The King’s Speech, Blu-ray (2010)

by | May 1, 2011 | DVD & Blu-ray Video Reviews | 0 comments

The King’s Speech, Blu-ray (2010)

Starring: Colin Firth, Geoffrey Rush, Helena Bonham Carter, Guy Pearce
Director: Tom Hooper
Studio: The Weinstein Company /Anchor Bay Entertainment
Video: 1.78:1 for 16:9 1080p HD
Audio: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
Subtitles: English SDH and Spanish
Extras: Audio commentary by director Tom Hooper; “The King’s Speech: An Inspirational Story of an Unlikely Friendship” feaurette; Q & A with the director and cast; Speeches from the Real King George VI; The Real Lionel Logue; The Stuttering Foundation PSA; Preview trailers
Length: 118 minutes
Movie Rating: *****          Video Quality Rating: ***½           Audio Quality Rating: ****


The King’s Speech
is the story of the man who became King George VI (or ‘Bertie’ as he is called by his family), the father of present-day Queen Elizabeth II.  After his brother abdicates, Bertie (Colin Firth) reluctantly assumes the throne.  Bertie has been hindered by a stammering problem since childhood and he is viewed by many as unfit to be king.  Against his wishes, Bertie’s devoted wife Elizabeth (Helena Bonham Carter) enlists the aid of an unconventional speech therapist named Lionel Logue (Geoffrey Rush).  Through a set of unorthodox techniques, and as a result of an unlikely friendship with Lionel, Bertie is able to find his voice and confidently lead England into war against Germany.  “The King’s Speech” is a multiple Academy Award-winning film that took home the 2011 Oscar in several of the major categories including Best Motion Picture, Director, and Lead Actor.  I thoroughly enjoyed this picture and the positive messages that it touches upon such as self-worth, love, friendship, and confidence.  It’s a shame that more of these inspirational-themed movies aren’t made today.  Colin Firth’s performance is well-deserving of his Oscar win and he and Geoffrey Rush are outstanding during their screen time together.  Highly-recommended!
 
The overall high definition video quality of The King’s Speech is good, but not reference quality.  Images are clean with decent detail although perhaps not as sharp as other new release titles.  Black levels are uniformly flat in appearance throughout the film.  Colors are subdued and muted with under-saturated hues.  Other than some light film grain, picture defect mastering is solid and free of major defects and compression artifacts.  The overall audio quality is very good.  The soundtrack predominantly favors the forward soundstage in its mix.  Dialogue is crisp, natural-sounding and properly positioned in the center channel.  The surround channels are used sparingly, but effectively, for ambient sound effects and the music score.  The low frequency effects channel is punchy and tight in its limited use.

— Calvin Harding Jr.

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