The Queen w. Helen Mirren

Haggai · 10-07-2006, 08:48 PM

The almost unanimously ecstatic reviews for this movie had my expectations set pretty high for when I saw it earlier today, and I was happy to find that it was definitely worth the hype. As can be expected, Helen Mirren is brilliant, and the rest of the cast is great as well. The interplay between her and Tony Blair (an excellent performance by Michael Sheen) is the center of the two-sided dramatic arc, as he gradually becomes more cognizant of the importance of her role in British society, and she becomes more aware of how things have changed within the society (and her place within it) over the course of her lifetime. Aside from a lame attempt at symbolism involving a stag being hunted on the royal estate, it's a terrifically executed movie, from start to finish.

I was never much interested in the royals in general or Diana in particular, so I wasn't too wrapped up in the events surrounding her death back when it happened. I hadn't even remembered anything about a controversy surrounding the royal family's response, or lack thereof, which is the centerpiece of this movie. But I have to say, during the real-life footage that's included of people breaking down by the side of the road as her funeral motorcade passed by, and some of them turn out to be big beefy-looking yob types who are sobbing uncontrollably, I couldn't help feeling a little verklempt myself, as my people sometime say.

SteveJKo · 10-08-2006, 08:39 AM

Haggai I've been hearing a LOT about this film over the past month or so, glad to hear that it lives up to all the talk surrounding it. Do you know when it goes into general release? I'm assuming it is currently only playing in a few large cities at select theatres. Lastly, should Helen Mirren be dusting off a spot on her mantle in anticipation of next February?

Chuck Mayer · 10-08-2006, 10:01 AM

We saw the trailer for this before The Departed, and my wife went nuts for it. Where is it playing, Haggai?

Looking forward to this film quite a bit,
Chuck

Haggai · 10-08-2006, 10:14 AM

I posted this in the Oscar thread yesterday, about Mirren.

Chuck, it's only playing at Bethesda Row for now. But since you saw a trailer, I guess it might be in general release before too long. I assume it's doing big business in its limited release so far, as the theater was packed at the show I went to yesterday afternoon, and the next one later in that afternoon was already sold out when I arrived.

Michael Reuben · 10-09-2006, 01:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Haggai

I was happy to find that it was definitely worth the hype

It really is, which is a remarkable feat when you consider that the main events and characters are so familiar to most of the audience. I think you put your finger on it when you mentioned the archival footage of real mourners. The film is so deft at mixing the real and the recreated that you're genuinely transported into the events as if they were happening now.

I agree with you that Mirren's a leading contender for the Oscar, and it would certainly be well-deserved (and long overdue).

M.

**HTF Ads**

andrew markworthy · 10-09-2006, 03:04 PM

Quote:

But I have to say, during the real-life footage that's included of people breaking down by the side of the road as her funeral motorcade passed by, and some of them turn out to be big beefy-looking yob types who are sobbing uncontrollably

The film has gained almost universally good reviews in the UK. I think it's worth noting that from a Brit perspective, the film probably has a slightly different resonance.

Put bluntly:

(1) the cry-babies along the funeral route were only ever a minority. As a BBC documentary made at the time (but kept under wraps for a year or so) amply demonstrated, the majority of Brits couldn't understand what the fuss was about and were either embarrassed or disgusted about the behaviour of this wailing minority.

(2) the reaction to Princess Di's death shows one of the most astonishing about-faces in media opinion ever. After her death she was suddenly a saint. A few days earlier, an opinion poll commissioned by the same gutter press that was now canonising her had found that 80% of the British public were pig sick of what were described as her publicity-seeking antics and two-faced behaviour.

The reason for giving this information is to scotch the widespread belief outside the UK that every Brit except the Queen was blubbing their eyes out. If anything, the Queen was expressing the majority opinion and sentiment.
At the risk of name-dropping, the day the funeral was televised, we had houseguests who knew Princess Di reasonably well (to the extent of having dined with her) and any sadness they might have felt was overwhelmed by disgust at the behaviour of the crowds. This may be purely a Brit reaction, but clapping the hearse is just so beyond the pale that it is offensive. A funeral procession should be dignified - and above all, silent (maybe things are different in other countries, and I can respect that)

It's fascinating to compare the funeral of Diana with that of the other 'big' funerals in recent decades - those of the Queen Mother or Winston Churchill. Both might have justified major outbursts of emotion (Churchill's especially), but both were greeted with dignity. Ditto arguably the funeral of Ronald Reagan, which I happened to see and which I found impressive in its solemnity.

I'm not trying to side-track the thread, but I think it's worth spelling out the background most Brit viewers bring to this picture, which is likely to be very different.

Oh yes - and I agree about Helen M and the Oscar. It'll be interesting to see what they do in the BAFTAS.

Craig S · 10-09-2006, 03:33 PM

Looking forward to this one. To answer Chuck's question, it is expanding starting this weekend. I believe it will be wide in the US by the end of the month.

Right now the Oscar is Mirren's, unless some unforeseen blockbuster performance comes out of nowhere. As Michael said, long overdue.

Andrew, your perspective from across the Pond is (as always) very illuminating.

Michael Reuben · 10-10-2006, 10:30 AM

Quote:

but I think it's worth spelling out the background most Brit viewers bring to this picture, which is likely to be very different

Not necessarily. Diana's antics may not have been as big a topic in the U.S. as in Britain, but they were certainly a favorite subject for our tabloids and "celebrity" journalists. As I watched the film, I found myself wondering to what extent the British press's about-face after her death was an attempt to pre-empt charges that the media were complicit in hounding her into an early grave.

One of the many things I liked about the film was how it keeps the point of view firmly within the royal family and the government. The "public" reaction is presented almost exclusively through the media, with the film's characters constantly watching TV and reviewing the latest headlines. It's a nice way of making the point that this was, as much as anything, a media event. And in the final scene between Blair and the Queen, there are some choice words about the speed with which "public opinion" can turn.

One of the many brilliant elements in Mirren's performance is the way that, by the end, her stoic Elizabeth emerges as a character of deep, though largely unseen, emotion. It's a product of numerous small touches, like a quick scene in which she pauses outside the room of her two grandchildren and looks in at their father consoling them. These are a queen and three princes, but at that moment they are just family.

M.

DeeF · 10-10-2006, 04:13 PM

I saw the movie too, and am apparently the only person in the world a bit disappointed in it.

But something someone has mentioned has me interested — do we think this movie is primarily for Americans that don't know the turn of events well enough?