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- First reviewJanuary 15, 2011
- Last reviewJanuary 15, 2011
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MiseEnScene's Reviews
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5
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5
A Masterwork
PostedJanuary 15, 2011
MiseEnScene
from Charlotte, NC
Director, Tom Hooper, has a gift for historical drama AND for the intimate art of the character portrait. The latter, of course, is critical if one is to transcend the epic panoramas that too often devour the directors, actors and writers who would sit upon the throne of historicity.
In "John Adams" he directed Paul Giamatti to one of the best performances of his career.
In "The King's Speech" Hooper's mastery of character development is more evident than ever. Reprising his "John Adams" partnership with cinematographer, Danny Cohen, his nuanced understanding of the privileged eye of the camera is apparent - the visual frame driven by the characters' perspectives.
It doesn't hurt, of course, to have Colin Firth and Oscar Award-winner, Geoffrey Rush, who, after a long wait since "Shine", has found another role worthy of his sensitivity and range. His on-screen relationship with Firth, who's performance is a masterpiece of apropos understatement, offers a flawless example of the inner dramatic line.
Then there are a series of brilliantly-executed sub-plots; each emerging from the psychology of lovingly-drawn characters.
Guy Pearce's Edward VIII is a dizzy paramour, led and weakened too easily by his passions to the bed of Eve Best's Wallis Simpson. Best's portrayal, by the way, is the gem of the picture. She's a master of the personal gesture, sweeping into and out of her scenes in a manner that imbues the abdication sub-plot with a critical believability. And Pearce, in a nomination-worthy performance, demonstrates a profound depth and range with his Edward.
Range being a hallmark of Hooper's cast, Helena Bonham Carter offers a seminar in the subject with her portrayal of Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, whose wifely ministrations to Firth's George VI offer a subtle portrait of a powerful real-life character.
All the characters in this picture, excepting perhaps Simpson, are drawn empathetically. Hooper and Cohen bring us face-to-face and soul-to-soul, painting David Seidler's (Another World, Quest for Camelot) masterfully-crafted script by way of patient character studies.
The historical back-drop for this picture, England during the Battle of Britain, has been beautifully-rendered by production designer, Eve Stewart, who's work you'll remember from "Topsy-Turvy" and who partnered with Hooper once before on "Elizabeth I."
Taken as a whole, "The King's Speech" is historical drama at its best. Characters that allow us to walk and talk in their epoque by way of settings that are natural to us - as if we'd been their contemporaries. Personal, empathetically-told stories which interlock in causal relationships that give rise to great events. And a genuine sense of historical weight that arises, as a matter of course, from the lives of the characters.
Yes, I recommend this movie.
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