If the response of Oscar voters drifting through the screenings at Telluride is anything to go by, ‘The King’s Speech’ seems to be a sure bet for the awards season, if not for a bag of Oscars on 27 February, 2011. Known for his roles in period dramas, Colin Firth stars as King George VI, the current Queen’s father – a man so afflicted with a stutter that Australian speech therapist Lionel Logue (Geoffrey Rush) had to be appointed to help. The uplifting tale of friendship and success received a standing ovation – rare at most festivals and unique at Telluride this year.
Firth’s first Telluride festival has been unusually active, with reports that the star (and co-star Rush) are being applauded for ‘The King’s Speech’ in bars, restaurants and on the street. Fans have even been stopping the actors to tell them how wonderful the film is. Firth, who had a hectic awards season in 2010 with his triumph in ‘A Single Man’, should expect red red red to be the colour of his carpet this year.
‘The King’s Speech’ is helmed by Tom Hooper, who’s previous film ‘The Damned United’ achieved critical accolades but haemorrhaged at the box office, making $1.35m worldwide on a $10m budget. Hooper’s next project is John Steinbeck’s classic ‘East of Eden’ from a script by Christopher Hampton (‘Atonement’) and Paul Attanasio (‘Matt Helm’ 2011).
