The King's Speech (2010)

Film: The King's Speech (2010)

Director: Tom Hooper

Starring: Colin Firth, Geoffrey Rush, Helena Bonham Carter

A friend of mine, who honestly pays more attention to the cinema than I do, stumbled upon two free tickets to see The King's Speech at our local Picturehouse Cinema in Bath, The Little Theatre. When I say stumbled upon, I really mean that he was quick enough and wise enough to apply for tickets before everyone else. Little White Lies magazine and Grolsch have partnered up to host exclusive previews of new films, and luckily for me The King's Speech was one of them. My mate regrettably couldn't attend so he offered up his seats to my girlfriend and I, which was extremely nice of him and I'm still very grateful (thanks again Simon!). I'd seen the trailer for Tom Hooper's new film about King George VI and the awful speech impediment that plagued him, and thought it looked pretty interesting so I jumped at the chance to see it for free.

When we arrived at the theatre, complete with our names on the guest-list (how very A-list), we quickly found our seats. Thanks to Grolsch, Little White Lies, and the fine folks at the Little Theatre in Bath, we were treated to a free bottle of Grolsch each and some very fancy Dutch cheese. After a few bites I soon discovered that cheese and beer doesn't go together as well as I'd have liked, but the thought was there nonetheless and free stuff is always great. Plus, my girlfriend isn't too keen on beer so I got her bottle as well. Score.

So you probably want to know what I thought of the film right? The King's Speech is without doubt one of the best films I've witnessed this year. Heading into the cinema I was anticipating a good film, but I came away with so much more as Tom Hooper's masterpiece was a terrific surprise. I'm not going to reveal too much of the plot, as the film is not officially released in the UK for another week or so, but I would just say that if you have the means to go and see The King's Speech, go and do it. Colin Firth puts in a magnificent performance as 'Bertie' and should be a dead cert to win the Oscar next year. Firth is mesmerising as the King, and is so convincing with a speech impediment that I will find it hard to imagine him in anything else. Geoffrey Rush is equally sublime as Lionel Logue, the Australian speech therapist whose job it was to cure the King of his stutter. Rush and Firth have such a brilliant chemistry together and made the film much more humorous than I was expecting. The two leading men ensured that The King's Speech didn't provide a boring moment throughout. The rest of the cast were also perfect for their roles, notably Helena Bonham Carter as Queen Elizabeth and Guy Pearce as the dastardly King Edward VIII. The King's Speech is an outstanding example of British cinema at its best, and Tom Hooper has surpassed the lofty heights of his previous film, The Damned United. As the film came to a close, it started to have an odd effect on me, as you strangely feel quite patriotic as you exit the cinema. I can't say that about many other movies.

The King's Speech was a fantastic film and I thoroughly recommend you go and see it as soon as possible. Even if it doesn't look like your sort of thing, just give it a try and I believe you'll be pleasantly surprised. It's THAT good.

A More Enjoyable Reality Rating: 9/10

Grolsch and Little White Lies are hosting more exclusive previews in 2011, and I'm hoping to get some tickets to see some of them, as The King's Speech was a thoroughly enjoyable evening. I've already applied for tickets to see David O. Russell's new film The Fighter in late January, so fingers crossed.

Thanks for reading.