Last night watched a 'British Royalty' double feature. We had just received 'The Queen' the other day in the mail from Netflix, and I noticed that 'The Madness of King George' was also available on our 'in demand' listing from our local cable company, so sat down with both Monarchs yesterday evening. Both films were similar in the way they both touched on the idea of the 'Monarchy in decline', and both handled their subjects in less of an Awestruck manner, instead touching on the more down to earth humanity of these poor clowns trapped in a positions of power (well, sort of) simply by the accident of their birth.
Nigel Hawthorne gives a marvelous performance, truly moving at times, of a man who has just enough grasp on his sanity to be aware of how it is slipping away, and just enough presence of mind to pull off a reasonable semblance of normality in order to reclaim his throne when it was in danger of being snatched from under him. Helen Mirren also appears in this film as his wife, and while she gives a fair performance, I felt her (German?) accent had a habit of appearing and disappearing from scene to scene. From time to time the film slipped dangerously close to parody, but usually was able to pull back from crossing the line. Both an intriguing political intrigue drama, and a fascinating look at the 'medical profession' of 230 years ago. (I love the doctor who is obsessed with 'the king's copious well formed stools')
Jump forward a couple hundred years to Elizabeth II, and the farce that surrounded the (former) Princess Di's funeral and the Queen's seeming reluctance to properly show the due respect. Despite the fact that I have nothing but contempt for the whole 'Royal Farce' and the pointlessness of continuing the Monarchy well past its expiration date, you really come away from this movie with a newfound respect for Queen Elizabeth, and a equally newfound contempt for modern society and the madness of public spectacle, where any bozo who's 'In the Public Eye' is treated like royalty, and the sheep-like public is whipped into a frenzy by the wankers of the press and little whippersnappers like Tony Blair. I didn't really pay that much attention to the whole 'Di' funeral, but I do remember having to suppress the gag reflex when Elton John reworked 'Candle in the Wind' and sang it at her funeral. At least there are a few people, regardless of whether they are over-priviledged leeches like the Royal Family, who still have a scrap of dignity, and a touch of backbone.
Was thinking about these two films, and one I watched a month or so ago about Henry VIII, and was wondering how many British Monarchs there have been movies made about, and with the help of the internet, I found a useful listing, which I have edited down for a 'Royalty Festival of Film'. I have not bothered with movies in which Royalty make an appearance (such as Judi Dench's supporting oscar role of Queen Elizabeth I in 'Shakespeare In Love), and mostly concentrated on films in which the King or Queen is the main thrust of the film.
King Arthur: You have a choice between Richard Harris singing (?) in 'Camelot', Nigel Terry in John Boorman's 'Excalibur', or my personal favorite, Graham Chapman in 'Monty Python and the Holy Grail'
Alfred the Great - in the movie of the same name starring David Hemmings
Henry II - The wonderful Peter O'Toole in 'Lion in Winter' (reviewed recently here in this filmblog)
Richard I & King John - Adventures of Robin Hood (well, broke my own rule for this one, but I just like the good old hokey fun of this Errol Flynn classic)
Edward I & II - Mel Gibson's 'Braveheart'
Henry V - you have a choice between Laurence Olivier or Kenneth Branagh's Shakespeare adaptation, I prefer the more action packed latter version.
Richard III - a little unorthodox, but Ian McKellen's fascist retelling of the Shakespeare play is fun to watch
Henry VIII - a whole bunch to choose from, Robert Shaw in 'A Man For All Seasons', Richard Burton in 'Anne of the Thousand Days' (recently reviewed in this filmblog), or Charles Laughton's 'The Private Life of Henry VIII'
Lady Jane Grey - Helena Bonham Carter in 'Lady Jane'
Mary I & Elizabeth - The recent 'Elizabeth' with Cate Blanchett, or if you prefer Bette Davis, she's appeared in a couple different movies as this monarch. And Glenda Jackson in a BBC miniseries 'Elizabeth R'
Charles I - Alec Guinness in 'Cromwell'
George III - 'The Madness of King George'
Victoria - "Mrs. Brown" - Judi Dench
Elizabeth II - 'The Queen'
Haven't seen all of them, and the list isn't complete by any means (look them all up yourself if you are more obsessive than me), but these would make for an interesting film series, I'll be bound.