By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 4.3 cats
Director: Stephen Frears
Starring: Heather McCrory | Helen Mirren | James Cromwell | Michael Sheen
Country: france, italy, united_kingdom
Year: 2006
Running time: 97
IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0436697/
Chris says: “I’m convinced that Helen Mirren is capable of anything: She can quietly steal scenes in a Robert Altman ensemble piece (GOSFORD PARK), turn a recurring role into an icon (television’s ‘Prime Suspect’) and even survive an embarrassment like CALIGULA (I still can’t wait to see her as an assassin in SHADOWBOXER). One year after her award-winning portrayal of Queen Elizabeth I in an HBO miniseries, Mirren fearlessly takes on Elizabeth II in director Stephen Frears’ intriguing film about Princess Diana’s untimely death in 1997 and the strange days that followed.
“Not really a biopic of Elizabeth (or Diana), Frears and screenwriter Peter Morgan have instead crafted an intense, revealing examination of the British political climate of that time. Just months before the accident, Tony Blair (Michael Sheen) became the country’s first Labour Prime Minister in nearly two decades. When he first meets with Elizabeth at the film’s onset, he’s not entirely familiar with the precise customs required between the Queen and her subjects, exemplifying how the public’s attitude towards the monarchy has shifted in the late 20th Century. As national mourning over Diana swells, the monarchy’s refusal to even submit a public statement about the dead Princess they’ve disowned (she and Charles divorced only one year before) makes them appear remote and out of touch. At Blair’s urging and guidance, it’s up to Elizabeth to address the public, respond to their outcry against her and reassure them during this national crisis.
“Frears deftly incorporates a lot of news footage into the film, giving it a chilling, unforced authenticity. It also provides an interesting, if sometimes jarring contrast to the delightfully wrought conversations between Blair and Elizabeth. The screenplay has that carefully composed eloquence and wit of a stage play which most of the actors nail perfectly—especially Sheen (a breakthrough performance that aims to restore the success and idealism of Blair at first term), James Cromwell (wonderful as grumpy, snide Prince Philip) and Heather McCrory, a scene-stealer as Blair’s smart, acid-tongued wife Cherie. Still, Mirren effortlessly towers above them all. It’s a role of a lifetime that she inhabits with subtlety and complete control. Her Queen is not a doughy Monty Python stereotype but a woman capable of driving a Range Rover across rugged terrain. Elizabeth II was born into a lifelong ‘job’ she didn’t entirely want, and here she’s believably baffled by her country’s reaction to her non-action. She eventually emerges triumphant, but not unscathed, and Mirren makes her small but significant transformation a beautiful thing to witness. 4.5 cats”
Bruce says: “Stephen Frears has taken a snapshot of history and created a behind-the-scenes tableau, one that raises more questions than it answers. THE QUEEN is an astute commentary on British culture, tradition, and politics. In my opinion, a full appreciation of THE QUEEN demands that one step beyond the tight narrative line of the film and look at a larger picture.
“Diana, the former Princess of Wales, was the world’s most photographed and worshipped idol. That was not by chance. Magazines discovered that a Diana cover could break sales records; Diana discovered that she could combat the stifling House of Windsor by becoming the worst possible threat in Royal eyes, a media whore. For Diana set styles and was a spokesperson for many charities. When her divorce from Prince Charles became final, the Royal Family thought they had finally washed their hands of her.
“Tragic events create strange moments in history. Diana’s horrific death is perhaps one of the best examples. The tragedy held all sorts of attention getting ingredients for the media – the mystery of the Paris limousine chase, the romance of Diana with the Egyptian playboy son of the owner of Harrods, the drama of the feud between the fairytale princess and the Royal Family, the tragedy of two grieving sons and the overwhelming, swelling display of grief by the common people. Peter Morgan’s script, intermingled with actual news coverage of Diana and the aftermath of her accident, recreates only a small part of the week that followed.
“Before Diana’s death, it would have been unspeakable that any Prime Minister might challenge the behavior of a monarch. THE QUEEN is a stand-off between HM Queen Elizabeth II, the personification of stoicism, and the extroverted Tony Blair, the affable newly elected Labor Party Prime Minister, in part a creation of a media tidal wave similar to that of Diana. Morgan focuses on the recalcitrance of the Royal Family to publicly acknowledge Diana’s death and Blair’s dogged attempts to change The Queen’s mind and to force her to return to London from Balmoral Castle, her summer home in Scotland. Furthermore, Blair lobbies for a public funeral at Westminster Abbey. Irreverently, Morgan finds humor in both camps.
“The House of Windsor’s staff does everything to rationalize the Royal silence by declaring the incident a ‘private matter;’ meanwhile the Royal Family appears obsessed with reports of the Diana coverage in the newspapers and on television. Elizabeth and Philip constantly refer to the protection of the children as a means of rationalizing their actions. Not once does Elizabeth make any effort to console the boys; Philips thinks that running down a fourteen point stag will direct emotions away from the boys’ loss.
“Helen Mirren deserves every award possible for a brilliantly subtle performance. She brings total understanding to the film’s opening quote from Shakespeare, ‘Uneasy lies a head that wears a crown.’ Mirren captures the persona of a monarch who fastens her own pearls, drives her own Range Rover, and is ill at ease in public. Michael Sheen is a perfect Blair as he capture’s the PM’s energy, idealism, naïveté and flair. James Cromwell, Roger Allam and Sylvia Syms make up a wonderful supporting cast. Alex Cummings is hideously miscast as Prince Charles and that flaw seriously damages the film. Outspoken Cherie Blair, albeit the subject of continual scandals since Blair became Prime Minister, is an exceptionally bright woman and successful lawyer. A combination of bad scripting and a poorly nuanced performance by Helen McCrory make her every screen appearance a cheap shot. In contrast, Cromwell’s Prince Philip, every bit as outrageous at McCrory’s Cherie Blair, is better defined and perfectly executed. Frears is clearly back on top of his game, matching his early successes MY BEAUTIFUL LAUNDRETTE and PRICK UP YOUR EARS.
“Blair emerges from the battle triumphant. He handles The Queen with an iron fist. Is this the same Blair who could not raise a finger against George Bush when public sentiment opposed Britain’s involvement in Iraq? Elizabeth, who gives in to Blair and meets her subjects in an unusually unguarded and poignant moment, has since returned to her old patterns and is seldom in the public eye, no more accessible now than she was before Diana’s death. In the end it appears that neither The Queen nor Blair have parlayed their experiences of that week into creating productive roles for themselves. Two inexplicable ‘why’s’. 4.5 cats
Peter says: “Stephen Frears (HIGH FIDELITY, DIRTY PRETTY THINGS) has done a remarkable job dramatizing the 1997 events following Tony Blair’s election as Prime Minister and Princess Diana’s death in Paris. Almost immediately, the populist P.M. runs into the sclerotic royal family’s refusal to publicly comment or even acknowledge the tragedy, despite the extraordinary outpouring of grief over the Princess’s death. The populist Blair, with his American-style opinion polling and informality, urges, flatters, cajoles and finally manipulates Queen Elizabeth into making a public gesture of mourning.
“Frears, with screenwriter Peter Morgan, crafted a subtle script that gives us a peek at how that monarchy operates and in particular how its icon, Queen Elizabeth II, sees her role. Historical dramas have the luxury of knowing the audience expects some degree of creative license, but re-creations within everybody’s memory require far greater accuracy to be accepted. Morgan recently stated that they interviewed anybody who would talk to them and that the three major sources, Diana’s family, Prince Charles’ household and Buckingham Palace itself, were ruthless about getting their version of events out. Apparently, they had to leave out a lot of the bad stuff. Perhaps that explains why Prince Charles (by all accounts a deeply neurotic fellow) comes across as so reasonable. All of which sort of underscores the film’s only weakness – you end up spending too much time wondering: ‘Is she really that emotionally cold? Do they all read the tabloids? Did the Queen Mother really drink that much?’
“Although the supporting cast does fine work, the film circles around Helen Mirren’s stunning performance. Not only does she capture the look, the manner, the voice and even the walk, she exudes the feeling of what it must be like to be the Queen of England. I first remember seeing Mirren in 1989’s THE COOK, THE THIEF, HIS WIFE AND HER LOVER, and while I have not liked everything she has done since, this role really showcases her talents. (Admittedly, I was so relieved not to see the ubiquitous Judi Dench in this role that I would have put up with a lot less).
“By all accounts, Queen Elizabeth liked the film enough to invite the cast over for tea. 4 cats”