For several years, the Golden Globes have been an opportunity for some of the greatest creatives, directors, and filmmakers to gather together and recognize extraordinary films, television shows, documentaries, and more. As of late, I haven’t been watching many movies, but a good attention-grabbing series on Netflix has always been my go-to. Also, I’ve never been a regular viewer of the Golden Globes; at most, I watch the red carpet because I love fashion and I’m always interested in the styles that are brought forth. But this year, on February 28th, I tuned in because one of my absolute favourite shows led with a whopping six nominations. That show is called The Crown.
The fact that the show was nominated for six Golden Globes should tell you something about how great it is. The Crown is a television series (not a documentary) based on the history and dynamics of the Royal Family. It does not go all the way back to the beginning of the Royal Family, otherwise the show would never end. The Crown begins with the current monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, as a little girl and her father, King George VI, who reigned as monarch at the time. From then on, it follows Queen Elizabeth’s reign from when she ascended the throne at 25 and the many obstacles that occurred along the way. I’m not gonna go too in depth concerning the content of the show (because of how much I hate spoilers), in case you decide to watch it in your own time, which I highly recommend you do. All I want you to know is that it is packed with lots of intricate details and fascinating history. Trust me, I know a good show when I watch one! Finding the right show to watch on Netflix can be quite a challenging task if you have no recommendations to go off of. You can easily find yourself spending hours scrolling through options, trying to find the right series or movie. I had this exact problem until my mother encouraged me to watch The Crown. She has always been fascinated with the Royal Family, especially the late Princess Diana, right from when she was a little girl. I guess you could say she passed that fascination down to me, as I now have the same interest in the Royal Family. Having this strong interest in common led my mother and me to begin watching The Crown together in the evenings.
The Royal Family holds hundreds of years of deep history with complex family dynamics. The Crown captures this history as concisely as it can, as there are currently four seasons on Netflix with 10 one-hour episodes each (season 5 is expected to be released in 2022). The acting is superb, and each character seems to be portrayed fairly accurately. What I love most about this series is how the characters are humanized. The typical perspective of the Royal Family is challenged and as I continued to watch The Crown, I realized that the Royal Family has been dealt a unique set of challenges most people would struggle to comprehend. We often only see members of the Royal Family through a screen, riding in a carriage or a fancy car. We only see the glamour; for example, you’re probably familiar with the Queen’s wave as she acknowledges her subjects. If you are in need of a show to watch on Netflix, The Crown would be a good one, especially if you would like to learn more about the intricacies of the Royal Family.