★★★★☆
JUST when you thought every story about British royalty had been told, along comes acclaimed director Stephen Frears (The Queen, Philomena) to charmingly and movingly illuminate one that has lain hidden for more than a century.
It’s 1887 and Queen Victoria – played for the second time by Judi Dench, reprising a role she first tackled in 1997’s Mrs Brown – finds herself dealing with the responsibilities involved with being the leader of Britain and many other nations around the world, which seem to consist mainly of attending banquets and scoffing as many courses as possible.
Then something happens that wakes her up. She meets Abdul Karim (Ali Fazal), who is invited along with his careworn friend Mohammed (Adeel Akhtar) from India to England to attend one of the Queen’s banquets, to present her with a ceremonial coin.
Much to the surprise of everyone concerned, Abdul and the Queen strike up an odd-couple friendship. The Queen commands that Abdul becomes her “munshi” (meaning teacher), teaching her how to speak and write Urdu and imparting wisdom about his homeland over which she rules. This decision is met with extreme opposition and scorn by those around her, not least her son and heir to the throne Bertie (a particularly good Eddie Izzard).
Equipped with an effective script by Lee Hall (Billy Elliott), the film finds a nice balance between witty and self-deprecating humour – “Everything in Scotland is scratchy!” retorts Victoria after Abdul complains about his new outfit while on a trip to Balmoral – and an examination of the historical importance and inherent pomposity of Victoria’s long reign. It does this while also encouraging us to care about the central friendship.
It benefits from stellar casting and some great performances. Dench is as wonderful as ever as she builds on her portrayal in the aforementioned Mrs Brown and reaches beyond clichés to find layers of poignancy, empathy and wit in the character of one of Britain’s most famous monarchs.
Fazal is damn near perfect as her perceived polar opposite, bringing endearing notes of warmth as his character encounters a welcome to the fold by Her Majesty at the same time as not so thinly veiled contempt at his supposed commoner status and the fact that he’s a Muslim.
Though it’s not exactly what you would call a penetrating look at 19th century British Royal history, operating on a broader canvas to appeal to a mass audience, Frears’ film is nevertheless a thoroughly charming, warm-hearted and ultimately very moving look at a hitherto buried story of unlikely but captivating companionship.
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