One must give credit where it’s deserved and the truth is, whoever came up with the idea behind The Royal Collection really deserves a kudos. The box set which was released on DVD last week, brings together a number of films which fans of both romances and period films will love. And all of this just in time for mother’s day. That said, I’m not quite sure how the films were selected for the box set as they have very little in common other than being period pieces, a few beong about royals and all films that I love.
Included in the set are: The King’s Speech which just found its way on DVD last week, The Queen, The Young Victoria, Shakespeare in Love and Vanity Fair.
Tom Hooper’s Oscar winning film stars Oscar Winner Colin Firth as stuttering King George VI, a man who, with the support of his devoted wife Queen Elizabeth (Helena Bonham Carter) and Lionel Logue, a speech therapist with unconventional methods (Geoffrey Rush), helped the king overcome his speech impediment to rally the country in the time of war. Hooper’s film relies extensively on the performances and luckily, they’re all superb (including Guy Pearce who plays the role of the rather unlikable King Edward VIII). To go with those performances, there’s the great looking period piece and a fantastic message of overcoming your obstacles. I even cried a little at the end and though this isn’t overtly a romantic tale, Carter and Firth (and to a lesser extent Pearce), beautifully embody true love and what it means to be with someone though the good times and the rough. Full reivew
Helen Mirren was already a star wen she played the Queen in Stephen Frears’ film but that performance has remained one of her best in recent memory.
Beginning shortly after the death of Princess Diana, Frears’ film captures the woman who seemed so distant and removed to the public and gives us a picture of the human underneath and her struggle with balancing duty and expectation and her personal emotions. Along the way, Frears and writer Peter Morgan provide more than enough history on the Queen to build a character that we can not only associate with but who we can like. Mirren’s performance certainly has a great deal to do with that.
Jean-Marc Vallée’s film seemed to be buried when it was theatrically released in 2009 but since its DVD release, the love for this little film, the story Victoria, how she came to the throne and her life-long romance with her partner, supporter and husband Prince Albert, has grown and for good reason. Not only are Emily Blunt, Rupert Friend and Paul Bettany excellent in their respective roles, Julian Fellowes’ script shows the story of a young woman with determination who was unwilling to have her life dictated by the politics of the time. Full review
Perhaps the oddest selection in the set, John Madden’s fictional film about Shakespeare (Joseph Fiennes) and the woman who inspired many of his plays Viola De Lesseps (Gwyneth Paltrow), is a solid romantic comedy in period attire but lacks the heart of the other entries in this set. For its faults, the film does feature Colin Firth in a small role, Judi Dench as Queen Elizabeth (the royal connection I presume), Geoffrey Rush and Tom Wilkinson. Once you get over the fact that Paltrow won her Oscar for her mediocre performance here, the movie is quite a good romantic comedy and to boot, one that looks better than most.
The collection finishes off with Mira Nair’s luscious adaption of William Makepeace Thackeray’s novel of a poor London girl (Reese Witherspoon in a great performance) who rises through the ranks of society only to find herself falling lower than when she started. I’ve never been much of a fan of Thackeray’s novel but Nair and the team of writers charged with adapting the huge novel manage to pair down the story while maintaining the characteristics that make Becky Sharp so interesting. The film is gorgeous and features some fantastic supporting characters brought to life by Romola Garai, Rhys Ifans, Jonathan Rhys Meyers and Gabriel Byrne among many others.
Each of the films in this box set feature the extras available with the film’s original DVD release, a set of collectable postcards, a gorgeous commemorative bookmark not to mention they’re all bundled in a spiffy box set. Not only is this release perfectly timed for the Royal Wedding but it will also make a great gift for mom and fans of period drama.
The Royal Collection has been available on DVD and Blu-ray since April 19th.
