Queen, The UK / France / Italy
2006, 103min.
Prod.: Andy Harries, Christine Langan, Tracey Seaward, Script: Peter Morgan, Dir.: Stephen Frears, Dir. of Phot.: Affonso Beato, Compos.: Alexandre Desplat, Prod. Design: Alan MacDonald, Art. Dir. Matthew Broderick, Franck Schwarz, Sound: Peter Lindsay , Edit.: Lucia Zucchetti.
Cast: Helen Mirren, James Cromwell, Alex Jennings, Roger Allam, Sylvia Syms, Tim McMullan, Robin Soans.
The British prime minister and the Royal Family find themselves quietly at odds in the wake of a national tragedy in this drama from director Stephen Frears. On August 31, 1997, Diana, Princess of Wales died in an auto accident in Paris; despite the controversial breakup of her marriage to Prince Charles, she was still one of the most famous and best-loved women in the world, and the public outpouring of emotion over her passing was immediate and intense. However, given the messy circumstances of Diana's breakup with Charles, official spokespeople for the Royal Family were uncertain about how to publicly address her passing. It didn't take long for the media to pick up on the hesitation of Buckingham Palace to pay homage to Diana, and many saw this as a sign of the cool emotional distance so often attributed to the royals, which in this case was widely seen as an insult against Diana and the many people who loved her. Prime Minister Tony Blair (played by Michael Sheen) saw a potential public-relations disaster in the making, and took it upon himself to persuade Queen Elizabeth II (played by Helen Mirren) to make a statement in tribute to the fallen Diana — an action that went against the taciturn queen's usual nature. The Queen was released the same year that Helen Mirren played Queen Elizabeth I in an acclaimed miniseries for British television; The Queen also gave Michael Sheen his second opportunity to play Tony Blair after portraying the prime minister in the television film The Deal. (All Movie Guide).
Awards
Academy Award (Oscar), 2006 (Best Actress), British Academy Awards, 2006 (Best Actress), Golden Globe, 2006 (Best Actress, Best Screenplay), Goya Awards, 2006 (Best European Film), National Society of Film Critics, 2006 (Best Actress, Best Screenplay), Satellite Awards, 2006 (Besst Actress- Drama, Best Original Screenplay), Screen Actors Guild, 2006 (Best Actress), Venice International Film Festival, 2006 (Best Actress, Best Screenplay).
| Frears, Stephen Stephen Frears (born 20.06.1941, Leicester, UK)
Frears studied law at Cambridge University before turning to the arts. He became involved with London's Royal Court Theatre, where he served as an assistant to director Lindsay Anderson and to actor Albert Finney. He started his career in the film industry as an assistant director to Karel Reisz, with whom he worked from 1966 until 1972.
In 1971, Frears made his directorial debut with Gumshoe. Frears helmed a few made-for-television films and, in 1985, he had his breakthrough directing My Beautiful Laundrette, - written for the screen by Hanif Kureshi. Frears and Kureshi again collaborated on Sammy and Rosie Get Laid (1987), a film about the faltering relationship between a London couple.
Frears' next three films proved to be some of the most successful in his career. The first, Prick up Your Ears (1987), was a biographical drama about the celebrated and controversial English playwright Joe Orton. A year later, a Best Director BAFTA nomination and a number of international honors greeted Frears for Dangerous Liaisons his adaptation of Choderlos de Laclo, with John Malkovich and Glenn Close. Frears gained more international acclaim and a Best Director Oscar nomination in 1990 for The Grifters. Frears continued in 2000 with a nod to his past by directing the television remake of Fail Safe, featuring an all-star cast headed by George Clooney and Harvey Keitel. It was the first live two-hour telefilm in decades. The same year he releases the drama Liam. In 2002, Frears made one of his very best films, Dirty Pretty Things, a biting yet hopeful drama-thriller about illegal aliens working, living, and surviving in London. In 2003, Frears once again directed a film for British television. The Deal was a historical political drama about how Tony Blair came to be the head of the Liberal party.
Filmography
The Burning (1968), Gumshoe (1971), Bloody Kids (1979), The Hit (1984), My Beautiful Laundrette (1985), Prick Up Your Ears (1987), Sammy and Rosie Get Laid (1987), Dangerous Liaisons (1988), The Grifters (1990), Mary Reilly (1996), The Van (1996), The Hi-Lo Country (1998), High Fidelity (2000), Liam (2000), Dirty Pretty Things (2002), Mrs Henderson Presents (2005), The Queen (2006).
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