The King's Speech (2010)

This movie won Best Picture for 2010. Did it deserve it?

Title: The King's Speech

Director: Tom Hooper

Starring: Colin Firth, Geoffrey Rush, and Helena Bonham Carter

Rated: R

Released: 2010

Rating: 4.5/5

Basic Plot: King George VI has to learn to live with his stammering problem so it won't affect his public life.

Helena Bonham Carter is Normal
I am used to seeing Carter as Bellatrix and other crazy roles. So when I saw her in this movie I was just amazed. It was neat that she can be really normal and not weird. Her character is very supportive and you can tell she cares for her husband. Oh, did I mention, she is really normal.

Colin Firth's Stuttering
Firth's stuttering is very realistic. This shows that Colin Firth is talented as an actor to be able to pull that off without seeming unrealistic. And it is a good thing Firth pulls off an effective stutter as the whole movie hinges upon that fact.

Never Overcoming the Stuttering Problem
Let me give out a spoiler, Bertie (Firth) never overcomes his stuttering problem. At the end of the movie his stuttering doesn't go away. His speech has him stuttering but he deals with it. He doesn't stop out of fear. That is as commendable as overcoming the stuttering problem. That being said, it was a little disappointing to me nonetheless.

Final Thoughts
This movie is very well done. I think it earned each and every award except Best Picture. Best Picture, to me, means some movie that shows the limits of movie making (which is both visuals and story). The King's Speech has a spot on story but the visuals are nothing special. The visuals do well to support the story it tells, but they are nothing on par with Black Swan or Inception (both movies I wanted to win Best Picture). I would recommend seeing this movie since the characters and story are both spot on.