Colin Firth & Geoffrey Rush - video from SBIFF

Colin Firth and Geoffrey Rush have expressed during various press conferences and interviews about how their friendship bonded during the filming of The King's Speech so it was fun to see Colin present the Montecito Award to his pal Geoffrey at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival. The Montecito Award is given to a performer “who has given a series of classic and standout performances in his/her career.”

Happy reunion on the red carpet at the Oscars

Video: Geoffrey and cast of King's Speech honoured at SBIFF

Colin Firth presenting Montecito Award to Geoffrey Rush at SBIFF
(transcript of part of above video):
"Geoffrey was with us for only 4 weeks of a 7 week shoot. And the word somehow got around that I was inconsolable at his departure. And I would like to set the record straight on this matter. It is perfectly true that I had a moment of regret at the departure of a respected colleague, but there was nothing emotionally unstable about it. In fact the day after he abandoned us for his meaningless play in Australia, I strode off to the set with a huge smile on my face and the air of a man of ambition, brisk, and Tom Hooper, I saw him out of the corner of my eye, giving me an exasperatingly knowing look, and he said “I feel exactly the same way.” And I calmly inquired whether he wanted to get on with the bloody scene. And we had a joyless morning. And I went back to my trailer and bit into my blue grey popping quills (I have no idea what that means) and I noticed a strange pair of underpants, and the next thing was an unfamiliar pair of socks and they made a trail towards the bed in the trailer and then I noticed to my horror that there was someone sleeping in the bed. The blankets were pulled up, and I approached with trepidation and I peeled back the blankets and I shrieked like a school girl “It’s Geoffrey!” Or rather, someone had pasted Geoffrey’s face onto a mannequin. It was just some clever clogs’ idea of grief counseling. They thought it would help. And so never been one to let anything go to waste, I picked him up and propped him up at the little dining table in the trailer. And yet, I have to say, he proved a remarkably effective therapist during the ensuing weeks. He wasn't quite as animated as I was used to... He was a good listener and he was cheap."
source

Videos: Colin Firth & The King's Speech on Oprah

Tom Hooper, Geoffrey Rush and Colin Firth

appeared on Oprah's talk show on Monday, Feb.28th
following Sunday's triumph at the Oscars.

Watch video: Colin Firth and Geoffrey Rush talk of their friendship

Watch video: Colin Firth and Tom Hooper - Backstage interview (Oprah)

Watch video: Geoffrey Rush - Backstage interview (Oprah)

Geoffrey Rush: "[Colin] did the most beautiful thing... when I arrived on the red carpet. I ran over and gave him a big hug and he took a 1946 King George VI shilling out of his pocket and gave it to me as a gift.

Cute anecdote from Tom Hooper (upon receiving BEST DIRECTOR at Oscars):
Tom says being up on stage was a blur but he did remember one thing—he forgot to email back Hilary Swank! He says when the actress came onto the stage to present the Best Director award, he suddenly remembered that she had sent him a nice email that he never responded to.
"When I got up on the stage, I kissed her hello and I told her I'm sorry and how much I loved the email and she said, 'I can't believe you're using the Kodak Theatre and winning the Oscar to tell me that."

Read recent posts on COLIN FIRTH

The King's Speech reigns at the Oscars!

Congratulations to THE KING'S SPEECH!

Winner of 4 Academy Awards:
BEST PICTURE
BEST ACTOR (Colin Firth)
BEST DIRECTOR (Tom Hooper)
BEST SCREENPLAY (David Seidler)

Colin Firth

Firth and Tom Hooper

David Seidler

Livia said on her blog: "We're off! Here's the Gary Harvey dress... This is the first picture for you. I'll explain the corsetry/engineering and everything else as we go... Eleven dresses in one, vintage/thrift/charity shop buys all from the era of The King's Speech. Every part is recycled, repurposed, upcycled. It feels amazing (corset not withstanding!). Colin, I think, looks incredibly handsome. "

Colin Firth's entire Oscar acceptance speech

Photos: Access Hollywood, Livia's blog, The Guardian, Winnipeg Sun

Colin Firth - press images for The King's Speech

Looking forward to Sunday's broadcast of The Oscars and Mr. Colin Firth's anticipated crowning as Best Actor for his role in The King's Speech! I'm tickled that the film has received such acclaim and I'm eager to see how the film will fare in its 12 nominated categories! I'll be preparing for the event by attending a screening in the afternoon after having found someone who's not yet seen the film and eager to go with me!

Here are some images from the film's premiere at the Berlin International Film Festival which was attended by Colin Firth, Helena Bonham Carter and director Tom Hooper.

Here's a BBC interview done with Helena and Colin (1/7/2011)

Photos: Zimbio

Fan video: The King's Speech

Countdown to Colin Firth's Oscar?

Just found this fan video which captured some of the most touching scenes from The King's Speech.

Thanks to MovieMadd111 for creating the video!
Music: "If It Be Your Will" sung by Antony Hegarty

The King's Speech reigns at the BAFTA's!

The King's Speech took home 7 BAFTA Awards: Best Film, Outstanding British Film, Best Actor (Colin Andrew Firth), Best Supporting Actor (Geoffrey Rush), Best Supporting Actress (Helena Bonham Carter), Original Screenplay (David Seidler), & Original Music (Alexandre Desplat)!

Colin Firth's acceptance speech

Helena Bonham Carter's acceptance speech

Watch video: Helena Bonham Carter on red carpet at BAFTA

Watch video: Tom Hooper on red carpet at BAFTA

Interviews from Oscar Luncheon...

Tom Hooper hoping to work with Colin Firth again

Tom Hooper and Colin Firth are apparently both intent on finding a joint film project so they can work together again after their shared experience in The King's Speech.

3 Amigos: Tom Hooper, Colin Firth & Geoffrey Rush

Hooper has said of Firth, "It’s all about the work. He’s very, very bright and he’s very good on script and story and structure. I could talk to him about anything, any aspect of the storytelling. And I love it when actors become true collaborators on the mission of the storytelling, not just what they’re doing as a character. It makes it very exciting.”

Video montage of Tom Hooper's films
Interview with Tom Hooper

The King's Speech Receives Royal Approval!

From The Telegraph:
The Queen is said to have given her blessing to the Oscar-nominated film The King's Speech after watching it in a private screening.

The movie portrays her father King George VI's battle against his speech impediment and also features a young Princess Elizabeth. The Queen was given a private screening of the film in Sandringham and sources have said she found the portrayal "moving".

Screenwriter David Seidler, who was asked by the Queen Mother to delay writing the script, said approval from the Queen was the ultimate honour.

"When her mother asked me 30 years ago to wait, because the memory of these events were still too painful, I understood the intense feelings that were involved," he said. "And now that the film has been written and made with love, and respect, and admiration, the fact that Her Majesty has recognised this is incredibly and wonderfully gratifying."

The Weinstein Company said:
“On behalf of the director Tom Hooper; the producers, Iain Canning, Emile Sherman, Gareth Unwin; Colin Firth, Geoffrey Rush, Helena Bonham Carter and our entire ensemble cast: we are deeply honored and humbled by Her Majesty’s appreciation of the film,” Harvey Weinstein said in a statement Friday. “It was a labor of love for all of us and this is high praise, indeed.”

I'm so pleased for Seidler and director Tom Hooper who have laboured so long for this film,
attempting to due the story justice and now to know that the Queen approves their efforts!

Photo of Seidler: Alberto E. Rodriguez

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Video: The King's Speech - Ensemble SAG Award

The media interviews the cast of The King's Speech after receiving their award for Ensemble in a Motion Picture at the 17th Screen Actor's Guild Awards.

Colin Firth, Helena Bonham Carter, Geoffrey Rush

More information on The King's Speech...

Geoffrey Rush chats about The King's Speech

Geoffrey Rush interviewed at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival...

Geoffrey was honoured with the Montecito Award
and cast of King's Speech was honoured with the Ensemble Award

"The Montecito Award was created in recognition of a performer who has given a series of classic and standout performances in his/her career, and has previously been presented to Julianne Moore, Kate Winslet, Javier Bardem, Naomi Watts and Annette Bening, who was the very first recipient in 2005. Geoffrey Rush stands tall within a rare and genuine class of actors, able to command the screen in each and every one of his roles. Ranging from the comedic to the dramatic, Rush’s vast and eclectic body of work illustrates him as one of Hollywood’s most versatile actors."

“I feel like Royalty’s coming to SBIFF,” remarked Durling. “Having been an admirer of everything Geoffrey Rush has done (including his Tony-winning performance in Exit The King), we’re truly blessed to get to celebrate him this year where he once again reminds us in The King’s Speech that he’s one of our greatest actors.”

Geoffrey Rush’s most recent work includes his portrayal of Australian speech therapist Lionel Logue in the Tom Hooper film The King’s Speech. In the film, Lionel is recruited to help the man who would become King George VI (Colin Firth) get over his incredible stammer. Like his character in the film, Rush proves to be a true master of his craft, forging an incredible relationship with not only his pupil, but the audience itself."

Source: SBIFF.org

Also at SBIFF, video with Helena Bonham Carter, Colin Firth

Colin Firth reacts to Oscar nomination for The King's Speech

The King's Speech leads the Oscars with 12 nominations!!

It was recognized in the following categories:
Best Picture -Iain Canning, Emile Sherman & Gareth Unwin, Producers
Directing - Tom Hooper
Best Actor - Colin Firth
Supporting Actor - Geoffrey Rush
Supporting Actress - Helena Bonham Carter
Cinematography - Danny Cohen
Costume Design - Jenny Beavan
Film Editing - Tariq Anwar
Music (Original Score) - Alexandre Desplat
Sound Mixing - Paul Hamblin, Martin Jensen & John Midgley
Art Direction: Production Design: Eve Stewart; Set Decoration: Judy Farr
Writing (Original Screenplay) - David Seidler

Colin Firth talks to a reporter regarding his nomination...

The King's Speech: Video of Q&A in London - Jan 20

For fans who can't get enough of The King's Speech, Weinstein has made available a streaming of a Question and Answer session recorded in Wadsworth Theatre in Los Angeles after a screening featuring: Colin Firth, Helena Bonham Carter, Claire Bloom, Director Tom Hooper, Guy Pearce. [60 minutes long]

Watch video

A 2nd press conference has been added on USTREAM this time with Colin Firth, Helena Bonham Carter, Claire Bloom and Tom Hooper answering questions regarding the film. [London at the Clapham Picture House]

The King's Speech - Colin Firth interview with Katie Couric

Colin Firth talks of King George VI having to face his demons in addressing the British nation during wartime and how they related to him because they knew of just how difficult it was for him to speak to them given his stammer. Firth points out, "When you look at his adversaries who were the best in the business, Hitler and Mussolini, who used this medium to mesmerize the masses - they wanted power very badly. This man didn't want it and I think that gave him credibility as well."

If you have the time, here's a 34 minute interview
with Colin Firth courtesy of Katie Couric on CBS:


More on The King's Speech

Book for The King's Speech

The King's Speech:

How One Man Saved the British Monarchy

Book descripton:
The subject of a major motion picture starring Colin Firth, Geoffrey Rush and Helena Bonham Carter. One man saved the British Royal Family in the first decades of the 20th century - amazingly he was an almost unknown, and certainly unqualified, speech therapist called Lionel Logue, whom one newspaper in the 1930s famously dubbed The Quack who saved a King'. Logue wasn't a British aristocrat or even an Englishman - he was a commoner and an Australian to boot. Nevertheless it was the outgoing, amiable Logue who single-handedly turned the famously nervous, tongue-tied, Duke of York into the man who was capable of becoming King. Had Logue not saved Bertie (as the man who was to become King George VI was always known) from his debilitating stammer, and pathological nervousness in front of a crowd or microphone, then it is almost certain that the House of Windsor would have collapsed.

The King's Speech is the previously untold story of the extraordinary relationship between Logue and the haunted young man who became King George VI, drawn from Logue's unpublished personal diaries. They throw extraordinary light on the intimacy of the two men - and the vital role the King's wife, the late Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, played in bringing them together to save her husband's reputation and his career as King. The King's Speech is an intimate portrait of the British monarchy at a time of its greatest crisis, seen through the eyes of an Australian commoner who was proud to serve, and save, his King.

About the Authors:
Mark Logue is the grandson of Lionel Logue. He is a film maker and the custodian of the Logue Archive. He lives in London. Peter Conradi is an author and journalist. He works for the Sunday Times and his last book was Hitler's Piano Player: The Rise and fall of Ernst Hanfstaengl.

Book is available at:
Amazon.uk , Amazon.com, Amazon.ca, and in Nook at Barnes & Nobles

Read more on THE KING'S SPEECH

The King's Speech - my experience!

Christmas came early for me this year! I've been waiting with anticipation to see The King's Speech and out of the blue, I was graciously sent courtesy tickets from Alliance Films, the Canadian distributor for the film. (Thank you Julia!) As I stood in line at the theatre, I could hear the person behind me suggest that the audience was made up of either historians, monarchists or speech pathologists, and as it turned out -members of the British High Commission as well!

Considering that I've been tracking this film since the cast was first announced and gobbling up all the information that I could find along the way, I worried that it just might not meet my expectations. After all, I'd seen so many clips, I worried that all the "best bits" were shown already (as has happened with some films in the past). Well, I needn't have worried. As I write this, I still have a feeling of breathlessness after just returning from an absolutely wonderful cinematic experience! I think I held my breath through much of the film since I was so captivated.

I've always had a fascination with the British monarchy and especially for film adaptations about royalty, being a period drama fanatic. I'm not certain how audiences will respond to this film if they're not already familiar with King Edward's abdication and that period in history but I'd like to think that above all, this film will be enjoyed for its inspiring tale of the friendship forged between the two men. Although they are considered unequals by society, Lionel Logue, the Australian speech therapist (Geoffrey Rush) contradicts convention to conquer the brave facade and the deep-seated insecurities of "Bertie", the Duke of York (Colin Firth).

Through his unorthodox approach, Logue not only helps Bertie in a way that previous speech therapists had failed him but the king-to-be learns that "he has a voice" that matches his inner strength. The insecure prince who was content to have his brother rule Great Britain, has to grapple with his worst fears in order to step into the role of the head of the British monarchy when his brother abdicates the throne. It was wonderful to learn the lesser known details of that historic time and how an Australian 'quack' would turn out to be one of his greatest advocates and eventually his lifelong friend.

Besides the serious moments depicted of this pivotal time in history (King Edward's abdication and Britain's impending war against Hitler), the movie is filled with humour and wit! The banter between Firth and Rush was every bit as fun to watch as I'd hoped it would be.

Helena Bonham Carter is delightful as Queen Elizabeth, the ever-supportive wife of Bertie and appearances by Jennifer Ehle and David Bamber (both in 1995's Pride & Prejudice) are an added bonus!

The scenes with Bertie and his daughters Margaret and Elizabeth (the current reigning monarch) were also highlights for me. I'm curious to find out if the scene with Bertie's 'penguin' bedtime story occurred in real life but regardless, it gives us an idea of the doting father that he was believed to be.

The King's Speech is a film that truly inspires and speaks to our human condition no matter who we are - prince or pauper (or in this case - an unexpected king and his Australian speech therapist).

I love this tagline:
It takes leadership to confront a nation's fear.

It takes friendship to conquer your own.

Read more about King George VI and Queen Elizabeth

-> More links on THE KING'S SPEECH

The King's Speech - more posters & BIFA awards

It takes leadership to confront a nation's fear.

It takes friendship to conquer your own.

New Canadian promo posters of The King's Speech for Alliance Films:

Highlight of my day: offer of tickets to early screening of film tomorrow night
Lowlight: unable to obtain tickets and finding out film doesn't open until Dec. 22
Update: turns out that I was able to go and thoroughly enjoy
what I hope will be this year's Oscar winner! (My review)

I also came across this today... The Story behind The King's Speech
(Read interview with Lionel Logue's grandson)

The King's Speech was honoured at BIFA!
The film dominated the British Independent Film Awards receiving 5 of the awards handed out on Sunday in London, England.

Best British Independent Film
Best Actor: Colin Firth
Best Supporting Actress: Helena Bonham Carter
Best Supporting Actor: Geoffrey Rush
Best Screenplay: David Seidler

and also handed out that night was the Richard Harris Award given to Helena Bonham Carter to mark her contribution to the movie industry

Helena remarked: "I have to thank the boyfriend because he's given me so many good parts,from chimpanzees to a queen with big head."

(3 of her queenly roles: Lady Jane, Alice in Wonderland, The King's Speech)

More on THE KING'S SPEECH

The King's Speech - additional movie posters

The Evolution of a movie poster...
There are various movie posters continuing to appear for this film. I adore the first one shown which is a UK quad poster. The rest should try to approximate the grandeur of that one in my opinion! The King's Speech stars Colin Firth, Geoffrey Rush and Helena Bonham Carter.

British quad poster (my favourite one!)
source: Lovefilm

Poster for U.S.A. ?

Promo US.A.


Latest poster Dec. 2, found on Yahoo

promo poster?
(It states"in cinemas January 7" but it seems not everywhere!)



2 different poses...

Bedlam Productions

Italy

The original that circulated

Director Tom Hooper, when asked about the original poster [shown on left] that has circulated, said: “I hate it. I hate it. And it is not going to ever be on any cinema walls. It will be replaced. It’s a train smash. It’s a train smash.”

More links for THE KING'S SPEECH