--- title: "The Queen: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/the-queen/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/the-queen" critics_score: 83 critics_reviews: 10 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # The Queen (2006): what the critics said Critics' score 83 from 10 reviews: 9 positive, 1 mixed, 0 negative. Most critics respond warmly to The Queen, with praise centred on Helen Mirren’s restrained performance and its ability to make the monarch recognisably human without softening her reserve. The reviews repeatedly value the humour and compassion in the clash between royal protocol and Tony Blair’s reading of public feeling after Diana’s death. Stephen Frears’s direction and use of news footage also draw approval. Michael Sheen’s Blair receives particular attention in Sight and Sound, which sees the film as a carefully balanced two-hander. The disagreement concerns how much the film reveals beneath its precise impersonations and amusing exchanges. Slant Magazine supplies the clearest dissent, finding the storytelling pedestrian and emotionally unpersuasive, with jokes taking the place of insight, though it too admires Mirren. The spread is otherwise strongly positive: most critics find the combination of political observation, domestic humour and restrained feeling both thoughtful and moving. ## Radio Times — Alan Jones Rating 5/5. New Labour modernism is pitted against royal protocol in this poignantly amusing mix of fact and fiction. It benefits from Frears's clever use of newsreel footage, flawless re-creation, and exemplary acting, especially Mirren's brilliant Oscar-winning turn. [Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-xglq2e/the-queen/) ## Empire — Kim Newman Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 25 August 2006. The critic calls the film excellent, fascinating, funny, wicked and to the point. They single out Helen Mirren’s remarkable performance turning the Queen into a human being and a standout scene with the monarch and a stag. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/queen-review/) ## RogerEbert.com — Roger Ebert Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 12 October 2006. The film is a spellbinding story of opposed passions between the Queen's icy resolve to keep the royal family aloof and Blair's reading of the public mood demanding sympathy for Diana. Mirren delivers a masterful performance built on suggestion, implication and understatement. [Read the review](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-queen-2006) ## The AV Club — Keith Phipps Rating A-. 10 October 2006. The review commends Mirren's nuanced performance and the film's exploration of changing times and the monarchy's adaptation, blending wit and compassion into a moving state-of-the-nation report. [Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/the-queen-1798202102) ## Film Comment — Graham Fuller Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). Festival review. The critic finds the film Stephen Frears’s most subtle yet also a potential political flashpoint in Britain. Mirren’s restrained, dry portrayal of the Queen is singled out for particular praise alongside the classical direction and integration of news footage. [Read the review](https://www.filmcomment.com/article/royal-pains-the-queen/) ## Sight and Sound — Philip Kemp Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). The film shows the royal facade crumbling as the public mood turns against the monarchy after Diana's death, with Tony Blair relishing his finest hour. It is a shrewdly balanced two-hander between Michael Sheen's uncannily exact impersonation of Tony Blair and Helen Mirren's note-perfect performance as the Queen. [Read the review](http://old.bfi.org.uk/sightandsound/feature/49321) ## The Hollywood Reporter — Kirk Honeycutt Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 5 September 2006. The critic praises the film as a serious docudrama that delves into the clash of values between tradition and modernity following Diana's death, highlighting Mirren's superb performance in showing the Queen's human side. [Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/queen-helen-mirren-review-movie-1235260154/) ## Slant Magazine — Nick Schager Fi1m's normalised score 55/100 (inferred from the text). 27 September 2006. The critic finds the film pedestrian and narratively unaffecting despite Mirren's regal performance, criticizing the script's jokiness and lack of revelation while noting its focus on media and monarchy tensions. [Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/the-queen/) ## Financial Times — Nigel Andrews 13 September 2006. The critic describes the film as scintillatingly funny and sometimes touching, with Helen Mirren’s performance as possibly the best blend of impersonation and acting in movie history. It praises the brilliant crafting and acting by the Frears-Morgan team while noting the royals do enough damage to themselves. [Read the review](https://www.ft.com/content/a05217fe-4345-11db-9574-0000779e2340) ## Los Angeles Times — Kenneth Turan 6 October 2006. Mirren's commanding performance turns the film into a crackling dramatic story that is intelligent, thoughtful and moving. Frears and Morgan capture a poignant moment in British history with insight and professionalism. [Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2006-oct-06-et-queen6-story.html) ## The Guardian — Peter Bradshaw 15 September 2006. The critic finds Stephen Frears’ film hugely enjoyable and praises Helen Mirren’s eerie, cracking impersonation of the Queen as the standout element. It notes the film’s sharp reminder of how little has changed since the events of 1997. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2006/sep/15/helenmirren.drama) ## The New Yorker — Anthony Lane 2 October 2006. The film dramatizes the clash of wills between the Queen and Tony Blair after Diana's death. Mirren exposes the twin sides of her appeal as the forbidding yet winning monarch, making viewers argue about the monarchy. [Read the review](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2006/10/09/battle-royal) ## The New York Times — Manohla Dargis 29 September 2006. The Queen is a sublimely nimble evisceration of the cult of celebrity surrounding the British royal family. Mirren delivers a performance remarkable in its art and lack of sentimentalism as the queen. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/29/movies/29quee.html) ## The Times — James Christopher 14 September 2006. The critic calls the film a compelling and controversial account of the royal family’s failure to react to Diana’s death, hailing Helen Mirren’s sensational portrayal of the Queen. It highlights the portrait of power as sharp and addictive while noting the film avoids parody. [Read the review](https://www.thetimes.com/uk/royal-family/article/the-queen-sllkdcdqnb7) ## Time Out — Dave Calhoun 12 September 2006. The film is a deliciously witty play about the struggle for modernity between New Labour and the monarchy, with cheeky backroom wranglings and cultural contrasts. It benefits from delicious performances, led by Helen Mirren, and great humour drawn from the domestic arrangements. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/the-queen) ## Variety — Derek Elley 2 September 2006. Festival review. Tradition and informality collide in this deliciously written and expertly played dramatization of the week after Diana's death. Mirren gives a socko performance as the queen in a witty and finally moving recreation. [Read the review](https://variety.com/2006/film/awards/the-queen-2-1200513795/) ## Eye for Film — Ben Sillis Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 13 September 2006. The film admirably handles a difficult subject with taste and insight, bringing the Queen to life as a human figure. It singles out Helen Mirren's reserved and intense performance for particular praise. [Read the review](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/the-queen-film-review-by-ben-sillis) ## Paste — Robert Davis Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 28 February 2007. The critic finds the film taut, energetic, and frequently funny, praising its portrayal of Tony Blair as a hero of image projection and Helen Mirren's layered performance that humanizes the Queen. [Read the review](https://www.pastemagazine.com/movies/stephen-frears/princess-di-aries) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/the-queen.md