The Queen (DVD, 2007)

2006 Golden Globe: Best Actress; 2006 Venice Film Festival: Best Actress; 2007 Academy Oscar: Best Actress, Dame Helen Mirren gives the best performance of her life in "The Queen:" an insightful view of the British monarchy & government. Earning 6 Academy Award nominations, the DVD version's loaded with footage of Lady Diana when Princess of Wales.

"The Queen's" a study of events just before & after Diana died. The movie's plot zooms in on the dutiful Queen (Helen Mirren), spiteful Prince Philip (James Cromwell), grief-struck Prince Charles (Alex Jennings), cynical Queen Mother (Sylvia Syms) & newly elected labor Prime Minister, Tony Blair (Michael Sheen). According to script, Prince Philip detests & berates Diana & views the British public's grief over her abrupt death as lunacy. The Queen is portrayed as quietly committed to her crown; but, clueless about how Diana was popular with & cherished by Brits. Prince Charles is portrayed as devastated, bereaved for his & Diana's boys & spot-on the world's grief. Charles begs his mum for a public royal funeral "for the mother of the future King of England."
She denies the nontraditional.

Blair isn't settled in office when word reaches him: under hot paparazzi pursuit, Diana & lover Dodi Al Fayed are killed after their chauffeured Mercedes crashed into a concrete barrier in Paris. Public outcries came as fast, fierce & furious outpourings of shock, disbelief & loss. Just as Lady Di's public service touched most parts of the world, grief over the tragic loss of an extraordinary, beautiful woman & her brave humanitarian work of love. inspired by social convictions became internationally renowned.

Prime Minister Blair consoled the public through media, naming Diana, "The People's Princess." The Royal family was stoically silent; Prince Philip chided public grief & the Queen Mother gloated Diana was an ex-HRH. Keeping with royal tradition, they remained silent. As if causing & seeing death could relieve the young Princes of their grief, Prince Philip took them hunting (stalking) each day at Balmoral's 40,000 acre wildlife retreat. Was stalking with rifles their only grief counseling? The Queen didn't approve.

When the Queen didn't return from Balmoral to Buckingham Palace or fly the palace flag at half-mast, her public approval ratings spiked to a near overthrow of the Monarchy. Most expected their queen to speak to & comfort them through the saddest royal tragedy of our lives. When she didn't, Blair advised her to do otherwise. Mirren's queen is witty, sensitive & lovable. In 1 scene, she weeps alone at Balmoral's riverside. She'd never been hated before after giving her life to the crown.

Scenes:
1: The Picture of Dignity 9: A Quiet Revolution
2: Prime Minister Tony 10: Captive Beauty
3: Diana 11: Serious Mistake
4: Upsetting News 12: A Day of Mourning
5: The People's Princess 13: Shared Grief
6: A Public Funeral 14: The Funeral
7: Modern Man 15: 2 Months Later
8: The Royal Standard 16: End Credits

Digitally mastered DVD, released April 2007: Miramax. Includes 3 bonus features: "The Making of the Queen," Stephen Fears & cast on video & what it was like playing their characters; audio comments by Stephen Frears & Peter Morgan; audio of author of "Majesty," Robert Lacey, royal expert-British historian. Rated PG13. Feature runs 103mins. Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound. Spanish Track & Subtitles. Widescreen.

I enjoyed this movie because it was based on a real person and we may have gotten a glimpse into the motivation and character of the Queen of England and her family.

Good Movie... hadn't seen it before Helen Mirren received her Oscar.

My wife and I watched this last night.

We both enjoyed the actual film footage of the events mixed with the film shot for the movie. It made the events portrayed so much more real.

The Queen's actions were portrayed beautifully by Helen Mirren, while Prince Phillip's role was done quite well by James Cromwell, who I know better being Jack Bauer's father on the TV show '24'.

This is definitely a movie worth seeing.

I remember being up for Diana's marriage to Prince Charles... that was a beautiful day, so sad how things worked out for her...

I was young when Princess Diana died, and couldn't understand the full shock of it all, but I do remember it being televised for weeks and is even still talked about today. The Queen was criticised for not being there for her people and tried to keep her emotions back and to be strong for the weeping people. With the world wondering where the queen was and is, this movie helps you understand what the queen was doing and what her purposes are. While her traditions were starting to become unfavorable and Tony Blair's populairty surpassing hers, she had to act out and give the people what they needed and wanted, their Queen.

This movie is a must have for any collection and will be cherished for years to come, as one of the greatest historical, yet sadest days, the kingdom had ever faced.

I am a huge Helen Mirren fan and her performance in this movie didnt disappoint me. It is amazing how such a beautiful woman as Ms Mirren can be transformed into the stoic and frumpy Queen Elizabeth. This is an awesome film with great acting by the majority of the cast. The only lack luster performance was by the guy who portrays Prince Charles.

I understand that the Royal Family cooperated on this and it really gives a lot of insight into the anguish felt by them during the Princess Diana era.

I highly recommend this movie to all!

Helen Mirren does a fantastic job portraying the Queen of England in this dramatic film following the life of royalty during a time of crisis. The Queen portrays the day in and day out thoughts, feelings, and actions of Queen Elizabeth II as Tony Blair is elected into office and Princess Diana dies in a car accident. The film is incredibly well done, the directing, writing, and acting are all superb. This movie is more a semi-fictionalized documentary if anything so you have to know what you are getting into with this movie. It's certainly not for everyone as it can be a little dull or slow going at times. However, if you are interested in getting an inside look at what it may really be like to live as royalty in these modern times, this was a unique and fascinating film.

I think I might have titled this "The Princess and the Queen", since the film revolves around not just Queen Elizabeth II, but also so much about Princess Diana. Through very well edited footage of Diana's marriage and her past, you see her love for her children, interviews about the marital problems and the trauma of millions to the car crash on August 31,1997. It's very English to the core in it's approach, and Helen Mirren is utterly delicious as the witty, restrained and repressed monarch facing off against the new, young, Prime Minister Tony Blair(Michael Sheen). Mirren is indeed so convincing, you feel she could be the Queen's identical twin. When you see her giving her acceptance speeches in real life(Golden Globe and SAG Award), you realize what an incredible job she did of transforming herself into this woman in every way. It's excellently written by Peter Morgan and Oscar nominated for the directing by Stephen Frears. Frears ("Dangerous Liaisons") has a great talent for making you feel like you're an insider. If you have a fascination with royalty or Princess Di, you'll very likely love this movie. You'll feel like you're there in the palace with them and all of their dirty little secrets - the jealousies, the gossip, the backbiting with Blair, the tiffs with Prince Charles, and the Queen's astonishment at the overwhelming, oupouring of love for Di. All Hail to "The Queen".

I enjoyed "The Queen" very much, and Helen Merrin is a favorite actress of mine. I'd heard from others who had seen the film and it wasn't shown in my town, so I decided to buy a copy and view it at home. It was actually better than I had thought, included parts about Diana's death, etc., and showed the concern that the Queen may have felt about her grandsons during the time of their mothers death. All in all, I would give it a high rating. Ferreespaisley

If you are looking for a film about Diana, I am sure there are thousands out there but this is not one if them. Thankfully, the focus of this film is the response of the royal family to Diana's death and the interaction between the monarchy and the PM. Helen Mirren was as she always is -- excellent. Michael Sheen as Tony Blair put it over the top. I will watch this film again on a Saturday afternoon.

I thought this movie was the bomb! If you are looking for action and excitement, forget this movie...but...if you like drama based on the actions of real people, watch this movie! This movie portrays the Queen of England and the death of the beloved Princess Di! There are real clips of Princess Di in this movie before her death. I normally like action and horror movies, but this movie drew me in, made me feel like I was there. Great actress/actors portraying Queen Elizabeth, Prince Charles and Tony Blair. This is a great movie, rent or buy it!!! Does the Queen really rule all?

I seen this in the theater and due to my roommate being fascinated with all things queen (more specifically Queen Mary) I just had to get this DVD because I know there were some parts I missed based on the fabulous acting by Helen Miran. A fantastic mix of recent history and a true feeling of how the English feel about the Royal Family.

James M
Bloomington Indiana

Being English and having met the Queen I found Helen Mirren's performance stunning, she really was the Queen. The reverance by courtiers for the Queen was spot on so were the surroundings and scenery. Her property at Balmoral in Scotland is so vast that we get a glimpse of the Queen driving around without bodyguards, dressing comfortably and living day to day as a private person albeit a rich one. I disliked the Stag hunting scenes, why do they still do that? On the one hand the Queen is known for her love of her Corgi's and on the other looks at hunting as a pastime. The rest of the cast give steller perfomances, 'Prince Charles" did not look like the Prince but the voice was perfect. That 'grand dame' of the acting proffesion Sylvia Sydney was perfect as the Queen Mother. Whatever your opinion on the reluctance of the Queen to return to London after Diane's death I think the British people of which I am one were wrong. She deserved to mourn in seclusion and was manhandled by the press, clearly shown in the movie. This is a point now ackowledged by the British as more facts about Diane's life have emerged, she was no angel and a manipulater beyond par. Altogether "the Queen " is a must see movie proving that Hellen Mirren is the best actress in the world.

This movie is even greater than anticipated.
It should have won for best movie of the year.
I can see why Helen Mirren won "Best Supporting Actress", as no one could portray Queen Elizabeth such as she.
I believe Queen Elizabeth has a motherly protective side and Diana may have helped bring this light to her, as in real life we do not see.
We only see her as head of the monarchy. It is so tragic when it takes a tragedy for one to show inner personal thoughts and thus have to act on the protocol instilled in her.
One must remember she has been Queen since she was a very young girl, therefore her strict traditions have been instilled in her for many years.
I do believe the Queen is trying to adapt too the 21st century.
Even baby steps are a beginning, and she bent the rules be this a movie or in real life.
This movie was so attentive and moving I would rate it 10 stars.
I, being a Royal watcher can imagine that Queen Elizabeth, protrayed by Helen Mirren did her homework before taking on such a great role.
In fact, the movie was so great, I bought two, one for collectors item for the future.

This movie had better reviews than it deserved. It shouldn't have been called the Queen. It should have been called "dealing with Princess Di's death" because that was what the movie was all about. Still good though. I just thought it would be better.

This is one of those movies where you learn something about history you thought you knew, but didn't. I checked it out & the movie is correct. The acting was great.

With her oscar winning, masterful performance Helen Mirren shows that the Queen of England is indeed human after all.

I believe all of America is intrigued by the royal family, It was a chance to see into their life just alittle, even knowing it's not all true. Loved the movie.

I have always been enthralled with the royal family of England so I couldn't wait to see this movie. I have always felt the Queen was rather old fashioned and stuffy in her beliefs. This film showed that side of her. Princess Diana seemed to be more in touch with the people than the Queen was. I felt this movie told the story in a way that showed how much Diana's death effected the House of Windsor and forced them to acknowledge how profoundly she had changed the public's view of the Monarchy. It also showed that the Queen is not made of steel and is a genuine person. I would highly recommend this movie. The acting was superb.

Anyone that really liked & respected Princess Diana should see this movie. It does explain a few things about the royals that you may not have known.

I did not think I was going to like the film. Had NO Interest in it when released.
Being from the United States I have NO interest in the British Royal Family, Princess Diana, any of them.

I watched the film 1 day & did enjoy it.
Helen did deserve the Oscar for the role. Only other film of hers I had ever seen was I was 1st in the door opening day for "The Mosquito Coast".

And, I believe the film. Yep, we knew they did NOT care about Diana. Arranged marriage & she ended up cheating in the marriage as well.

Has normal extras on the DVD. I am VERY DISAPPOINTED Helen did not do a commentary. This is HER FILM & won the Oscar for it. WHERE IS SHE?

Of course, ruined by the I HATE THEM WHY WERE THEY MADE FLIP THE LITTLE FLAP OPEN DVD CASE.

This product arrived in great condition and very quickly. I enjoyed watching it very much, though it wasn't exactly what I had hoped for. I was looking for more than just the events surrounding Diana's death and more history of the Queen.

THIS MOVIE IS OUT STANDING!!!! WHEN YOU WATCH THIS MOVIE YOU WILL
KNOW WHAT THE QUEEN OF ENGLAND GOES THROUGH. GREAT MOVIE TO OWN!!!!

ROSIEMOE

Excellent in depth coverage of the royal family, as seen by the British and American public, and through the eyes of the Queen herself. Very well acted, and timeless classic, that will be endured for times to come.