Word: elizabeth
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Stephen Frears’ “The Queen” is a singularly persuasive attack on the English monarchy. It contrasts the attitudes of Queen Elizabeth II—an old woman out of tune with the feelings of England the week after her former daughter-in-law Princess Diana’s death—with the spin-tacular performance of her recently elected Prime Minister Tony Blair (Michael Sheen...
...Elizabeth (Dame Helen Mirren, “Caligula”) has always been able to connect with the British people. She’s known their feelings and has been able to communicate—she claims, “No one knows the British people better than I do.” Now her country mourns a former daughter-in-law she couldn’t stand, and demands that she join their grief...
...film is no wonk-fest; despite the condemnations of the monarchy, Frears creates recognizably human characters out of everyone but Prince Phillip. It is a continually involving look at the human costs associated with public service and experience, whether one chooses a post (Blair) or is born into it (Elizabeth...
...watercolors by Messel, two of them designs for The Sleeping Beauty. It's all utterly romantic and theatrical, if a little over the top - Noël Coward commented on its "somewhat excessive luxe," but found it "terribly exotic." And no end of actors, from Marlene Dietrich to Elizabeth Taylor to Tom Cruise, have stayed there. It's surely the most fantastical hotel suite in London - and the most evocative of an enchanted night's sleep. tel: (44-20) 7629 8888; thedorchester.com
Some of the royal portraits are etched in acid (James Cromwell's bullying, befuddled Philip), some daubed with sympathy (Alex Jennings' bereaved Charles). And after about an hour of wickedly acute satire, the movie shifts its focus to find the pathos behind Elizabeth's stern gaze. As incarnated by Mirren, that least sentimental of great actresses, the Queen might be any aging executive, devastated by the insight that her reign has been endured but not embraced. Mirren, who won an Emmy playing Elizabeth I for HBO, may deserve an Oscar for this ripe appraisal of Elizabeth...