THE KING'S SPEECH has quickly moved BLACK SWAN down a notch from my favorite film of the year. It's hard to compare them, as BLACK SWAN is an art film with no real plot, and KING'S SPEECH is all plot and very straightforward. Yet at the same time, it's the most "Hollywood" film of the year.
I think the script and performances in in SPEECH were fantastic. The writing was strong, and the cast was excellent, although I kept expecting someone to call Derek Jacobi "Clau-Clau-Claudius," or to go looking for Prince Albert in the bathroom so they could say he was "in the can."
It's a very British film, and Colin Firth and Geoffrey Rush gave Oscar-caliber performances. It will be interesting to see how many awards it takes, and whether that helps more Americans see it. Perhaps the only weak element in the film is the casting of Winston Churchill. It's always hard to play an icon, and the weakest choice is to do an impression. But every other element of the film was quite strong.
Highly recommended.
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