Movie Review: The King's Speech

Rating: M

Starring: Colin Firth, Geoffrey Rush, Helena Bonham Carter, Guy Pearce, Michael Gambon.

Director: Tom Hooper

Colin Firth should win three awards for The King’s Speech:

Award 1 – For being Colin Firth.

Award 2 – For being incredibly hot.

Award 3 – For his phenomenal performance as King George VI in The King’s Speech.

So I guess you have realised that I have a MAJOR crush on Colin Firth, and that this review is probably just a little biased. Hell, he could be in Scream #235 and I would love it! But in all seriousness, The King’s Speech is a brilliant movie, and deserved the Golden Globe for best picture. But I guess there are always the Oscars...

The King’s Speech follows the events leading up to King George VI’s (Firth) rise to the British throne, and famous speech that declares war on Nazi Germany. In the opening scenes, we see that the then Prince Albert has a severe stammer, with no apparent cure in sight. His wife Princess Elizabeth (a superb Helena Bonham Carter) scours the land for suitable speech therapists, finding the unqualified but successful Australian Lionel Logue (Geoffrey Rush). And so begins a few months of intense training, with triumph and heartache.

Prince Albert’s stammer then becomes an increasing problem after his father (Michael Gambon) dies and his brother King  Edward VIII (Guy Pearce) then abdicates the throne to marry a twice-divorced American (something not allowed in those days). With Lionel by his side for intense speech training, motivation, and eventual friendship, Prince Albert becomes King George VI on the brink of World War II. In doing so, he finds not only his own voice but confidence to lead his country into battle.

While it is a relatively serious movie, The King’s Speech also includes light-hearted scenes, which I think is typically British and something only they can do well! Further, as much as I love Colin Firth in romantic comedies (Love Actually, Bridget Jones’ Diary, What A Girl Wants), it was refreshing to see that he has a well-rounded acting ability. The stammer alone would have taken ages to perfect!

I know this is completely off the topic, but being a huge Harry Potter fan it was fun to pick out the Harry Potter stars throughout the movie Beatrix Lestrange, Albus Dumbledore, and Peter Pettigrew all made an appearance. Let me know if you spot any others!

5 out of 5 stars.

Theatre Review: Mary Poppins

If you haven’t seen the stage production of Mary Poppins, I am asking you to put it on your ‘to do list’ for this year. Why? Because it is practically perfect in every way, just like the lady herself!

Currently showing at Her Majesty’s Theatre in Melbourne, no dollar has been spared in the cost of production. The stage is absolutely breathtaking, with street lanes and different rooms of the Banks’ house popping out from the floor and ceiling. Mary Poppins’ magical bag also makes an appearance, much to the delight of younger fans in the audience!

Verity Edwards and Matt Lee are the stars of the show as Mary and Bert respectively. Edwards’ mannerisms and movements echo those of a young Julie Andrews, while Lee lights up the stage with his effortless dancing and singing (I certainly have more respect for his opinions on So You Think You Can Dance after witnessing his talents).

While the basic storyline of bringing a father closer to his children is present, it mixes different aspects of the movie and book to create something a little different. This keeps the audience interested because no one can predict what happens next!

The famous songs from the movie are also reprised. Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious has some amazing choreography, Jolly Holiday does not involve jumping into Bert’s drawings (I will not spoil what happens though), and Step in Time is a tap-dancing extraordinaire!

Of course all the favourite characters are still there, including Mr and Mrs Banks (Philip Quast and Marina Prior), the bird woman (an unrecognisable Debra Byrne), and many others. I was a little disappointed that Uncle Albert was missing (the laughing man from the movie for those who cannot remember), but I guess I cannot have everything!

For me, there were only two faults in the performance. Firstly, one of the shelves did not repair itself during Mary Poppins’ clean-up of the kitchen. My boyfriend and I were in hysterics when we noticed this, and I am pretty sure no one else in the audience picked this minor flaw! Secondly, because we were sitting in the stalls ($99 seats), our view was restricted during a couple of items. I would therefore recommend paying an extra $50 for your ticket if you want a practically perfect view!

5 out of 5 stars