The Queen (2006)

Helen Mirren gives an award-winning performance as Queen Elizabeth II after the death of Princess Diana.

The Plot: (Spoilers)

The movie opens on Election Day in London in 1997. Queen Elizabeth II (Helen Mirren) is sitting for a portrait and asks the artist if he has voted, which he has, and he admits he did not vote for Tony Blair. The Queen admits envy of the people’s right to vote, as they have the right to be partial.

Queen Elizabeth II, sitting for a portrait and talking politics

The next day, May 2, 1997, Tony Blair (Michael Sheen) has won the election by a landslide, and is coming to Buckingham Palace to be formally asked by the Queen to form a government as Prime Minister. The Queen isn’t enthusiastic about Blair’s victory and his calls for modernism during his campaign, and the meeting is somewhat awkward.

Queen Elizabeth II officially makes Tony Blair Prime Minister

On August 30, 1997, Princess Diana is shown hurriedly getting into a black Mercedes-Benz sedan, surrounded by photographers. The car speeds off, pursued by photographers on motorcycles, and is last shown entering an urban tunnel.

The black Mercedes-Benz carrying Princess Diana and Dodi Fayed

The Royal Family is vacationing at Balmoral Estate. Robin Janvrin (Roger Allam) wakes the Queen and her husband, Prince Phillip (James Cromwell) to give them the news of the accident. At this point, Diana’s companion Dodi Fayed had been declared dead, but Diana’s condition isn’t yet known.

Robin Janvrin gives Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Phillip the first bad news

The Queen, Prince Phillip and the Queen Mother (Sylvia Syms) watch the television coverage of the accident. Prince Charles (Alex Jennings) has chosen not to wake his sons William and Harry until they have more information. Charles wants to fly to Paris immediately, and the Queen argues with him about whether to use a private plane or a government plane for the Royal Family’s official use.

The Queen, the Queen Mother and Prince Phillip watch the news reports

Janvrin interrupts and announces that he’s just learned the Diana has died. Charles informs his sons of their mother’s death, and the Queen allows Charles the use of the government plane to bring her body back from Paris. Charles clearly still cares for his ex-wife, but the senior members of the family have little good to say about her.

Prince Charles informs William and Harry of their mother's death

The next day is a Sunday. The Queen, Prince Phillip and the Queen Mother attend church services. The women dress in black, but otherwise appear to carry on as usual. Diana’s funeral is to be arranged by her family, and they intend it to be a private service; as Diana was no longer officially a member of the Royal Family, they see no reason to be involved in planning the services.

The Royal Family, dressed for church

Tony Blair makes a speech, written by his press secretary Alastair Campbell (Mark Bazeley), that strikes a chord with the people, especially the description of Diana as the “People’s Princess.” The Royal Family makes no official statements.

Prime Minister Tony Blair gives his speech

Prince Charles brings back Diana’s body. Blair is waiting at the airfield, and Charles discusses funeral planning. Charles and Blair agree that there should be a public ceremony for the people. Charles tells Blair that they are both modern men and that it is the Queen who is responsible for the Royal Family’s silence.

Prince Charles and Tony Blair at the airfield

On Monday there is a meeting among representatives of Diana’s family, the Prime Minister’s office, other government representatives and public safety officials to discuss plans for Diana’s funeral. Because of the massive public reaction, it is decided to have a public procession and funeral, which is based on the plan for the Queen Mother’s funeral, but with many celebrities in attendance. When the Royal Family is informed of this, they are upset.

The Royal Family remains at Balmoral and still doesn’t make any statements. Charles calls Blair, just to reiterate what he said at the airfield: that he considers them both modern men, a move Blair finds bizarre. Prince Phillip takes William and Harry out to stalk a 14-point deer that was spotted on the estate in an effort to keep them occupied. Meanwhile, public opinion of the Royal Family is deteriorating, and the headlines in the papers get more critical every day. The public latches on to the fact that there is no flag flying at half-mast at Buckingham Palace (by tradition, a flag only flies at Buckingham Palace when the monarch is present, and the flag never flies at half-mast). Blair suggests to the Queen that the Royal Family needs to fly a flag at half-mast and return to London and make a statement so the people can see them, but the Queen isn’t receptive to the idea, thinking the newspaper editors are hyping the headlines to sell papers. After the Queen hangs up, Blair gets a call from Janvrin. He was listening in on the call and tries to explain the Queen’s views. Blair promises to help defend the family to the media, but has little success.

The people’s opinion of the Royal Family reaches a critical low, resulting in more serious headlines. Blair calls the Queen again and insists that she follow his advice. She discusses it with the Queen Mother, who doesn’t agree. The Queen drives her Rover around the vast estate, looking for the day’s stalking party, and gets stuck fording a river. While she waits for help, she has time to herself to think, and sheds some tears before spoting the 14-point deer. She hears the hunting party approaching and scares it off.

Having had some time alone, Queen Elizabeth II spots the 14-point deer

The Queen eventually decides to follow Blair’s advice and return to London, to the annoyance of Prince Phillip. The Royal Family starts by observing the flowers that have been placed outside Balmoral. As the family prepares to leave for London, Prince Phillip mentions that a guest at another estate killed the 14-point deer. Before leaving, the Queen goes to the estate to see the deer, which was shot by an inexperienced hunter who only injured it, and other hunters had to chase it to put it out of its suffering. The family returns to London, getting out of their car outside the gates of Buckingham Palace to see the flowers placed outside Buckingham Palace. The gathered crowd is placated by the appearance, and a young girl presents flowers to the Queen herself. The Queen also plans to make a live televised address in remembrance of Diana. Blair’s office is reviewing the speech. Alastair Campbell, a very vocal critic of the Royal Family, mocks the Queen for what his sees as being cold and out of touch. Blair defends the Queen.

Tony Blair defends the Queen

The Queen makes her televised statement. The next day is Diana’s funeral, and the Royal Family is in attendance.

The Royal Family at Diana's funeral

Two months later, Tony Blair is meeting with the Queen at Buckingham Palace. The Queen has been traveling for diplomatic reasons, so this is their first meeting since Diana’s funeral. They end up discussing the events of that week. Blair soothes the Queen’s concerns that the public’s opinion of the monarchy has been permanently damaged, saying people have moved on and won’t remember that one week out of so many. The Queen explains to Blair that the people had wanted her to publicly show her feelings, and that wasn’t consistent with the way she was raised. Having come to an understanding of each other, the Queen asks Blair to explain his policies.

The Queen and Tony Blair understand each other

My Review:

The Queen is a fascinating look at the private lives of the British Royal Family and the Queen’s relationship with the Prime Minister. The film cleverly uses archive footage interspersed throughout, giving it a distinct feel of the time it portrays. This drama is character-driven, so the acting is very important, and the acting is excellent. Helen Mirren earned an Oscar and a Golden Globe for her performance here, and she definitely earned them. The other prominent actors, such as Michael Sheen and James Cromwell, also do very well. Not only do they all portray their characters well though their acting, but they also seem to have a resemblance to their characters as well. It is easy to forget that they are actors and not the real Royal Family. The Queen, Queen Mother and Prince Phillip are portrayed as very human people, each with a sense of humor in their private lives that seems surprising from how they are typically seen in public, and they have some funny lines, especially in the beginning when they express their initial opinions about Tony Blair. It is easy to think of the Royal Family as larger-than-life figures, and The Queen shows them as human beings. Moments like Prince Phillip struggling to light a barbeque and the Queen driving an old Land Rover alone over muddy roads and getting it stuck fording a river emphasize this, and contradict the way many people view the Royal Family. The film seems very even-handed and fair in its portrayals of events; although Tony Blair gets the most favorable treatment of any of the characters, the Royal Family is portrayed respectfully and in the end are shown in a favorable light as well. The one character who does not get a favorable portrayal is Alastair Campbell, and it is difficult to believe that the real man could be as much of a jerk towards the Royal Family as he is portrayed here. The filmmakers wisely chose not to have the film actually involve Diana; she is seen only in archival footage, except in the brief scene where, played by an actress, she is shown getting into the car, and is not clearly visible. The actual car accident is not portrayed, nor is most of the funeral ceremony. Diana’s sons Princes William and Harry are seen only as background characters, although they are mentioned often by the other characters, as the Queen and Prince Phillip show concern for them. This shows a great deal of restraint and respect for the Royal Family that not all filmmakers would have shown.

Overall, The Queen is a tasteful and interesting look back at the British Royal Family’s reaction to the death of Princess Diana, and provides some fascinating glimpses into their private lives.