The story
The King's Speech tells the story of the man who became King George VI, the father of Queen Elizabeth II. After his brother abdicates, George ('Bertie') reluctantly assumes the throne. Plagued by a dreaded stutter and considered unfit to be king, Bertie engages the help of an unorthodox speech therapist named Lionel Logue. Through a set of unexpected techniques, and as a result of an unlikely friendship, Bertie is able to find his voice and boldly lead the country into war.
What critics & audiences say
Tomatometer94%Fresh#30 of 98 winnersFamous lines
King George VI: Because I have a right to be heard! … I HAVE A VOICE!
Lionel Logue: Yes, you do. … You have such perseverance, Bertie. You're the bravest man I know. You'll make a bloody good king.
Lionel Logue: You still stammered a bit on the "w".
King George VI: Well, I had to throw in a few so they knew it was me.
If I am King, where is my power? Can I form a government? Levy a tax? Declare a war? No! And yet I am the seat of all authority because they think that when I speak, I speak for them. But I can't speak.
Lionel Logue: Why are you here then?
Bertie: BECAUSE I BLOODY WELL STAMMER!
Vulgar, but fluent; you don't stammer when you swear.
Princess Elizabeth: What's he saying?
King George VI: I don't know but... he seems to be saying it rather well.
In the past, all a king had to do was look respectable in uniform and not fall off his horse. … We've become actors.
Forget everything else, and just say it to me. Say it to me, as a friend.
It's "Your Majesty" the first time. After that, it's "ma'am." As in "ham." Not "mum" as in "palm.
But then I thought, 'he stammers so beautifully, they'll leave us alone.'
Quotes via Wikiquote
Fun facts
- Screenwriter David Seidler, who had a stammer himself as a child, researched George VI for years, but the Queen Mother asked him not to tell the story in her lifetime because her memories were "still too painful." He waited until after her death in 2002.Wikipedia · Development
- Tom Hooper found the project through his mother: Meredith Hooper attended a small London reading of the play for Australian expatriates, then called her son and said, "I've found your next project."Wikipedia · Development
- Nine weeks before filming, the producers learned of Lionel Logue's original treatment notes. Lines from the climax, such as "You still stammered on the W" and "I had to throw in a few so they would know it was me," are direct quotations from them.Wikipedia · Development
- Because George VI swears around 17 times during speech therapy, the film was rated 15 in the UK and R in the US. The UK rating was lowered to 12A after Tom Hooper protested, and a PG-13 version with some profanities muted was later released in American cinemas.Wikipedia · Ratings controversy
- Rather than go through Geoffrey Rush's agent, a producer had the script hand-delivered to Rush's house in Melbourne. His manager responded with a four-page email scolding them for the breach of etiquette, ending with an invitation to talk further.Wikipedia · Development
- Before Colin Firth, David Seidler thought Paul Bettany would be a good George VI, while Tom Hooper preferred Hugh Grant, but both actors declined the offer.Wikipedia · Development
- To recreate the thick London smog of the 1930s, so much artificial smoke was used during filming in Southwark that it set off fire alarms.Wikipedia · Location and design
- Helena Bonham Carter was working on Harry Potter during the week, so her scenes as Queen Elizabeth had to be filmed on weekends.Wikipedia · Development
- To give Alexandre Desplat's score a dated sound, it was recorded using old microphones from the EMI archives that had been specially made for the royal family.Wikipedia · Music
- In May 2011 Colin Firth said he was finding traces of the King's stammer difficult to eliminate from his own speech: "if I start thinking about it the worse it gets. If nothing else it's an insight into what it feels like."Wikipedia · Dialogue