I really enjoyed The King’s Speech–much more than I enjoyed last week’s The Martian. I can definitely see why Colin Firth won Best Actor and why this movie won Best Movie at the 2010 Oscars. I feel as if the most important theme to take from this film was communication, or lack thereof. King George VI (Bertie) put it perfectly when he said that England expected him to be their “voice” even though he had no governmental power/authority. So to have a king that couldn’t effectively comfort the country in a tense time nor relay assertive condemnations to Nazi Germany was nerve-wracking for the kingdom, its commonwealths, and put immense pressure on an already diffident King George VI.

Class conflict is also a pertinent theme that relates back to communication. Bertie’s family can’t seem to understand his impediment–his dad is easily frustrated and at one point his brother mocks him. It’s as if his own family has ostracized him to retreat further and further into himself, a perfect scene of this being his awkward presence at his brother’s first party with his divorced fiance. However, Bertie was more easily able to acquaint himself with Lionel, reveal his inner thoughts, and his words flowed better around him, a failed actor of a lower class. This atypical friendship breaks the rules of ancient aristocratic behavior and ushers in an era of repaired monarchy headed by King George VI and streamlined by Queen Elizabeth and her descendants.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this movie, gave it a 5/5 stars on Rotten Tomatoes, and will definitely recommend it to others.