Wallis & Edward
Acorn Media
94 mins.
December 18, 2005
Not Rated
I have recently become interested in the story of Wallis Simpson and King Edward VIII. The story is quite a compelling one if only because Edward abdicated the throne in order that he can marry the woman he loves, Wallis – the American divorcée.
This film gave us a view of this story more from Wallis’ point of view – hence her name first in the title. We get a more sympathetic view of the couple and everything that they went through. While this story can tend to get a sensationalized treatment, I think that they tried hard to stick to the historical facts and it was quite a compelling movie. I watched an interview with the writer and how she went about writing this movie and you could really feel her conviction to try and actually tell their story.
The technical choices for this film were well made. Joely Richardson and Stephen Campbell Moore were perfect as Wallis and Edward respectively. They certainly looked the part and I think that they embodied the historical figures well. Latvia was where this was filmed and it was a convincing England on screen.
This film gives off the feeling that Wallis and Edward get a bad rap from history – and I would agree with much of that. They call Wallis a woman just looking for the fame of queen-ship, however there must have certainly been love between the two because they were together for many years after the abdication – up until Edward’s death. While I don’t know if Edward would have made a good king – it appears that he had many things he wanted to do but the marriage issue became the central issue – I don’t think that he quite deserves the reputation that he has gained just from being in love with the wrong kind of woman.
The plot was enjoyable and quick paced – it was never dull.
Check out this trailer:
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Great review! It's interesting that the bad rap gets pinned on Wallis--I've always had a sneaking suspicion that Edward saw what was coming down the pike in world events and didn't much mind getting out of leadership, so I've been guilty of pinning the bad rap on him!
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed this about a year ago. I just reviewed the new Wallis book too, and now I am looking forward to watching the series that is available on Netflix.
ReplyDeleteI remember watching a TV movie about this relationship a long time ago with Jane Seymour in the role and I remember loving it. I'll need to check this one out!
ReplyDeleteI've seen this one, and several others. It's a perennial subject over here in the UK. There is a backstory to this which is played down in that David (or Edward VIII as king) was supposed to be a Nazi sympathiser and the government used the Wallis episode to ditch him. Whether it's true is another question. But it's no wonder film-makers love it because it makes for one of the greatest love stories - giving up a kingdom for the sake of the woman you love.
ReplyDeleteExcellent review and glad to hear it was well done. The fact that they stayed together for so long should speak volumes, but it doesn't always
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