THE KING'S SPEECH*****

Last year we had The Young Victoria, this year we have The King's Speech; both were great movies about royalty with phenomenal acting. However, where The Young Victoria lacked, The King's Speech delivered.

King George VI (Colin Firth), also known as Bertie, is crowned King of England after his father passes away and his older brother abdicates the throne. Bertie is reluctant to take over the position because of a frustrating and embarrassing speech impediment.

Bertie's wife, the Queen of England (Helena Bonham Carter) meets with a speech therapist named Lionel(Geoffery Rush) to help her husband overcome his issue with speaking in public.

Bertie and Lionel create a love/hate relationship throughout the move, allowing the audience to follow a friendship form from frustration into an empowering achievement.

What makes The King's Speech such a remarkable movie is the acting. Colin Firth is yet again extraordinary. Last year he was nominated for his role in A Single Man, a role many said was his best yet. Now, a year later, he has achieved the impossible; another once-in-a-lifetime performance. The way he delivers such a vulnerable side of King George VI and the effortless speech impediment is what Oscar winners are made of.

Geoffrey Rush is great as always in his role as the therapist. Watching the Firth and Rush on screen together is a wonderful moving-going experience. They create a powerful duo that you can't take your eyes off of. While I don't want to give the ending away, watching these two in the final scenes of the movie is gratifying emotional connection. It is a moment that truly captures the journey both men have been on together.

Helena Bonham Carter plays the Duchess very well. It's interesting to see her play a more serious, stripped down character. Earlier in the year she was the Queen of Hearts in Alice in Wonderland in stark contrast to her role as the Queen of England in The King's Speech. She played both roles fantastically, achieving fiction and real life with perfection; only Helena could pull it off.

Look for The King's Speech to get a slew of Oscar Nominations, if not the most out of any movie this year. Firth is the front runner to win best actor, and Bonham Carter, along with Rush, will definitely receive nominations in their respected categories. If any movie gives The Social Network any competition for Best Picture, The King's Speech will be it!