This Queen to That Queen

This weekend, I watched a DVD of The Queen, starring Helen Mirren. What a wonderful film. There isn't much that happens in this film, but it flows incredibly. If you have any interest in British history, or would like to figure out how a constitutional monarchy works, I suggest this film.

One thing that amazed me about the film is that it is historical fiction, but the history is only 10 years old. The film interprets what happened the week that Diana died, so this is pretty recent history. The royal family is still in pretty much the same configuration (with the exception of the Queen Mother, who died a couple of years ago). Tony Blair is still the Prime Minister (although he is on his way out). They are making a historical film...a fictional historical film about people who are all still able to react and respond.

If you watch the DVD, I have anothe recommendation. We were excited to see the bonus features, since we could learn a little more about the history of the royal family. There are not many bonus features, but there is a commentary with a historian. We ended up watching that the whole way through. He explained many of the references made in the film that I had missed the first time through. It was very informational.

If you have an interest in royal history, especially history you can remember, this is a fabulous film to watch.