REEL FANS

Following the death of Princess Diana in August of 1997, England’s Queen Elizabeth II and the royal family are criticized for the nature of their response to the tragedy. With the monarchy being perceived as cold, unresponsive and out of touch with the public’s feelings, newly elected Prime Minister Tony Blair struggles in his attempt to balance their traditions with his more modern ideas, and to represent the people’s wishes by asserting his authority as Great Britain’s political leader.

“I liked it — I thought it was brilliantly acted. I think for a while, I forgot that it was the actress Helen Mirren — she really looked like Elizabeth herself. I think that as my wife said, the public persona of the monarchy was stripped away, and you really saw the queen for all of her faults and all of her greatness. There were a lot of really interesting parts — to see that she would drive herself around and that she was a mechanic during World War II. And you learn that we all are products of our upbringing — that she was raised that feelings are not worn on your sleeve. She really was a product of the middle part of the 20th century and that, in a sense, she was true to herself throughout the movie.”

JAY MASSERMAN

Irvine

“I thought it was very well done. The acting was so accomplished — those English actors are brilliant. Helen Mirren did an incredible portrayal of the Queen. It was a bit of a ‘golden glow’ or pall over a period of history which showed entrenchment of the royalty and how out of touch they were with the people. I particularly took exception to how sympathetic a view of Tony Blair was portrayed in the film. It’s worth seeing — actually, Prince Philip, acted by Cromwell, was totally over the top in showing the, I guess, the entrenchment of the royalty and their lack of perspective. I think they didn’t really show the stupidity of the royal line very well — how dumb all of those people really are. But that’s because they’ve got these very intelligent actors portraying them. I would recommend it to someone — I think history can’t be glossed over enough.”

ADAM BRONER

Oakland

“I thought it was very good, that Helen Mirren was wonderful. It was really interesting for me as an American to see the person behind the persona of the queen — to see her humanity because as the queen, I guess, she’s got this image that she’s got to maintain. It was really just very educational for me to see — her feelings and everything like that. To see how the people surrounding her — you know, Prince Philip, he wasn’t a very nice person; he wasn’t very sympathetic. And also Prince Charles was not who I thought he was. I’ve never really thought about how they were personally, and so it’s kind of interesting to see this interpretation of how they really are. I don’t know if it’s accurate or not, but I will be more sensitive in my feelings toward them.”

ELAINE

SINCLAIR

Fountain

Valley

“I thought it was a very good production — Helen Mirren is absolutely wonderful. I’m not so sure how true to form everything was behind the scenes, but I didn’t realize how important Tony Blair was in convincing the queen to go before the public. So, I enjoyed it — I thought it was very good. The prince was not quite as true to form as I would think — Prince Charles that is — but I enjoyed it. I would most definitely recommend it.”

MARILYN BYRNE

Irvine

“I thought the movie was quite good. I do feel they portrayed the queen mum a little harshly. I think she was more a sweet, grandmotherly type and I was disappointed in Charles’ part in it — I thought he should have had more. I’m glad they didn’t show the boys [William and Harry] because they couldn’t portray those two boys the way they really are. I think it was very good, and I’d recommend it to my friends.”

CLAIRE LARUE

Irvine