The King's Speech

"Why are you here then?"
"Because I bloody well stammer!"

The second son of King George V (Gambon), Prince Albert (Firth) known as Bertie, has a problem: he stammers.  As the second in line to the throne, it is necessary for him to speak in public, but he struggles through speeches.  After going through a long line of speech therapists, Bertie is convinced no one can help him.  Unbeknownst to Bertie, his wife Elizabeth (Carter), contacts unconventional therapist and aspiring actor, Lionel Logue (Rush).

Despite their reservations, Lionel and Bertie agree to work together.  Lionel wants to address the root of the problem: what caused the stammer, in addition to overcoming the stammer.  When the king dies, Bertie's rebellious brother, Edward (Pearce) ascends the throne.  But Edward is not the king the officials expect, especially with his divorced American mistress (Even Best).  Can Bertie step up and be the king, in spite of his speech problem.


An excellent, well-made film... worth all the accolades and awards that it received.  It manages to tow the line between history and historical narrative, using the known facts about King George VI and his struggle with speech and his relationship with Lionel Logue as the core of the story.  Apparently, excerpts from Logue's case notes were used in the story to keep the scenes between the King and Logue realistic.

The core cast of Colin Firth, Geoffrey Rush and Helena Bonham Carter have excellent chemistry.  Firth is a strong lead, making you feel his speech struggles.  He commands the screen and deserves the Oscar he received for this part.  Geoffrey Rush is a formidable co-star, making each scene a little stronger.  Firth and Rush have believable chemistry and play off each other well.  I don't tend to like Helena Bonham Carter... she's overrated.  But in this case she isn't too overbearing, much of that could be because she isn't in much of the film.

This film has no sex (or implied sex) or violence.  The film has an "R" rating due to language, which is only used in therapy sessions, which they explain in the film.

Check it out, you won't regret it.

The King's Speech (2010) minutes
Rating: R for some language.
Director: Tom Hooper
Starring: Colin Firth as King George VI
Geoffrey Rush as Lionel Logue
Helena Bonham Carter as Queen Elizabeth
Guy Pearce as King Edward III
Michael Gambon as King George V