Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Kings Speech - Review

Sarah and I finally made it out to watch a movie in a movie theater.  (It's hard to do organize such a long date with baby sitters.)  And we were not disappointed with King's Speech.  It deserved every Oscar it won. 
The lead character is the soon to be King George.  He struggles with terrible stuttering, especially when speaking in public.  Naturally, this is a huge problem for a would-be king of the United Kingdom.  If you've watched any of the trailers, you already know this, and you know that he overcomes his stuttering enough to rule effectively.
Here are a few things I loved about this movie, which you might not already know.
1. The king's speech difficulties stemmed from childhood wounds.  Learning to speak well required going back into his own past to find healing for long forgotten scars.  The king learns that he has to put down his mask - at least with Lionel - if he is every going to find healing.
2. Lionel, the speech therapist, is a classic example of someone living honestly, avoiding all pretensions, following his passions, maintaining his courage in the face of difficulty, and making a difference in the world by helping others.  I absolutely loved his character!  I also loved that he demanded authenticity from others - and got it.
3. Queen Elizabeth (surprisingly the same lady from Knight's Tale, a few years older!) shows unwavering support for the king.  She supports him when he rejects ridiculous methods of healing and relentlessly pursues an effective speech therapist.
4. And of course, I love that someone overcame his difficulties to become the person he is supposed to be.  (And more than one character does that - or doesn't do that - in this story!)

This movie gets a joyful JJJJJ.

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