Bil’s rating (out of 5): BBB.
United Kingdom, 1953. The Rank Organisation. Screenplay by Christopher Fry. Produced by Castleton Knight. Music by Guy Warrack. Academy Awards 1953. Golden Globe Awards 1953.
The events surrounding the coronation of Elizabeth II make up the entirety of this documentary, shot entirely in beautiful Technicolour. Thanks to the ceremony’s many stages being well known in advance, Laurence Olivier was able to pre-record his narration and help get the film out within days of the actual coronation. Parades and celebrations, solemn rituals and a whole assortment of carriages and dresses are trotted out with a great sense of pomp and no irony whatsoever. It might be surprising to see a documentary with so little apparent art to its construction, but recall that this film was made for a public that did not have colour television in their homes and, should they even own a set at this point, would not have such great coverage from a network as they do now. A great record of the last coronation of the twentieth century and the beginning of what has now become the longest reign in English history.
