Anticipation forThe Kings Speechhas been steadily building since its premiere back in September at the Toronto International Film Festival.
And Firth, would you believe it, that elegant gent, dropped aRocky IVreference.
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Have you been surprised by the response the film has been getting?
And even judging the stammer so many pitfalls.
It could be comedic.
And even if you laughed at him only once, that would be completely misfiring.
It could be so painful that you dont want to stay in the cinema.
How hard was it to get it right?
CF:I didnt find it easy at all.
But its something you do every time you act.
So, youve got to get into the problem first.
So, in a way, its just the same job again.
TH:But also, the problem is that speech therapists are to help stammerers stop having a stammer.
Its hard to find a speech specialist whos trained in giving you a stammer.
CF:There arent any books on how to stammer.
Did you watchA Fish Called Wanda?
TH:Its weirdly one of the few disabilities, it seems, [that] is still pastiched.
You ask me if I got any help.
The best help I could possibly get was David.
And I was actually quite really…
I was left quite shaken by some of his eloquence.
If I remember, he compared it to being underwater.
That there was this panicking, drowning sensation, which seemed to have no way out.
Terrible, endless silence that you cant climb out of.
He also talked about how it conditions the way you approach your day, down to the last detail.
That will loom larger over than the bigger picture of what youre trying to achieve.
And it made me realise that this was not something that you could isolate.
It is something which absolutely consumes you and your identity.
And I think that the struggle we witness in the film isnt about curing a stammer.
Its about managing it to the extent that that is no longer whats happening.
And that is absolutely achievable.
But you wouldnt guess that, as a man in his seventies now.
So, thats why I think that the film can be honestly hopeful.
Was that more important to the character than the fact that you were playing royalty?
Whereas weve certainly had many stammerers at many Q&As talk about how well Colin caught their condition.
CF:That was my main concern in terms of how people responded.
But its a mystery, and playing a member of the Royal family remains a mystery.
Does that make it any less authentic, do you think?
CF:Quite possibly.
It might render it completely inauthentic.
We worked very, very hard for accuracy.
We had people who actually do know the Royal family around us.
CF:Plus, a lot of our dialogue were quotes from these men.
Not just from the diaries, but also from written accounts.
Its full of exact quotes.
The scene of George Vs death is a precise reconstruction of the accounts that we had of that death.
I hope I will make good as he has made good.
Long live the King.
But I still came out on the other side knowing it was an imaginative journey.
CF:Particularly a dead one!
I would have loved to have control of the country for a couple of days.
But you dont get to try out the job.
But my profession is full of that.
Its no different from if I was playing someone from the 17th century, which I have.
I cant bring you absolute truth in the detailed factual sense.
All I can do is bring you an interpretation as I understand it.
Thats all you might ever get from an actor.
Were there any approaches made this time to get permission from the Royals?
TH:So, I think the respect has been paid.
Maybe you could argue that David learned his lesson from the first time he wrote!
TH:I find that impossible to judge, because Im so inside it.
So, I think its probably good that there are two slightly different trailers out there in the world.
In fact, only young people, saying they cant wait to see it, which surprised me enormously.
And I dont know which trailer they saw.
Mr Hooper, you have brought quite a few real peoples lives to the screen.
What are some of the pleasures and pressures involved in that?
So, it was very interesting to tell the creation story at that time in America.
And you look at King George VIs story.
Becoming king, well, that was his idea of a nightmare, so thats not privilege.
And suddenly the very thing you use to attack it seems to fall apart in this case.
You mentionJohn Adamsthere in comparison to this film.
Of course, that is a television drama as opposed to a feature-length drama.
Television drama as an artform has progressed a lot in the last twenty years.
Do you still see a differentiation between the two media?
John Adamswas a $100 million HBO show.
We probably did a 10 day marketing period.
And this, it will be months by the time its finished.
So, at the moment thats the biggest difference.
I think youve still got to do the best work that comes in front of you.
Whether its TV or film doesnt matter.
I got my film education from television.
The best films Ive ever seen theGodfathertrilogy, most of Scorsese were on TV.
So, the best TV Ive ever seen is feature films.
So, Ive never seen a huge difference.
Was there any sensitivity surrounding that, as it shows the King speaking positively about Hitler?
CF:He doesnt know what hes saying.
There are a couple of things here- I think its….
TH:I think its quite funny.
CF:It is quite funny…
TH:It was his line, by the way.
CF:I did make up that line!
[Hooper laughs] I am responsible, Im afraid.
This is my adversary, look what he can do with the power of speech.
I am terrified of the microphone and he is using it to hypnotic effect.
To amass people to follow him and to grab power where possible, and to commit genocide.
Hes not listening to the words.
Its basically before the big fight, when Rocky goes up in front of the big Russian guy.
You have to build up your enemy, and say, Thats what Im up against.
Hitler invaded Poland on September 1st 1939.
Britain declared war on Hitler two days later.
But they could also believe him when he was denouncing the principle that might is right.
This is the man who didnt want to be king.
He didnt want the power, he didnt want the limelight.
He didnt have that kind of ego.
And so, he absolutely embodies everything that is the antithesis of Nazism.
He just wishes he could speak better.
The Kings Speech is released on January 7th.
