Thursday, May 12, 2011

Thoughts on "The King's Speech"

 Date: 2010
Director: Tom Hooper
Starring: Colin Firth, Geoffrey Rush, Helena Bonham Carter

Colin Firth in a kilt.  Discuss.

Jennifer Ehle and Colin Firth on screen together again.  Discuss.

The years seem to have been kinder to Colin Firth than Jennifer Ehle.  Makeup or age?  Discuss.

Helena Bonham Carter was neither insipid or creepy as I feared she would be.

Geoffrey Rush. Hearts!

Worst Winston Churchill portrayal ever? Likely.

I want the shabby wall in Lionel's office.  Moose said "No."


The "scene"  Oh. My.  It was nothing.  It was even interlaced with British swears which are so ridiculously funny that you weren't even offended by the real swears.  Seriously, this movie would have a PG rating if not for that scene.  I think a brief discussion with the kids about how this is not appropriate language even for adults and why it is not appropriate would be fine.  You could also mute it and not miss the impact.

Overall it was a really good story about courage, trust and duty, but NOT a good film about stuttering.  As the mother of a stammerer I was very annoyed that the film insinuated that the MAIN cause of stuttering is a trauma of some sort.  That is NOT TRUE.  It may be the cause in some cases but not in all or even in most.

I realize that this is a historical film espousing the science of the time but most people don't know anything about stuttering and will not know that the film's message about stuttering is outdated. 

Every parent of a stammerer is afraid that something they did caused their child's dis-fluency and it is unfair to perpetuate those false fears.

What parents of stammerers do need is immense gifts of patience from the almighty and a loving "listening" face.
If I ever hear my kid or anyone else's kid making fun of a child's stutter like David did of Bertie's.  They are going to get a tongue lashing that will make them wish THEY had never learned to talk. 

5 out of 7 thimbles.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Aging make-up and wig:

http://enchantedserenityperiodfilms.blogspot.com/2011/01/colin-firth-jennifer-ehle-15-years.html

Jenny said...

I LOVED THIS MOVIE!!! I didn't know Jennifer Ehle was in this movie and was so absolutely excited to see her and to see them in a film together.

I agree that the film's education of studdering is outdated but I think the film was meant to be outdated. This is what he dealt with. This was the knowledge they had back then which helps you to understand how incredibly difficult it was to overcome back then. Also, the focus of why he studders was important, he dealt with trauma and the movie was about him. I think the average, educated person knows that studdering isn't always a result of trauma but something that some children may be born with.

The swearing scene was indeed hilarious and I had heard that they talked about cutting it out to make the movie PG-13, but I think it's important it's there. It's a vital part of how he dealt with his studdering. Good movie, I was happy to see your review of it...good job!