Starring: Claire Foy, Matt Smith, Jared Harris, Alex Jennings, Vanessa Kirby, John Lithgow, Jeremy Northam, Ben Miles , Matthew Goode
The Crown's uneven and sometimes bloated second season could have trimmed a lot of fat. The good episodes are very good, and the performances are always stellar, but the most fascinating character, Queen Elizabeth II (Foy) takes a back seat to the supporting players far too often. I'm all for giving the other characters their time to shine, but soon The Crown begins to feel like, "The Princess Margaret Show" guest starring her regal sister.
Or we can rename The Crown, "What's Bothering Prince Philip This Week?" The queen's increasingly mopey husband (Smith) looks to be about three seconds away from telling someone to f*** off at any given time. Yes, it can be a tad uncomfortable to be the man in a marriage to a queen in a male-dominated society, but mostly every man in the world would switch places with you. This was explored with greater efficiency in the first season. Now, Prince Philip is becoming insufferable with his myriad insecurities and infidelities, which he kind of, sort of confesses to in the season's final episode. It's a pity, because the moments where Prince Philip is shown to be more compassionate than his colder spouse reflect the push/pull of their marriage vividly.
This season's best moments occur with Queen Elizabeth figuring out the line between wife/mother/sister and sovereign. She makes promises to her sister, Princess Margaret, that she can marry only to renege on the pledges. She has her own preference as to who would become her private secretary, only to be told that she must follow protocol and hire the man she doesn't prefer because he has more seniority. Advisors warn her that following her own heart would lead to an Edward VIII type of situation, which may seem like an exaggeration, but perhaps they're correct.
Edward VIII makes a few more appearances in London in an attempt to reemerge from exile. He attempts to find work with the government, and Queen Elizabeth is ready to sign off until a long-dormant secret rears its ugly head and forces Edward into exile for good. Speaking of that secret, why would someone not destroy the report which documents Edward's potential treachery, especially since Winston Churchill and George VI agreed to bury it for the sake of national security? Why leave it in a box somewhere for a historian to find it? Or worse yet, leave a handy note on it which draws attention to its potential explosiveness? I'm reminded of the crucial scene in In The Name of the Father (1993) where an attorney conveniently finds a folder that reads "don't show to the defense".
Like season one, Prince Charles and the other children are rarely seen, except for an episode in which Prince Charles is sent away to his father's alma mater boarding school and struggles with everyday life. Other than that, I wonder if Queen Elizabeth could pick her children out of a lineup. Season two was a down season, a near miss with superior, authentic production values and strong actors doing what they can with the material. Season three will feature a new cast and Oscar winner Olivia Colman as Queen Elizabeth. Maybe a fresh coat of paint will help.
No comments:
Post a Comment