttering. It’s amazing that Tom Hooper made a film about stuttering that is not only watchable but make for time well spent. It’s not a perfect film but given the subject material, it’s very well done. The performances are solid and the story is likable (even if it feels like that some elements of the story are toned down to make other parts seem more important and makes it seem artificial). This will most likely be the best movie you’ll ever see about stuttering.

☆☆☆☆