And the young Albert. (Psst, wanna see the Queen in her teddies?) The story of the first occupant of the spanking new Buckingham Palace is a story of protofeminist liberation — “Even a palace can be a prison” — and a testament to the capacity of British thespians, specifically Emily Blunt, Rupert Friend, Paul Bettany, Miranda Richardson, Mark Strong, Harriet Walter, Jim Broadbent, among others, to play any dry and droning history lesson as if it were Shakespeare. The rather bland love story ultimately nudges out the pungent family relations, and the only goose bumps come courtesy of Handel and high volume. Directed by Jean-Marc Vallée. (2009) — Duncan Shepherd
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