FREE: The Queen (2007)

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5.0 out of 5 stars: Flexibility and Leadership
Amazon Review By C.Collinson February 9, 2008
This is an excellent, highly entertaining film. It has a smartly written script that is humorous and never lags; excellent sequencing and editing to keep the viewer fully engaged; exceptional acting from Helen Mirren, James Cromwell, and Michael Sheen; and an underlying theme of adaptive leadership that is superbly and seamlessly integrated into the narrative. It is the theme of adaptive leadership, exhibited first by Tony Blair and later by Queen Elisabeth, on which I would like to comment.

Everyone knows the story here of the tragic death of Princess Diana, the outpouring of public grief, and the failure of reaction on the part of the Windsors. What is not as well known is the story behind the action where Tony Blair, the new Prime Minister, was able to gradually move Queen Elisabeth to comprehend the public mood and to respond to that mood appropriately. Both characters display the adaptive leadership and necessary flexibility to survive and move the public agenda forward. Blair fully grasps the situation as well as the need to apply just enough pressure to the Queen so that she grows and doesn't retreat. Michael Sheen is super as Tony Blair, using intelligent charm and strategic wit to move the queen to recognition of the gravity of the issues and to take action by showing empathy with the grief of the English people. James Cromwell is excellent as Prince Phillip, sometimes playing the role of the Queen's alter-ego or id with his displays of disgust and indignation. At other times he reveals the isolated and insulated existence of the Windsors that separated them from normal existence. I would recommend this film to be viewed and analyzed in a class on adaptive leadership.