This afternoon, we went and saw The King's Speech, the new film directed by Tom Hooper, about King George VI's struggle overcoming a speech impediment. I don't know if that sounds very interesting the way I put it, but it really was.Colin Firth's King George was, to me, the most sympathetic and likable character I've seen in a movie all year. I'm not very good at talking around people myself. I mean, I'm not King George bad, or anything, but I totally could relate.
Colin Firth is going to get a lot of attention for his performance. So much so, that Geoffrey Rush might get a little less than he deserves as the king's unorthodox speech therapist. It's a really fun role to watch, and Rush counters and complements Firth in all the right ways.
The King's Speech is totally a "feel good" movie. The ending is very emotionally satisfying, but in a natural way, not in a forced, give-me-an-Oscar way. Of course he overcomes the obstacle, that's what the movie is all about; but Tom Hooper wisely doesn't let the audience forget that a much greater obstacle is ahead, with the looming threat of a second World War.
Enough about the movie, let me talk about another thing: We got to the theater five minutes before showtime, and came into a packed theater. We got stuck in the front. This makes for a very unpleasant experience. How do people sit in the front? Some people actually prefer it. Movie theaters shouldn't even have rows that close.
Luckily, the neck-and-eye-torture I suffered was more than made up for by one of the more lovely movies of 2010. I'm happy with it.
The King's Speech: A
Front rows: F-----
Neck pain: ummm, let's give that a C. For Crick.
