The King's Speech

I finally decided to see this because it was the only best picture nominee I hadn't watched so I figured I might as well be a completest. Sort of like how I went out with all your sisters. Even the one who looks like Bruce Vilanch. Boom Roasted!

Much like last year's Frost/Nixon, The King's Speech is really just a sports movie for people who claim they're much to cultured to enjoy anything as banal as competition. We have a talented underdog who because of past trauma is too afraid to get back in the game (The King with a speech impediment). A maverick outsider who doesn't play by society's rules, but whose unorthodox training methods might be the only thing that make our hero reach his true potential (in this case a failed actor turned speech therapist played by Geoffrey Rush). And of course a climatic event where our plucky underdog overcomes his previous limitations to succeed and inspire those around him (The Speech). Heck, they even through in several training montages, except instead of a boxer training in slow motion with Eye of Tiger blaring in the background, we get an aristocrat getting elocution lessons over a classical etude (also known as Eric's 2007 spring break). Of course since it stars people with British accents wearing tuxedos The King's Speech gets nominated for 12 Oscars, while Rocky 4 got shut out. Can you explain this to me? I mean Rocky's speech at the end of that film ended the cold war for god's sake (If I can change, and you can change, then we all change!!!), all George VI did was tell a country they were entering a war over which he had no say. Its an outrage. I blame the kids and their rock and roll.

Anyway back to the film in question. Overall the Kings Speech is fine, if a little overrated. Much like the central action in 127 hours, its a little difficult to make something as inherently internal as overcoming a speech impediment compelling for two hours. As a result the film does drag a bit in the middle and I found myself checking the watch a couple of times. Still the central relationship is good, there are some nice moments of humor, and the film does stick the landing which is of course the thing it had to do. I don't think its the best picture of the year, and when it inevitably beats Inception (and True Grit, and The Black Swan, and The Social Network, and Scott Pilgrim (not nominated but should have been, that's right I'm including a double parentheses, that's how I roll, I don't need brackets)) I'll only be mildly annoyed.