2006’s “The Queen”, directed by Steven Frears.
Starring Helen Mirren, Michael Sheen, James Cromwell, Alex
Jennings, and Roger Allam.
Winner of an Academy Award for Best Actress (Mirren).
Nominated for an Academy Awad for Best Picture, Best
Director (Frears), Best Screenplay (Peter Morgan), Best Costume Design
(Consolata Boyle), Best Musical Score (Alexandre Desplat).
Set in England during 1997, we see the royal family,
specifically Queen Elizabeth II, and their reactions to 2 key events: the
election of prime minister Tony Blair (Michael Sheen), and the death of
Princess Diana shortly after. Deeply steeped in conservatism and tradition, the
royal family in general was wary of Blair’s modernism and progressive views. As
well, the family had an uneasy relationship with Princess Diana. Divorced from
Prince Charles (so no longer attached to the royal family), the overwhelming majority
of the country (and world) viewed her as an enormously popular figure of
charity and good will. The movie’s depictions of Sheen (and various other
subordinates) walking on eggshells around the monarch mother serve as excellent
lessons on how to talk to someone who carries great clout and wealth- but who
has lost their touch with the people they claim to represent.
Frears wisely inter cuts plenty of actual footage of the era
(interviews with Princess Diana and news clips of reactions to her death, etc),
and re-stages events with the actors to make a fictionalized historical
snapshot. While we’ll never know what
was said behind closed doors, Frears creates a world that feels plausible as we
watch the Royal Family hide from civilization behind their wealth and privilege,
only to consider that connecting with their populace on some level could
ultimately strengthen their rule. Mirren is great, as she tries her hardest to
keep a stiff upper lip, but betrays occasional moments of doubt and emotion, after a lifetime of training. I
don’t know if it’s Best Actress of 2006 great (I’m a huge fan of Penelope
Cruz’s performance in “Volver”, and Meryl Streep in “The Devil Wears Prada” is
solid too), but I figure it’s partly a lifetime achievement award on top of a
good performance. Very good is Roger Allam’s role, as a sympathetic aide trying to
tell his employer something that she does not want to hear. Harder to take are
Sheen’s at times grandstanding ethics. With Blair’s record being what it is
(supporting the U.S. in the invasion of Iraq, etc), it’s difficult to believe
that Blair was sympathetic of the royal family and not just cynically gaining
favour with the populace for politics as usual. For some reason, that archetype
of Machiavelli’s “The Prince” seems to go to his wife, Cherie Blair, played
with maximum hostility and passive disrespect by Helen McCrory. At times
teetering close to an HBO made for TV movie, “The Queen”’s script can sometimes
feel as stilted as it’s subject matter, but can also at times come across as
royalty.
3/5
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