cin·e·phile

The King’s Speech

I’m going to inaugurate my blog by writing a review to The King’s Speech, this year’s Oscar winner for best feature film. Also, it’s one one of my favorite movies. (And now you’re thinking, well I don’t need to read the rest because I know she liked it, and you’re right).

But why is it one of my favorites? Well, for starters, it’s a period piece. It’s a fact in my life, that all period piece movies are almost always perfect movies. Not always, but almost always. And so when I sit down to watch one, I’m already inclined to love it. This one is no exception.

And then, there’s the added effect of Colin Firth, which also pretty much guarantees a top notch film (we’ll overlook Mamma Mia, because it wasn’t his fault the movie was the way it was). 

There was the minor point of Helena Boham Carter, whom I don’t like at all, and I’m sorry to say it. She’s a good actress, but I generally don’t like the movies she’s in. If the movie had been bad, I would have blamed her.

But no scapegoat was necessary - the film had everything tightly wound together and as it was ending I was saddened, because honestly, I wanted more. The scenery, the acting, the editing, the script -they were all perfect for each other. The drama of the tongue-tied king, the suspense of whether or not he would be able to learn to stop stuttering, and of course, the hilarity of his speech therapist.

Which brings me to the best part of the film, Geoffrey Rush. Where did he come from? Why hadn’t I seen him before? He made the movie what it was and honestly blew me away. The genre says drama, but I was lol-ing all over the place.

And to quickly backtrack - the script was brilliant. Quick, witty, and it kept me thinking - which is difficult since movies are so predicable nowadays. In my Oscar night ballot, I had a hard time deciding between this script and Aaron Sorkin’s for TSN. Yes, these are the things I think about during my pre-Oscar night movie watching. Call me weird.

View → tages / the king's speech / tsn / movie reviews / colin firth / helena boham carter

movies & films

movie: /ˈmo͞ovē/ noun: a story or event recorded by a camera as a set of moving images and shown in a theater or on television; a motion picture

film: /film/ movies considered as an art or industry

I think it can be said, after reading this, that movies and films are not the same thing. Granted, they are the similar, but they don’t carry the same meaning. I’d compare it to book versus literature, or even food versus cuisine. The difference is in the connotation, and in the amount of depth given to each.

For instance: American Pie is a movie, but The King’s Speech, well that’s a film.

But let me stop before I go on sounding like a textbook (which is probably influenced by my having to read so many lately), and explain what I’m doing here.

Hi, my name is Caroline, and I am here because I want to write.

        “That sounds wonderful, Caroline, but don’t you have another blog to do that in?” you may ask.
        “Why yes, I do.”
        “Then what’s going on here?” you insist.
        “Well, that other blog is a poem/prose blog. You know, free writing and stuff. This is a different blog because it’s movie reviews and criticisms. Get it?”
        “Oh, I see. That’s wonderful. I’ll be looking forward to reading your posts,” but really, you are thinking of how much of a Tumblr whore I’ve become, and you’re probably right.

Anyway, I hope you like to read about movies, because this is just another one of those blogs. I hope my stuff isn’t too long, because I’ve realized people hate reading. I’ll post up some pictures and stuff, to lighten the mood, you know. Okay.

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