Painting of a monarchy

"Ballad For a Queen", Arte France

2012. Queen Elizabeth II's diamond jubilee. "Ballad For a Queen" ("Ballade pour une reine", Arte France) attempts to draw an unprecedented portrait of the British monarchy and its relations with the public in the last 60 years. The 90-minutes documentary offers a vast amount of so far unpublished material and exclusive and controversial interviews. Even if the film locks out reality and keeps looping glossy scenes of pomp and glory: It paints an enormously rich, sophisticated, multi-faceted image of an anachronism, a political and social icon for generations, and what remains, one way or another, an anchor of stability in a world changing faster and faster.

Thanks to a 86-year old woman, better known as Elizabeth II.