One of my favourite settings in any film: England in the 1920-30’s. The ruling monarch is currently King George V, though he is nearing the end of his reign, which makes the royal family of the age the Windsors. The fashion in England at the time has the streets crowded with women in large, feathery hats and high-waisted skirts that stop at the knee and men bedecked in tailored suits of all patterns and bowler hats resting on their heads. It is also nearing the time when Hitler gains power in Germany, marking the beginning of World War II. Oh, and did I mention Winston Churchill? What film captures this era and focuses on the rise of King George VI? Well, it’s none other than The King’s Speech.
Before George VI (played by Colin Firth) was George VI, he was Albert Frederick Arthur George of the Windsor family, and his title during George V’s reign was the Duke of York. George had a brother who was coroneted as Edward VIII during his short rule as king but was also known as the Duke of Windsor. George was married to Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon (played by Helena Bonham Carter), and they had two children, Margaret Rose (now Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon) and Elizabeth II, who is now the Queen of England. George was also nicknamed ‘Bertie’ by his family.
George VI had a problem that was greatly inferring with his life: he suffered from a speech impediment. He couldn’t go on for five or six words without stammering or hesitating. This, of course, was problematic whenever he made appearances at speaking events in which he would have to give a speech. In fact, the opening scene of the film leads into his having to present the closing speech at the British Empire Exhibition at Wembley, which was quite an ordeal for both him and his audience. After this, he consults an Australian speech therapist named Lionel Logue (played by Geoffrey Rush) to improve his speaking. Thus follows many days of breathing exercises and exertion, all to improve speech.
Shortly after the passing of George V (played by, yes, MICHAEL GAMBON), Edward becomes the king of England, but he doesn’t last for a year. I didn’t quite understand the situation of Edward VIII and why he had to abdicate the throne. Partially because there was a bit of an uproar in the auditorium at that moment in the film, but also because of how the situation played out. It sounded at first that he had to leave because of foreign affairs, but after several minutes, I noticed that he wanted to marry an American. Why did this have to result in his abdicating? Forgive me, British-folk, I’m not well-learnt in your history...
Well, because Edward hasn’t produced an heir, guess who becomes king? And what else does that mean? George must work extra hard to improve on his speaking for his coronation speech, and for more speeches to come for the rest of his life.
On Christmas Day of 1939, King George VI must deliver a speech over the radio to all of England. It is supposed to be a speech of encouragement in the troubling times during the rise of Hitler. George, being the voice of the country, must overcome his speech impediment to deliver those words of encouragement to his country. Before he begins his broadcast, he asks Lionel Logue to be with him in the radio room. As the broadcast begins, I grip my theatre armrest in anticipation. Will he mess up? Will he not mess up? Because of the invention of cliché endings, I have the feeling I know the speech will turn out well. But it still makes me itch with nerves throughout his speech.
Like all documentaries, the film ended with simple words on the screen describing what happened afterwards. Again, cliché and cutsey, but informative to those who don’t know the story of George VI (like myself) and generally a great happy ending.
I absolutely love this film. It has a perfect trio of really talented actors: Colin Firth, Geoffrey Rush, and Helena Bonham Carter. It’s a true story, as true as true can get in a film. The story is inspiring and encouraging to those who have speech impediments themselves. I cannot wait until this film comes out on DVD, because I am certainly going to buy a copy.
AUTHOR’S NOTE: After writing this review, I Google-searched Edward VIII and I’ve realised that because the woman he wanted to marry (Wallis Simpson) divorced twice and her ex-husbands were still alive, it was against the beliefs of the Church to marry such a woman.
Thoughts:
- Upon researching George VI on the internet, I discovered that his birthday was a day before mine. Don’t you just love it when history does something awesome?
- I despise the Church in this era. They’re so strict in their beliefs. Well, now that I think about it, the modern-day Catholic Church is mostly the same way...
- One thing I didn’t particularly like about this movie was how they wouldn’t film the end of George’s speeches. I often like to see how one presents themselves at the end of their speech. How did he courteously step away from the podium and leave his audience? Was it at all awkward? I’ve noticed this after every speech he gives.
- Swear scene = I LOVE IT. ‘You don’t seem to stammer when you swear.’ ‘#@^&@)%$&)@&#$^&@&*%*&@&*^%&#@*!(#^’ Everyone in the theatre burst out in endless laughter at the long string of profanities. It was extremely difficult to gear my attention back to the dialogue.
- I saw this movie with my friend, Cailin, and because we’re both Whovians (Doctor Who fans), she asked me, ‘When will the Doctor be appearing in Churchill’s cabinet war rooms?’ Sadly, I had to say, ‘That’s during the London Blitz in 1941. That’s ages away.’
- Speaking of Doctor Who, did anyone else twinge a bit when a radio announcer described the radio as a ‘Pandora’s box’? Because I certainly did!
