Sunday, April 24, 2011

Royal Films for a Royal Wedding

Buckingham Palace Balcony, copyright iStock Photo
 This coming week is the royal wedding of Prince William to Kate Middleton.  Although I was a young girl when Prince Charles and Lady Diana married, I still remember the mania that surrounded their wedding, the broadcast on TV, and that amazing dress that they crushed inside that carriage.  If we all wanted a view of a real-life fairy tale, well we got it with that wedding!

Here we are some thirty years later, ready to watch Charles and Diana's handsome son get married, and I'd like to disagree with all the new reports I've been hearing and say that yes, we Yanks are seriously excited about the wedding!  Okay, so I haven't heard many folks at work talking about the wedding, but we've been too busy to chat about it.  I do, however, think that this wedding serves as a splash of positive news that we all so desperately need.  How about we sidestep the mangy Donald Trump running for president and rising gas prices news to focus on something fun for once?!?

In preparation for the big day, I've noticed a lot of "royalty" themed or centered films.  In fact, the new Lifetime film "William and Kate" appeared on cable this past week. Said royal love story knock off film was dubbed as "pond scum" by one British reviewer on CNN, while another on ABC called it "wooden, at best."  (Check out this funny news spot "Bad Royal Movies" from ABC News.)  Yes, I watched it and have to agree with the ABC critic that "It's so bad, it's good."  Yes, it's cheesy.  Yes, it's unbelievable. And yes, you'll roll your eyes and wonder how people get away with writing this stuff!  In the end though, I will admit to being thoroughly entertained.  In all it's cheesiness, I say pony up to the cheese bar and enjoy!

Based around true events from the courtship of William and Kate, the film starts at St. Andrew's University in Scotland, where the two met at school while studying art history.  The two were friends there, but soon began seeing one another on the side.  As reported in the news, they had some on and off times, which are also depicted in the film.  Kate used these to her advantage though, and showed William that she could have a life without him, which in turn attracted him to her--you know, the whole "let him chase you" theory.  Well, the rest was/is history.

Honestly, check it out for yourself.  In the spirit of all things royal this week, I liked it and had a cheesy good time with the fairytale!  For more information on the film and show times, check out their "official" site at "William & Kate Movie" .  Here's the preview as well:



Besides this Lifetime dramatization of the courtship for William and Kate, there seems to be a lot of films about or centered on royalty.  Here is a short list of films and television shows I came up with:



This isn't an exhaustive list, obviously, but a short jump off point for royal films and television.  There are other royal films based around royalty of France, Russia, etc. that I could include here.  Also, I really love Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett for its look at cathedral building.  We can say that if the number of films and television shows based around royalty, whether real or fictitious, doesn't prove that we're all still a bit intrigued and in love with the idea of royalty, then I don't know what does.  Royalty is an interesting subject, and for all it's modern complexities, I think we're all a little drawn in by the magic and mystique of it all.

What say you?  Do you have royal wedding mania?

6 comments:

  1. I definitely have royal wedding mania. Don't forget the new TV shows that just started, Game of Thrones and Camelot, both which center around royalty.

    I snickered my way through William & Kate, but I am a little annoyed that OF COURSE she has to be the only girl at St. Andrew's who's not interested in nabbing a prince. COME ON! Just for once I'd like to see a romance where the woman is like, "Hell yeah, I'm gonna get that guy." I think that's why I like Down with Love so much.

    ReplyDelete
  2. You are TOO funny! I'm so glad you posted this. If people weren't excited about it, there wouldn't be so much coverage about it. I can't wait until Friday morning!

    ReplyDelete
  3. I believe that the royal wedding will take wedding style in a new direction from the casual. And I think we're more interested in the details and the big day than the British. Good luck Prince William and Kate.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Princes Diana was a great princes everyone will say this she was kind hearted but she is no more now anyway we shall see Middleton will fulfill her role.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I think the reason many Americans are so excited about this wedding is that not only are William and Kate good looking and seem likeable, we can enjoy all the pomp and circumstance even though we don't have to pay for it!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Heidenkind--I know there are tons of films I'm missing here, I'm sure! And yes, I totally get the snickering at the movie. :)

    Michelle--I'm just glad you're on board with me! It's nice to have other fans out there, gearing up for all the royal goodness!

    ATL Roofing--I get just being into the wedding. I love all that stuff, but will admit to being into British history as well. Monarchy, in general, seems kind of interesting to me.

    prasad--Yes, Princess Di was everyone's princess and I think we're all hoping for the best for Kate.

    Barbara--LOL. Yes, not payments pouring in from us for that wedding, and yet we get to watch and enjoy. :) Good point!

    ReplyDelete