Brilliantly portrays the public nature of Royal life, and the personal side of a figure we all know.

| Original Score: 5/5 | Sep 15, 2022

The writing, by Peter Morgan, is pitched perfectly — pathos and an empathy for the tragedy of the situation is matched by the elegant wit and well-observed humour of the piece.

| Aug 30, 2022

Makes for engaging and entertaining viewing. Not just the subject, it's also the interpretation and storytelling that one closely identifies with.

| Original Score: 3/4 | Jan 25, 2019

The film makes brilliant use of juxtaposition to underscore the class divide between the Windsors and the Blairs.

| Apr 12, 2018

Both [Michael Sheen and Helen Mirren] understand the prickly push-and-pull that defines the fight -- the Gray Monarch v. the Great Modernizer -- and give quiet gravitas to the polite but firm standoffs.

| Original Score: 4/6 | Feb 3, 2007

Like Blair, we are moved from skepticism to sympathy and ultimately to respect by the stunning performances and the perceptive screenplay.

Full Review | Original Score: A | Jan 17, 2007

The tight grey curls, the tilt of the head and the no-nonsense walk with elbows and toes stuck out are the Queen's. The faint hint that this carapace harbours a wicked wit is all down to Mirren.

| Original Score: 4.5/5 | Dec 30, 2006

With its lavish imagery and elegant writing, The Queen is a majestic film, and Mirren is the heir apparent to be crowned best actress of the year.

Full Review | Original Score: A | Nov 22, 2006

Palace intrigue at its finest.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Oct 30, 2006

We see not only the inner corridors of power, but also sense the inner workings of the royal mind. Stephen Frears' deft direction also gives the film insight and even humor.

| Original Score: 3.5/4 | Oct 27, 2006

That's Mirren's magic: She makes us care, no matter how shallow our curtsies.

Full Review | Original Score: B | Oct 26, 2006

Borne with grace and honor on the back of Helen Mirren's astounding title performance, The Queen manages to encompass the personal and political with both depth and grace.

| Original Score: A | Oct 20, 2006

Although Mirren transforms into a living human being as artfully as any actor I have ever seen in Stephen Frears' portrait of a woman and royalty under siege, the movie in which she performs this alchemy is every bit as good as she is.

| Original Score: 4/4 | Oct 20, 2006

This imperial mix of wit, humor and compassion manages to humanize at once the prickly worlds of royalty, politics and popular culture.

| Original Score: 4/4 | Oct 20, 2006

Smartly relevant and affecting, commenting not only on the isolation of the monarchy but also on a tabloid culture run wild.

Full Review | Original Score: 4/5 | Oct 19, 2006

Frears masterfully combines archival news footage with stellar performances from an outstanding cast, led by Mirren in a title role that demands Oscar glory.

| Original Score: 4/4 | Oct 13, 2006

An absolute delight, combining the cheap thrills of a biopic with the gentler, but more lasting, pleasures of a brilliant character study.

| Original Score: 4/4 | Oct 13, 2006

Succeeding where most docudramas fail, it turns a slice of recent history into a revealingly intelligent entertainment, without being didactic at one extreme or sentimental at the other.

| Original Score: 3.5/4 | Oct 13, 2006

Combining facts from the public record with dramatic speculation, Frears and Morgan portray the royals as simultaneously an ordinary family and anything but.

Full Review | Original Score: A- | Oct 13, 2006

Told in quiet scenes of proper behavior and guarded speech, The Queen is a spellbinding story of opposed passions.

| Original Score: 4/4 | Oct 13, 2006