I was one of the billions who was shocked at the sudden death of Diana, Princess of Wales in that tragic car crash in Paris in August 1997. Even though I am not an ‘admirer’ of the monarchy, I too was completely at a loss as to why the British Royal family seemed to be so unattached to their country’s (and the world’s) outpouring of grief for the ‘People’s Princess’. The Queen is a re-telling of this heartbreaking event and attempts to ‘humanise’ the actions of the Windsor family, most notably Queen Elizabeth II played brilliantly by Helen Mirren.
Set during the week from the day of Diana’s death until the day of her funeral, The Queen takes an intimate, behind-the-scenes look at the interaction between Queen Elizabeth II and British Prime Minister Tony Blair (played by Michael Sheen) during this period. Stephen Frears the director, focuses on the struggle between the Queen and Tony Blair to reach a compromise between treating Diana’s death as a private tragedy for the Royal Family and appeasing the public’s demand for an open display of mourning.
Through a bit of research, I found the writers had developed the script through extensive interviews with many unnamed sources close to the Prime Minister and the Royal Family. Many of these sources were able to corroborate the accounts of others, allowing enough information for the writers to imagine the intervening scenes. Obviously the film was not intended to be a historically accurate representation of the Queen's role during this time, rather an interpretation of the interaction between key figures dealing with the death of a much loved public figure.
I really enjoyed this movie. Helen Mirren won every Leading Actress award including the Oscar© for her exceptional portrayal of a monarch struggling to separate her personal life from the duties of a Queen during an unprecedented and tragic situation. I found The Queen to be a reflective and real dramatisation of the aftermath of Diana’s death that shocked the world. The use of newsreel footage to bind the story together showing the outpouring of public grief with the controlled behind-the-scenes emotions of Queen Elizabeth makes it a deeply moving and appreciative viewing experience.
Set during the week from the day of Diana’s death until the day of her funeral, The Queen takes an intimate, behind-the-scenes look at the interaction between Queen Elizabeth II and British Prime Minister Tony Blair (played by Michael Sheen) during this period. Stephen Frears the director, focuses on the struggle between the Queen and Tony Blair to reach a compromise between treating Diana’s death as a private tragedy for the Royal Family and appeasing the public’s demand for an open display of mourning.
Through a bit of research, I found the writers had developed the script through extensive interviews with many unnamed sources close to the Prime Minister and the Royal Family. Many of these sources were able to corroborate the accounts of others, allowing enough information for the writers to imagine the intervening scenes. Obviously the film was not intended to be a historically accurate representation of the Queen's role during this time, rather an interpretation of the interaction between key figures dealing with the death of a much loved public figure.
I really enjoyed this movie. Helen Mirren won every Leading Actress award including the Oscar© for her exceptional portrayal of a monarch struggling to separate her personal life from the duties of a Queen during an unprecedented and tragic situation. I found The Queen to be a reflective and real dramatisation of the aftermath of Diana’s death that shocked the world. The use of newsreel footage to bind the story together showing the outpouring of public grief with the controlled behind-the-scenes emotions of Queen Elizabeth makes it a deeply moving and appreciative viewing experience.
No comments:
Post a Comment