by Chris Marshall:
It’s hard to believe that I’m at a point in The Oscar
Project where I’m watching a movie that I originally saw in a theater in Ohio.
While watching The King’s Speech, my
main thought was, “Didn’t I just see this?” It has, amazingly, been a year and
a half now, but it still seemed so fresh in my memory.
I genuinely enjoyed the film, both this time and the first
time, but I also believe it was nowhere close to the best movie of its year. I
thought that honor went to The Social
Network, and I say that even though I hate, hate, hate Aaron Sorkin. But
there’s nothing wrong with The King’s
Speech, and it certainly feels like the type of movie that the Academy
loves.
It recounts the true story of George VI’s[1]
struggle with his stuttering problem and his efforts to overcome it, at least
to a great enough extent that he could deliver speeches when World War II broke
out. His speech impediment was quite severe, and it was made worse considering
how, shall we say, insensitive people were back then. If you look back at the
Best Picture winners from the 1930s, you will often see stutterers portrayed as
the bumbling comic relief.
