Film No. 30 (2015) May 7th. 6:30 PM THE WINDSOR Nedlands.
"What if the real me wants something else" (Elizabeth responding to Jacks statement that she has a life where she can have anything she wants).
A Royal Night Out is a hoot. I'm always pleased to report on a film where the slick trailer does the film justice. The U.K. film industry cut its teeth on light, silly comedies. So, just as a Noel Coward play gets re-staged with skill via repertory the farcical comedy gets a rebirth through independent cinema.
This silly story is based on an urban legend and liberties are take on a grand scale in this version of supposed events.
In the firm knowledge that Elizabeth would be the next queen of England (with next to no childhood experiences with the common folk), that WWII was over and with the feisty Margaret hankering for a party, a tired old King George VI gives permission for his girls to go forth and enjoy themselves (the ages of Elizabeth (Sarah Gadon) and Margaret (Bel Powley) are 19 and 14 respectively at the time of V.E. Day). The high farce comes in the form of the bumbling minders Capt. Price (Jack Laskey) and Lt Price (Jack Gordon). That along with the champagne glass extravaganza had a touch of the Keystone Cops about it.
But I digress. Elizabeth is the one in our hearts as we think about the lovely, gentle lady we have grown up with. In the film she experiences a chaste teenage fling with Jack (Jack Reynor) a brooding airman who, by default, becomes her minder for the night. I've not seen Roman Holiday (1953) but the word is that,in it, Gregory Peck played a similar role for Audrey Hepburn as they made their way through the streets of Rome.
The freshness of the performances of Gadon and Powley make the film the joy director Jarrold set out to achieve. Writers De Silva and Hood depend on their leads to deliver silly lines with exquisite innocence and timing and they would surely have been pleased. I'm predicting that A Royal Night Out is about to experience great success in cinemas in leafy suburbs throughout the western world. It's light, it's entertaining but most of all it's fresh, even if it's all been done before in a bygone era. 9GUMS.
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