Sunday, March 27, 2011

'The King's Speech' is good, not great

Caught up with 'The King's Speech' recently, about a couple of weeks back, at the multiplex is Vashi, a quaint but very distant suburb of Mumbai. South Mumbai may be a great place to live, but I think if you want to go to best of malls or the cheapest of multiplex to enjoy as many movies as possible with a tidy budget, suburbs are the place to be. A ticket of Black Swan in Inox, Nariman Point  set me back by Rs350, but 'The King's Speech' in Big Cinemas, Palm Beach Galleria Road, Vashi, cost me just Rs100. Five of us watched it for a cumulative sum of Rs500. For years, townies ruled the roost, now I think the suburbanites are having the last laugh for affordable entertainment, while we townies pay through our nose! And Big Cimenas, Vashi, was very decent. Seats were comfortable, the cafeteria was decent and we had attendants coming in and taking food orders. Come to think, Palm Beach road didn't remind me that I was in Mumbai; it sort of reminded me of the outskirts of Pune.

Coming back to the movie, I thought the movie was good. Though I read somewhere that the British authorities have distanced themselves from many events that take place in the movie (despite this movie's makers claiming it's a true story). Colin Firth is a good actor and he turns up another fine performance; a worthy Oscar winner for his role. You could sense his struggle to get words out as he stammers his way through his lines as a reluctant speaker; the fear, the struggle, the helplessness, the sense of shame, all emotions aptly conveyed. It was nice to see so many Harry Potter movie actors in the movie, leading with Helena Bonham Carter who aptly played the role of the King's wife.

That said, I do not approve of the movie having bagged the Oscar for the Best Motion Picture. That honour belonged to 'Inception', in my opinion. The King's Speech was a feel-good, tear-jerker, that would appeal to most of us. But Inception was on a different level altogether. That its director, Christopher Nolan wasn't even nominated in the Best Director category was the darkest spot of this year's Academy awards and gives you a glimpse of the ways of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.  

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