the king's speech...

let's start with a disclaimer
shall we?
i am not a professional film reviewer
i'm not even an amateur film reviewer
i am simply a girl who
likes movies
& saw this particular one at 9:30pm three nights ago...
if my ideas seem shallow
(i like how things look!)
if my words are inarticulate
(i like to keep it simple!)
if i am long winded
(i spend my day with tiny creatures who only hear every third word i say)
if my thoughts seem scattered
(welcome to my life!)
if this doesn't seem like a review at all
just me listing things i like
(probably the most accurate account so far)
well, i guess you've been alerted :)

above all
if you have opinions
(about the movie
or about my opinions)
please comment!
i love to hear what other people have
to say about movies i've seen...

here we go...

okay to start off
if you ask me
there should be an award for best walls in a room
& if there were such an award
in would be handed to the walls in
lionel louge's office all day long...
i have no idea if they were on purpose
(like in the script...)
or if it was just years of paint & wallpaper peeling away
whatever it was
it's fantastic...
(& i read something
comparing the peeling wallpaper
to george peeling back layers
as he works with lionel...
love it.
live for that sort of thing...)

i loved this movie...
it was so beautiful & stirring
& pulls you right in from the very beginning...
the first speech
where every little tick & titter echoes through the stadium
devastating.
& perfect.

i loved george & elizabeth's relationship...
she is the queen
(& i will admit right now
that i was so confused by why elizabeth was the queen
but not married to the old dying king
& why the old dying king's wife wasn't the queen
& why elizabeth was the queen
but not married to the king
she's married to a duke
except then he becomes the king later...
not confused enough to research it now
but confused none the less...)
anyway
she is the queen
but showed so well
how anxious a wife can get to see her husband succeed...
not in a bad way
she was always really respectful of his space & feelings
but in a way that made you feel like she really loved him
& wanted him to overcome his difficulties with stuttering...
& when she hears him speak without the awkward pauses
she just seems so so proud of him...
i loved that!
(i realize that she may have just been embarrassed
& needed him to do well so that the
family remained in ultimate standing among the people of england
but it felt real to me
& so i'm going with it...)


i loved how colin firth made you believe he was
having a hard time speaking
& made you want to root for him...

the relationship between the king & his speech helper (?)
seemed kind-of cliche at times
like we've seen this in so many movies before:
person has problem
they try many things to solve their problem
but the only thing that helps is some weird person
with crazy (cool) wallpaper
who does unconventional things
& they resist
& they fight
& they give in
& the person's problems are solved
& they are best friends for life or longer
(see 'good will hunting', 'just like heaven', 'the blind side' etc)
i'm not saying it doesn't work
(hey, i loved & cried in all of those movies)
it just felt a little 'been there' to me...
but then it's a true story!
how can i argue with that?
& really if i'm being period accurate
this movie was set before all of the others...
this relationship might have been the one that
started the cliche'!

edward's girlfriend's necklace in the party scene...
die for.
(couldn't find a picture of it
but it's worth the price
to see the peeling walls & the necklace...
oh & guy pearce looking so not 'momento'...
(not that i don't looove 'momento'...i do!)
vintage super cutie)

& is this not the most adorable thing you've ever seen?


the costumes & the sets were so pretty...
the signs on the buildings made me weak in the knees...
i love signage & fonts & all of that dorky graphic stuff...

helena bonham carter is an actress i admire so much
she goes from wild & insane in harry potter
to proper & sophisticated here
& so many more in between...
& she always takes wacky risks on the red carpet
(& in real life)
so fun to watch!

i am really not a history buff
but this even made me want to google the time period
if only just to figure out the queen, king, duke situation...

all in all
a really wonderful movie...

taken after the movie & we all look so wide awake!
totally impressive, if you ask me...

nooc by the numbers...
night owls: 5 fun girls
price for popcorn on tuesday nights at vrc: $2!
number of the queen's cute hats: 4 (at least)
my personal tissue count: 2
starting off with a sweet & inspiring movie: priceless

prediction: colin firth will win the best actor academy award
he was so close last year (a single man, also a beautiful film)
& he deserves it...
(also he was in 'bridget jones diary' so there you go
a complete body of work!)
everybody else should be nominated...
pretty amazing cast

next on the list:
inception
at the $2 theater
(yes!)
the theater that doesn't have stadium or comfy seats
(darn!)
the theater we will be at
(yes! yes!)

see you there!


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

check out my other
reviews (& i use that term loosely)
of academy award best picture nominees
here
they're wordy but mildly entertaining...

:)