“William and Kate: The Movie” treats the Windsor dynasty as
daytime soap opera. The low-budget, rushed-to-completion movie is getting
plenty of attention in Britain, for all the wrong reasons.
“So bad it's awful, toe-curlingly, teeth-furringly,
pillow-bitingly ghastly,” was the verdict Friday in The Guardian newspaper,
which concluded the flick was probably destined to be a smash.
The movie chronicles the university romance of Prince
William and Kate Middleton, who in real life met and fell in love while
studying art history at the University of St.
Andrews in Scotland.
Airing in Britain and the United States before the April 29
royal wedding in London, it was directed by Mark Rosman and produced in the
five months since the couple announced their engagement last November.
Critics have not been impressed with Rosman's ability to
capture the nuances of Britain's eccentric, distinctive royal family.
The Guardian pointed out that the movie was shot entirely in
the Los Angeles area, with poorly done British accents, countryside scenes that
looked like California instead of Britain, and London buses driving,
incorrectly, on the right side of the street. The acting was described as
wooden or worse.
But that won't stop if from debuting in the United States on
Lifetime on April 18 and in Britain on Channel Five on April 24. After that,
the movie is to be sold as a DVD, possibly finding a niche among the legions of
royal wedding memorabilia collectors.
London Evening Standard critic Richard Godwin said American
critics “panned this movie as a cheesy chick-flick” but predicted the English
will end up cherishing it because the movie is so outlandish.
It stars New Zealander Nico Evers-Swindell playing a dashing
version of Prince William in love and Camilla Luddington, whose limited screen credits
include playing Tiffany in “Days of Our Lives.” She portrays Middleton as a
highly emotional young woman determined to snag a prince no matter what the
obstacle.
Much is made in the film of the unlikelihood that William
would ever marry a commoner.
The film documents key points in their budding relationship,
including the scene where Middleton catches William's eye at a fashion show
wearing a see-through dress, prompting the future king's alleged quote to
friends, “Kate's hot!” When a friend warns her she won't have a chance with
William, the actress playing Middleton gives the camera a smoldering look and
says “He's just a guy.” The TV movie is just one of a smattering of royal
wedding specials ahead of the real event, which will be seen by a huge live
global TV audience.
