It’s easy to become blinded by the shine from its multiple awards but the Blu-ray and DVD release of The King’s Speech is an opportunity to enjoy Tom Hooper’s excellent film again, and it’s an opportunity well worth taking.
The film tells the story of the ascension of King George VI to the throne and the painful maturation of the man’s public persona and its key ingredient, the voice of a King. The central relationship between Firth’s King George and Geoffrey Rush’s unorthodox Australian speech leads the film from the 1925 closing speech of the British Empire Exhibition to the rousing speech to the nation on the outbreak of War. It is a rich tale, told with impeccable pacing, focus and is something of a triumph for a relatively low budget British independent film.
It may have been decried as Oscar bait on its release, a label as unfair as it was prophetic, but there is something undeniably classic about Hooper’s film with an affecting and rich central performance from Colin Firth. The choices Hooper made with the composition and layering of the speech therapy sessions do as much for the film’s momentum as the crippling moments of public speaking, and the use of silence is pitch perfect and Hooper has spoken about his collaboration with composer Alexandre Desplat which resulted in Firth’s vocal performance having the space to breathe, to be heard.
Their is a line through Hooper’s work in which a public figure and a private relationship play out, his Damned United and TV series Longford and John Adams both played with the notion of discovering a public voice and in The King’s Speech the theme finds its most accomplished execution. We feel emotionally charged and viscerally attuned to the savage expectation, both from commoner and King, of the importance of ‘the voice’ and there is a tangible sense of helplessness in Firth’s King and  Hooper’s skill is in relaying the human aspect of the pomp and circumstance; we all feel the same as our words hit the air.
The director’s commentary has Hooper his usual generous self, and the construction of character and his famous ‘triangle of man-love’ between him and Colin Firth and Geoffrey Rush is not only great fun but illuminates the on-screen relationship. The real history behind the film is given its due and the DVD and Blu-ray is bolstered with these additions but the jewel here is the rarest of beasts: an Oscar-winner that is worthy of the hype surrounding it, and is even more satisfying on a second watch. Firth arguably did better work with Tom Ford’s A Single Man but here he has to lead us through a far wider world and the reason it works it because Hooper never lets us forget who the man is. In moments of crises Hooper kicks in with a very shallow depth of field and Firth seems increasingly lost in his own prison. To be the most public person in the country and still be completely alone is a hard trick to pull off as an actor and for a director, but Hooper and Firth manage it flawlessly.
The supporting cast is exceptional, Hooper shows his playful side by casting I Claudius actor Derek Jacobi and in Jennifer Ehle he reunites the Darcy and Lizzie of the BBC’s iconic Pride and Prejudice, and it’s churlish to suggest that this film is an automatic Oscar winner and the performances and direction are not worthy of the praise it’s received. Hooper allows the film’s central story to be peppered with small moments as the bedtime story with the Princesses and the embittered interplay between Firth’s George VI and Guy Pearce’s irascible Edward VIII, never drawing our eye away from the story, embellishing it and rewarding us with a solid and inspirational piece of work that will stand with the best of British film for years to come.
Film [Rating:4/5]
Disc [Rating:3/5]
- Commentary with director Tom Hooper
- An inspirational story of an unlikely friendship – The making of The King’s Speech
- Filmed Interview with Mark Logue
- Speeches from the real King George VI
- Production sketches from Academy Award® nominated Production designer Eve Stewart
- Production stills and Behind the Scenes photo gallery
