"The King's Speech" presents a sideways glance at a crucial period in 20th-century history--as the monumentally awkward Prince Albert, or Bertie, becomes King George VI unexpectedly in 1936 when his older brother Edward VIII abdicates to marry American divorcée Wallis Simpson. In imperial Britain between the wars, that was problem enough, but Bertie suffered from a chronic stammer that made his public appearances painful for everyone. In an age of radio, the monarch has become a symbol, which means that the King speaks to his people--regularly. Bertie and his wife, the high-spirited Princess Elizabeth find their way to an Australian-born speech therapist and amateur actor named Lionel Logue. Logue isn't a doctor, has no academic credentials, and is viewed by proper authorities as a charlatan. Oddly enough, each of these men is a desperate misfit badly in need of a new friend and a bit more self-esteem. A real friend, it seems, was exactly the medicine the future king required.