Helen Mirren winning all these best actress awards from hollywood made me click the button and watch the on-line streaming version of this movie. The version was probably uploaded from a bootleg copy but somehow I was able to sit through the whole thing and got fascinated. Credit has to go to the main actress, Helen Mirren. The way she paid tribute to the actual Queen, Elizabeth II, in her acceptance speeches just shows where credit for the movie should actually be given. But acknowledging the actress performance is just one part of this fascinating movie - it is the interplay of her character with those around her (the royal family, those in Downing street and the British people) and the circumstances (death of a media-enshrined Princess) or changes (duty and tradition alone cannot assure the perpetuation of the monarchy to the next century) that she has to grapple with.
Stephen Frears directs from the script of Peter Morgan.
