The big screen's royal role models Hollywood can offer sensible marital advice for Prince William and his bride-to-be

BY JAY STONE, POSTMEDIA NEWS


The Oscar-winning movie The King's Speech comes out on DVD today, just in time for William and Kate to have a quick look before the wedding. They've probably been pretty busy, registering at Marks & Spencer and choosing china patterns and so on, but it would be a worthwhile exercise to pick up a copy of the film -there's got to be a Blockbuster somewhere near the palace -to see how previous generations of royalty got along.







The King's Speech is about how George VI, played by Colin Firth, overcame his paralyzing stutter, but in the background there are several finely etched portraits of royal relationships that are worth studying. George -great-grandfather to you, William -has the good luck to be married to Helena Bonham Carter, who gives Queen Elizabeth the perfect blend of aristocracy and irony: unlike Queen Victoria, she is amused, and her gracious sense of noblesse oblige isn't a bad attitude to take on in these fraught days.

The relationship to beware of is that of Edward VIII, played by Guy Pearce, and Wallis Simpson (Eve Best). This is the type of pairing that may account for some of the difficulties of the modern British crown -Wallis is the very model of the vulgar commoner taking on an air of unearned hauteur -and it would be a good one for Kate to memorize as a negative role model. "Apparently she has certain skills, acquired at an establishment in Shanghai," Queen Elizabeth speculates, which isn't the sort of thing one hopes to hear from one's sister-in-law. Edward and Wallis remind us that one has a responsibility to certain codes, even if it is simply the good taste to keep one's tolerance for Nazis to oneself.

Another good rental would be The Queen (2006), in which Helen Mirren portrays Elizabeth II in the days just after the death of Diana, Princess of Wales. This is another story about adjusting to modern times, and the marriage here is one that you, William, must be intimately acquainted with: the royal couple as Windsor Inc. The Queen is essentially a film about crisis management, and it reminds us that the modern monarch must be flexible to the will of the people. Mirren's Queen displays this, while Philip (James Cromwell) is less sympathetic: "A chorus line of soap stars and homosexuals," he calls the guest list for Diana's funeral. (Reminder: double-check the wedding seating arrangements.)

But what are we thinking? You are about to be newlyweds, and it's love that engages you now. The Young Victoria (2009) is a touching romance that shows us how, even in the formality of aristocracy, an innocent queen (played by Emily Blunt) can surrender to her yearning for a handsome German prince (Rupert Friend). There is a constitutional crisis to deal with -one of the perennial pitfalls of the Royal Family business -but they solve it with devotion. You might want to watch this one on a double-bill with Mrs. Brown (1997), with Judi Dench as the older Victoria, still mourning the dead Albert but forming an emotionally fulfilling relationship with her servant (Billy Connolly). The lesson here is that one can lead many lives, even in the public eye.

Perhaps it would be a good idea to skip some of the films in the royal festival -those Henry VIII movies are disagreeable reminders that royal marriages can be as fragile as royal necks, although The Private Life of Henry VIII (1933) with Charles Laughton does serve as a reminder to maintain that health club membership. Yet love is a resilient thing. Let's watch The Lion In Winter (1968) to see Henry II, played by Peter O'Toole, talking to his wife Eleanor of Aquitaine (Katharine Hepburn), whom he has had locked away for supporting her son Richard -a young Anthony Hopkins -against him. There is much intrigue, which is something you're going to have to get used to, and much regal banter.

Henry: I marvel at you after all these years. Still like a democratic drawbridge: going down for everybody.

Eleanor: At my age there's not much traffic any more.

Naughty, yes, but more elegant than more recent examples of princes caught on cellphones professing their love to extramarital companions. We're counting on you to be regal, William and Kate. Just stop and consider the movie they'll be making about you.