The King’s Speech

Plot
Written by David Seidler and directed by Tom Hooper, this film is an opulently
enjoyable true-life drama. It tells the private story of a famous public man, King George
VI ( or Bertie, as a “family’s” nickname), the woman who became his queen and his
exuberant Australian speech therapist Lionel Logue, who helped him control his
stammer, which had tortured him since childhood.

There we can notice a highly social and political background, from the rise of fascism
abroad, to the arrival of the mass media as a major force in our lives. There are four
crucial incidents: the death in 1936 of George V ( the first monarch to address his
subjects via the radio); the accession to the throne of his eldest son as Edward VIII and
his almost immediate abdication in order to marry American double divorcee Wallis
Simpson; the crowning of his successor, George VI; and finally, in 1939, the outbreak
of a war.

Another aspect of the film that we must preen is its impeccable and warily English
vocabulary spoke amidst the high and middle classes.

Characters
Elizabeth is a warm and charming future queen, very much aware of her royal status.
George V is a peremptory man irritated by the increasing demands of democracy,
incapable of expressing love for his sons and ironically dying with a mental disease.
Edward is a selfish and stubborn future king, with a despicable character since his
childhood, when he used to mock his brother’s stammer. The Archbishop of
Canterbully represents a pillar of establishment, in a time where the Church used to
control a great part of politics.

Moral
Here we can see the birth of a truthful friendship between a therapist and his patient,
between the King and a common man. The stammerer is seen as a true hero, courageous
by his perseverance and aware of his responsibilities and necessity to place duty above
any personal issue, pleasure or contentment.

Anita Paupério Abreu CAE1, Saturday