WE CAN ONLY DO THE RIGHT AS WE SEE THE RIGHT: Let me be clear at the start -- The King's Speech is a very good movie. It is professional in every way, well-acted from the top to the bottom, and is suitably moving. On this blog's Chock Full of Firthy Goodness meter, it gets a 10 out of 10, and if they were to award an Oscar for Most Verisimilitudinous Movie it should win.
But Best Picture? Really? It is, as Linda Holmes has noted, a film which shares many of the same rhythms as The Karate Kid and every other sports-underdog film, which is funny because what I was expecting was essentially the British remake of Good Will Hunting ... only you never get the italicized It's Not Your Fault! scene. There is nothing terribly ambitious about the filmmaking or screenplay -- it just does what it does exceedingly well.
Among those things are the sur-supporting performances, and here I'm not talking about Helena Bonham Carter (nominated, really? for doing what? Granted, she's owed a win from her Wings of the Dove performance losing to Helen Hunt, but still) but rather the roles you see for less than ten minutes -- Guy Pearce as Prince Edward, Michael Gambon as King George VI, and especially Timothy Spall (Wormtail!) as Winston Churchill -- all of whom thoroughly and realistically (okay, maybe not) inhabit their roles.
Colin Firth is solid in the movie; Geoffrey Rush, of whom I'm not always a fan, is even better. But Best Picture?
What Adam said. I enjoyed The King's Speech very much, but I never quite got past the staginess of it, the sense that it was following predictable beats toward a satisfying conclusion. With The Social Network, on the other hand, for all of its quirks and flaws and truthiness issues, I was completely and grinningly engaged throughout. I mean, just think about the opening scene in the bar -- that's an Oscar-worthy short film right there.
ReplyDelete<span>Disagree. Does a Best Picture need to break new ground or can it win by doing what it does exceedingly well? I vote yes. Social Network is a well made movie but to my mind it owes its success to the fact that its audience brings a fascination with Facebook into the theater with them. Considering it's only very loosely the story of Facebook, it's a bit of a cheat. I enjoyed it but came straight home to fact check on the web. And days later, the portrayal of women still nagged at me. I read the explanations. And it still nagged at me.</span>
ReplyDeleteI very much enjoyed TKS, and am fine with it being nominated. But I'd put Toy Story 3 and the Social Network ahead of it.
ReplyDeleteIf I had a vote, it would go to The Social Network. BUT, that said, winning Best Picture is a political thing, and only occasionally means that the movie was actually THE BEST ONE. Because that's the case, I have no problem with The King's Speech winning.
ReplyDeleteI actually think the Oscars mostly get it wrong. They nearly always reward style over substance. Modern costumes and set design never win anything, subtle performances are usually overlooked, and the best writers rarely get rewarded (although I suppose this year will probably prove an exception to that rule, as it's hard to imagine Sorkin not winning.)
Agree with Adam and the Professor. Isn't this movie basically a bromantic comedy? "I Love You, Man 2: Across the Pond"?
ReplyDeleteYou have the King, who admits he doesn't have any friends (Paul Rudd), and after striking out in every other area to solve his problem (needing a best man/speech impediment), he lands at the door of a mild eccentric with a large man cave (Jason Segel). You get a few more romantic comedy tropes sprinkled in, as Rush is hiding the relationship from his wife and the bishop becomes the disapproving friend of Firth, pointing out that this degree-less fraud is not deserving of a king.
And, of course, you get the breakup midway through the movie when you absolutely know these two crazy kids are going to get back together. There is also limited tension throughout it, because even with a limited sense of history, you know that in no way do the Nazis win the war, so Bertie is probably going to turn out into an okay king regardless of his speeches. If you agree that there is little drama to the proceedings because you know where this is going to end up, and you agree that there are a lot of laugh out loud funny lines, and you agree that there is indeed a bromance between our two male leads, that I think we have to call this a bromantic comedy.
+5 for that. Seriously: it's called The King's Speech. You can safely assume that the movie will end with a speech, and he'll probably deliver it well.
ReplyDeleteIt's also quite possibly the Weinstein-iest movie in a long time, which accounts for part of its success. My issue is that the final speech is overly scored. The score cues draw attention to the speech's "importance," when I think the absence of underscoring would have forced us to listen to the actual speech itself (and Firth's performance, which is great).
ReplyDeleteWhat I truly don't understand is Hooper winning director over Fincher at the DGA's. Yes, it's not obtrusively and maniacally overdirected (I'm looking at you, Mr. Aronofsky!), but there's nothing interesting in the direction at all. In contrast, the "Hall Of The Mountain King" scene in TSN is ALL Fincher--no dialogue--and is one of the best moments in the film.
I do agree that Firth's performance was great. I have to think that it would be very difficult to make stuttering seem natural, but he managed it. And he showed a lot of emotional range. I would prefer for Jesse Eisenberg to win best actor, as he completely inhabited that role, but the bf prefers Firth's performance, based on the range, and I certainly would not be appalled if Firth.
ReplyDeleteFincher made a movie that strongly features computer coding interesting and exciting. I would definitely put The Social Network ahead of TKS in direction. Frankly, I don't think that it's even close.
Best thing I've read all week.
ReplyDeleteI'm with Linda. I don't know if I would say The King's Speech was the best thing I saw all year--Toy Story 3 or Winter's Bone might top it and I liked Social Network--but it is solid across the board. It is a bromance, as CW says, but I have no problem letting myself get lost in dialogue (or silences) and the development of a relationship. I don't think a movie has to forge new ground in terms of special effects, or be a dramatic commentary on some social wrong. I enjoy those movies, as well, but I greatly appreciate a well told story with thoughtful characters that is strong from top to bottom. Of course, I also prefer straight plays to musicals and would rather just watch a small cast of good actors speak great dialogue to each other than be distracted by overly designed stage productions. So maybe this is just my personal preference.
ReplyDeleteOh, I agree with my double-n'ed doppleganger. Of the Best Pic nominees, I've only seen about half--TKS, TSN, Black Swan, TS3 and Inception. While TKS made me feel all warm and fuzzy, I'd rank it below Toy Story 3.
ReplyDeleteI feel like it's a weird year for movies because there are so many good ones but nothing that feels like an Oscar winner. The Social Network may have been the best film but nothing like it has ever won the Oscar. The King's Speech seems more similar to past winners, but it just doesn't feel good enough. And none of the other options seem to quite hold up either. Inception? Toy Story 3? 127 Hours? All good films, but in a normal year I don't think any of them would have a shot at Best Picture.
ReplyDeleteI haven't seen it yet, but I've been kind of expecting a sort of Sister Act 2 structure, but with public speaking instead of singing. Colin Firth : Lauryn Hill :: Geoffrey Rush : Whoopi Goldberg? In a good way? Except Lauren was always good, she just didn't think she should do it. Hmm.
ReplyDeleteAre performaing arts movies (SA2, School of Rock, Take the Lead) a subcategory, structurally, of sports movies? Where does Akeela and the Bee fall in all this?
Akeela certainly is a sports movie; what separates some of the performing films from the genre is the absence of a rival, though there's always some Big Thing At The End Where You Have To Show What You Learned.
ReplyDeleteBut that's the problem with the movie in general. You know that Bertie's going to give the speech; that's fine. But you also know that it DOESN'T MATTER if he turns out to be an okay king. Seriously. Does anyone really think that the King's speeches won the war? Maybe I'm too scarred by the whole Prince Charles/Princess Diana tawdriness, but it's just difficult for me to take the British royal family as a serious historical actor.
ReplyDeleteI loved the movie as the story of a friendship, and the story of an individual overcoming obstacles. But I think that the movie falters when it makes claims to the Greater Social Significance of the King's Speech Against The Nazis.
I will say this for The King's Speech - it's the only one of the nominated movies I saw twice. (Obviously both in the theater.)
ReplyDeleteThe only other 2010 movies I saw more than once were: Tangled (twice in theater) and How to Train Your Dragon (twice in theater, once on DVD).
There's something to be said for watchability.
There are rivals in performance arts movies, but I guess unlike in sports movies, the rival and the antagonist tend to be separate entities.
ReplyDeleteIn Sister Act 2 the rivals are the stodgy Chapman Choir that does the Ode to Joy first. The antagonist is Mr. Crisp. And Lauren Hill's mom.
In School of Rock the rivals are Adam Pascal and his sad sack band that kicked Jack Black out. The (mild) antagonist is Joan Cusack. And Sarah Silverman.
In Glee, there are always other choirs they're worried about beating, but the antagonists are Sue and the other people at the top of the high school pecking order.
I've seen 9 of the 10 nominees (still haven't seen Winter's Bone) and think that TKS will win because it's SO traditionally an Academy vehicle (and a well done one, even if it's predicatble, etc.) and the Academy is made up of an older, more traditional crowd. Fincher might get director as I could see a Shakepeare in Love/Schindler's List thing happening with them awarding what should get Best Picture to the Director because he has a longer career and Hooper can win it some other time.
ReplyDeleteAnd while Best Picture doesn't have to mean most innovative, I am a fan of wanting to reward films that takes risks and accomplish new things and do it all well, and thus I wish Inception had an actual shot and am annoyed that Nolan did not get a directing nomination.
Hooper winning over Fincher could be a personality thing. Fincher's reputation as kind of a jerk is, based on very limited interaction, putting it kindly and while I think that shouldn't play a part in these awards, they do. Admired but not well-liked is not going to win a lot of awards in Hollywood.
ReplyDeleteSo, I take it that you really liked How to Train Your Dragon? I'm not being facetious. With the number of people who seemed to have liked it, and my very sincere reaction of "meh," I'd love to know what you (or others) liked about it. I feel like I must have missed something? Because other than maybe some scenes of outrageous-lead-dragon-cuteness, I just can't see myself watching it a second time.
ReplyDeleteOn watchability: I have a feeling that I'm going to get within sniffing distance of seeing all 10 Best Picture nominees, but might just be stopped by either Black Swan or 127 Hours from seeing them all.
if the conflict is between doing something interesting and doing something traditional, well -- what about True Grit? It's a different take on the Western while doing all the conventional things well. Or so I've been told.
ReplyDeleteI think this is a year where ranked choice is going to make a difference. I suspect there are a lot of ballots with Black Swan 1, Social Network 2, and a fair number of ballots with True Grit 1, King's Speech 2, and that may be the tiebreaker.
ReplyDeleteYou shouldn't listen to me when it comes to animated films. My ranking for last year would be 1. Tangled, 2. Dragon, 3. Toy Story.
ReplyDeleteI had the choice to see Black Swan again (and chose that day a repeat viewing of King's Speech). I didn't because I'm on the knife's edge about Swan. I think seeing it again will either convince me of its artistry and greatness OR make me giggle about how we're even considering such campy melodrama as Real Art. A second viewing will take me from ambivalence to either love or hate and that was more of a gamble than rewatching King's Speech which I knew would make me laugh and smile again.
I loved True Grit. I might have even loved it more than either Social Network or The King's Speech.
ReplyDeleteHaving seen 8 of the 10 (all but TS3 and The Fighter), if I had a vote it'd be for either Winter's Bone or Black Swan. Although, while I definitely loved Black Swan, like Watts I kind of worry that my opinion might not hold up on a second viewing. I'd also put True Grit or Inception ahead of the 2 major contenders.
ReplyDeleteIf it came down to The King's Speech or The Social Network, I'd go for the former, even though I agree that it doesn't quite feel like a Best Picture. On the other hand, it's quite clear to me that a lot of people got something out of The Social Network that I didn't, and if it wins, I won't be very dismayed.
And, see, I totally bought it.
ReplyDeleteEven then the king was really only a figurehead, but it was a much more important, respected, and revered figurehead. I may be unduly influenced by reading a novel set during the Blitz right before seeing this movie, but there was in there a sentiment expressed in it among the characters about how brave the little Princesses were, with the royal family staying in London, the palace getting hit, etc. Given the lessening of the king's real responsibilities, he's reduced to sort of being a national cheerleader, a "We'll all get through this together" rally leader. And here the guy handed that job is possibly one of the worst people to do it, given his own personal limitations. Matt's right about the intrusiveness of the music during the Big Speech, but I was really moved by the reaction shots of all the people listening. They were a nation with all eyes focused on their king and I believed that it meant something to them to be addressed by His Majesty.
I'll also throw in that it worked for me on the level of "Bertie Saves the Monarchy. Sort of." He not only had to overcome his own personal difficulties with the duties of ascension to the throne, and the the coming war, he had to redeem the family after the scandal of Edward. And if that meant being the Brave Face of a Nation at War, then the speech really, really mattered.
Adam, get out of my head. My wife loved TKS, and thought it was the best thing she's seen this year. I liked it well enough, think the two lead men deserve every award they can get their hands on, but it's Not Best Picture.
ReplyDeleteWilliam Goldman wrote this a few years ago about an Oscar race:
"I am voting for The Shawshank Redemption because...it moved the sh!t out of me. It took me places I hadn't been and hadn't expected to go. It accumulated."
So for me, it comes down to Sorkin's writing (which moved the intellectual side of me) or Black Swan's melodrama (the emotional side). Anything else is fighting for third (though I'd be thrilled with a Toy Story win).
I wholeheartedly approve of the nomination of The King's Speech, and of countless other Oscar nominees/winners that don't address serious issues or reinvent the reel, so to speak, but nevertheless provide 100% solid entertainment as movies. See also: Michael Clayton, Chocolat, Babe, The Fugitive... heck, I'll even give my thumb's up for the nomination for Working Girl and the win for Kramer vs. Kramer. I like seeing recognition for movies that are an absolute pleasure to watch, and not just movies that Are Important For Cinema and Culture.
ReplyDeleteI am not on Facebook and am not fascinated by it, but I loved The Social Network.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the sentiment, and it deserves to be nominated. But it's not as good a historical drama as Fugitive is a suspense movie or Michael Clayton is at exposing an attorney's moral conflicts.
ReplyDeleteI'm fairly certain going in that The Social Network does not end with Zuckerberg being forced to dismantle Facebook and pay hundreds of millions to his suers. I still watch it.
ReplyDeleteI think it's time we start the grassroots campaign for Winter's Bone, then. That movie was pretty kick-ass.
ReplyDeleteI also think whoever designed Geoffrey Rush's suits should win something.
I laughed very loudly at the BU crack. I was the only one in the theater who did so.
ReplyDeleteAm I the only one who didn't love Toy Story 3? I loved the first one and liked the second one, but I was kind of bored with 3. Is it getting all this acclaim just because it's so much better than Cars was? The garbage scene seemed way too scary for the little ones, and I teared up more when the lesbian parents dropped their daughter off at college than I did when the guy in Toy Story packed up for college.
ReplyDeleteThat the scene IS scary is what makes the film so great -- you actually believe, for a minute, that the toys are at risk of incineration. And then the whole final scene I was bawling.
ReplyDeleteI absolutely agree with Maret. I've also seen 9 of the 10 (only missing Winter's Bone, which I'm watching Friday) and would rather reward innovation. I thought King's Speech was well done, but I also found it boring because I could see each plot point coming from a mile away, as well as how each character would react and what he/she would say. While I get the point that you knew that Facebook wouldn't be dismantled, I think the difference is that I was not able to plot out the whole movie within the first 5 minutes. For me, a lot of this comes down to screenplay. I never would have thought that I would enjoy a movie about Facebook (something I'm not even a part of) and would find deeper meaning in that, then a movie about WWII and Great Britain.
ReplyDeleteSo I'm with Maret on the Nolan point, and would throw in that I would rather see Best Screenplay and Director go to any of the other nominees. Everything else I saw this year that was nominated did a great job telling its story AND succeeded at telling a larger point.
I'm a little confused on why the real history of the founding of Facebook would affect your enjoyment of a dramatic fictional telling of that story. And why fact checking is necessary to validate The Social Network (which I haven't seen but will see this weekend since I just got it off netflix). It's not a documentary, and it's definitely not history, and it's never presented as such.
ReplyDeleteAnd in general, as a historian, I approach films that are portrayed as "based on a true story" as always playing extremely loose with the facts in order to provide the best dramatic story possible.
I was talking about The Kids Are All Right making me cry more than Toy Story 3 did.
ReplyDeleteUnderstood, but I'm responding to the "too scary?" part more than anything. Compared to Bambi of Lion King, no one died here.
ReplyDeleteSame here, Gretchen. I loved True Grit, and though I haven't seen The King's Speech, I like True Grit better than Social Network.
ReplyDelete