REVIEW #219 The Crown (Season 5)

The Crown Season 5 continues to follow the drama within the royal family with a strong focus on Prince Charles and Princess Diana’s broken marriage. As well as the iconic events associated with the family from around 1991 to 1997.

Unfortunately this is the first season of The Crown where I have been left disappointed, there wasn’t a strong character that I could route for, unlike the previous instalments and as a result I found myself bored and struggling to get through each episode. Of course you have great sympathy for Diana but that was just a continuation of last season and I’m afraid it got old rather quickly. The castings have always been a strong point for the show but this time around it was rather hit and miss. Now Elizabeth Debicki was a perfect Diana, that seems to be the golden casting of season 5. However Jonathan Price as the Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Phillip, felt way off. I couldn’t see any similarities and although it’s not vitally important to look exactly like the Royal they’re portraying, it still left me slightly disconnected from the character. One aspect I really enjoyed was the musical score and the soundtrack, it’s the main thing that managed to help me through the abundance of unnecessary filler scenes. It felt like we would be watching someone write a letter with nothing really going on for a good two minutes, followed by the same time spent seeing Charles plant flowers or Diana parading around her home. Granted those elements may contribute to the characters interests and psyche but it should have been illustrated in a much shorter time frame. But like I mentioned above, the musical score did help and I found myself tuning into the music more than the scene. The cinematography in general was really good, a consistent strength across all 5 seasons, with beautiful scenery shot on location and a wide variety of camera angles which produced wonderful shots. Similarly the costume design and the hair and makeup worked wonders to help transform the actors into the famous British Royals in which they were portraying. I think that was particularly the case for Imelda Staunton who they turned into a striking resemblance of the late Queen Elizabeth the 2nd. Now the main storyline itself wasn’t awful, it’s clear the main focus was set on the Prince and Princess of Wales, Charles and Diana and it did have some rather intriguing and interesting moments. But it did drag on and in the end it became a little stale to say the least. It’s a shame the show will likely end after season 6 because the royal controversies over the past 5 years would be great television. What I do hope is that the following season, not only improves, but is able to work as a wonderful tribute to the late Queen Elizabeth the 2nd who I respect greatly for her duty to our country. Nonetheless this would have to be my least favourite season and the score definitely reflects that.

OVERALL (6/10)

Thanks for reading.

Callan