The Prince and Me is a 2004 motion picture, directed by Martha Coolidge, and starring Julia Stiles, Luke Mably, and Ben Miller, with Miranda Richardson, James Fox, and Alberta Watson. The film features a cameo by Eddie Irvine, a retired Formula One driver.
In the plot, a Wisconsin student meets a Danish prince, who persuades his Royal family to accept a commoner bride.
The film marks the return of Martha Coolidge to the big screen after a 7 year absence, and her service as the first female president of the Directors Guild of America.
The movie is loosely based on the true story of Mary Donaldson, who married Prince Frederik of Denmark.
Plot
The movie begins with Paige Morgan (Julia Stiles), a pre-medical student at a university in Wisconsin, celebrating her birthday with her teachers and peers. She realizes she is running late for something unknown to the audience and leaves the school for home. She heads straight to her room, takes a dress from her closet, and leaves in her father’s truck.
Meanwhile, in the country of Denmark, we meet Prince Edvard (Luke Mably) and his assistant Soren meeting up with a young man to attend a race of some kind.
The movie then shifts focus to Paige. She is driving to a friend’s wedding. Paige is running late and nearly runs over a portion of the wedding party in her father’s truck when she arrives. During the reception, Paige and her friend talk about romance and marriage. Paige is too focused on her career and does not allow time for romance. When the bouquet is tossed, it lands directly into Paige’s lap.
In Denmark, the race is about to start. The cars race and Prince Edvard wins. Two teenage girls greet him at his victory. Suddenly, similar to Paige, he realizes he is late for an important occasion. At his family’s castle, he sees his 12-year-old sister, Princess Arabella, playing Gameboy. His parents, King Haraald and Queen Rosalind wait anxiously for Edvard to arrive. Edvard arrives and Arabella hugs him. The King and Queen do not seem happy.
Later, Edvard and his father must meet with members of the board. The King tells his son to be on his best behavior. When they enter the meeting, the King gets dizzy but insists that he is fine. As the meeting continues, Edvard deliberately ignores the topics of the meeting and flirts with a woman in the room. Soren and Edvard leave the meeting
Edvard does some fencing and then sits down to watch a show about college girls and gone wild. Soren informs Edvard that his parents would like to see him. Haraald and Rosalind tell Edvard how embarrassed they are about Edvard’s behavior. Edvard accuses his mother of being at fault for restricting his freedom. Edvard tells his parents he wants to attend college in Wisconsin. He emphasizes he does not want any help, especially from Rosalind. Edvard leaves in anger and Haraald says he may go to college with Soren’s protection.
The movie then turns to Paige, she is with her friends at a bar. She talks about how she is unsuccessful in her Shakespeare class and if she does not receive a good grade, she will not get into medical school.
Some time passes and Paige is crossing the street. As she crosses, she is almost hit by Edward's limo. She is unable to see who is in the limo and goes on her way. However, Edvard sees Paige and is instantly attracted to her. Soren is not happy with the life that Edvard has chosen, but Edvard tells Soren to have fun and to not tell anyone that he is a prince. Edvard asks Soren to call him Eddie.
Edvard and Soren arrive in the small and dirty dorm to meet Steven, the overweight Xbox fanatic. That evening, Soren and Eddie go to the bar where they run into Paige. Paige teases Eddie for a bit and he eventually gathers the courage to talk to Paige and asks her for a drink. Eddie then asks Paige to take off her shirt, like the girls in the college girls gone wild did. Paige squirts Eddie with water out of anger. Another person at the bar tries to fight Eddie and Soren comes to Eddie’s rescue as they are escorted out of the bar.
In his chemistry class, Eddie convinces Soren to leave him alone for a while. Paige is in the class and is unhappy to be assigned as Eddie’s partner. Paige warns Eddie that she needs to do well in order to get into medical school, so he cannot mess anything up. As Paige walks away after class, Eddie quotes Shakespeare. Paige calls Eddie a phony and leaves.
Eddie soon realizes that he is cut off from his parent’s money and finds a job at the bar where Paige works. Paige is shocked that the bar would hire Eddie and he claims he got the job because he said he knew her. Eddie works in the deli and Paige must help him on his first day because he is not slicing the meat well. He promises Paige that he will quit if he continues to do a poor job
After a busy night, Eddie cleans the bar as Soren is drunk and passed out. Eddie cannot keep himself from watching Paige dance to the music playing as she sweeps. Eddie was stacking boxes outside when he got Paige’s attention. He asked her to go to a party with him. Paige says no and Soren offers some words of wisdom to Eddie.
A few days pass and Paige waits for Eddie to come to chemistry class. When he does not show up, Paige gets extremely angry. She finds Eddie sleeping in his bed while Soren makes Eddie a sandwich. Paige yells at Eddie. He apologizes and she leaves in extreme anger.
Soon after, Paige finds out that her Shakespeare grade is too low for her to be accepted into medical school. Paige recalls Eddie quoting Shakespeare. She asks him for help with the agreement that she do his laundry. Paige makes fun of Prince Hamlet while they do laundry together. Although Eddie can relate to Hamlet, he laughs with Paige. Eddie encourages Paige to focus and asks her about a sonnet in Romeo and Juliet. Paige does not understand any of it, so Eddie explains to her the meaning of the romantic sonnet.
In Denmark, Arabella sees nurses with her father. She listens to a conversation between Haraald and his doctor. She asks her father if he is feeling sick. Rosalind and Haraald tell Arabella that nothing is wrong and a maid tells Arabella to go ride horses. Arabella agrees and exits. Meanwhile, the paparazzi, who constantly bother the family, state they will be sure to find Edvard and discover his secret.
Paige discovers she received an A on her Shakespeare paper. She goes to thank Eddie who is fixing an oil fixture. They exchange apologies. Paige’s friend reveals she wants to ask Eddie to come home with her for Thanksgiving, but Paige asks him first. Eddie agrees and leaves Soren at the dorm by himself. Eddie goes to a Wisconsin farm where he is greeted by Paige’s mother and father, Amy and Ben, and her two younger brothers. Paige shows Eddie her room and Eddie inquires about the large map on her wall. She explains that the places with red pins are the places she wants to travel.
During lunch, Paige’s brothers tease Eddie and tell him there are not any good people from Denmark. Paige tries to stand up for Eddie, but she cannot think of anyone either. Eddie lists people from Denmark he believes are good, including Lars Ulrich from Metallica. The brothers enjoy this fact and Eddie wins approval from the family. Paige’s father expresses his need for help with the farm chores. Eddie offers his help, yet does not know that farm chores are quite difficult. At the end of the day, Eddie discovers the Morgan family lawn mowers. Paige’s brothers explain to Eddie that they race the lawn mowers every year and the largest race is the next day. Eddie volunteers to race the mowers at the race.
At the race, Paige’s mother notices how differently Paige acts around Eddie. At the race, the Morgan’s biggest rival tries to drive Eddie off the road. It is unsuccessful and the rival goes off instead. Eddie wins and tries to be civil with the rival. His attempt at making peace ends in a fistfight.
Back at the barn, after Paige cleans up Eddie from the race, they share a kiss. Upon their return to the university, Eddie finds Soren playing video games, unshaven and not showered. Steven says he found Soren in that state when he got back.
In the library, Eddie and Paige sneak off somewhere private to pursue a sexual encounter. Suddenly, the Denmark paparazzi appear and begin yelling “Prince Edvard” and taking pictures. After escaping, Paige asks Eddie why that occurred and why the paparazzi were calling him Prince Edvard. Eddie admits and explains his identity. Paige gets upset and Eddie apologizes and tries to convince Paige that his feelings for her are genuine.
The next day, Denmark papers reveal pictures of Eddie and Paige. Soren and Eddie have trouble getting to chemistry class due to the massive amount of photographers. Paige is still angry with Eddie.
At the end of the day, Eddie receives a phone call from Rosalind asking him to return home. She informs him that his father is very ill. Edvard returns to Denmark. In the meantime, Paige is giving a speech about Romeo and Juliet in her Shakespeare class. It is there she realizes that She and Edvard are meant to be together. When Paige goes to find Edvard to confess her feelings for him, she discovers he has gone back to Denmark. Paige packs her bags and travels to Denmark. Once in Denmark, the cab ride to the castle is delayed because the royal family is in public. Paige gets out of the cab and is able to find Edvard on horse. The people of Denmark recognize Paige from the newspapers and begin to shout her name. Edvard sees Paige, helps her onto his horse, and they travel back to the castle together. Edward's parents are upset, so Edvard asks Soren to take Paige on a tour while he speaks with them.
While talking with his parents, Rosalind reveals that being seen with a common girl is a betrayal to Denmark. Edvard says he will only accept the crown when his father passes away if he is allowed to marry Paige. After some argument, Haraald tells Edvard that if he loves Paige then he should be allowed to marry her.
Edvard finds Soren and Paige in the gardens. Edvard asks Soren to leaves and he proposes to Paige. She accepts his proposal. The next morning, Paige realizes she is about to become royalty when she is greeted by a hug from Arabella and a strict schedule from Soren. Paige then meets Marguerite who will be making a gown for Edward's coronation ball. The next scenes include Paige at a variety of public places with Rosaline and Edvard.
While at the hospital with the King, the paparazzi find Paige playing with the children patients and take some pictures. Rosalind lectures Paige for not acting royally.
Edvard has meeting with the members of the board where he explains that he has learned some things about negotiation while visiting the Morgan farm. He claims the new Denmark will focus on negotiations.
While Paige is trying on her dress for the ball, Rosalind talk with her. Rosalind tells Paige that although she has always stayed close to tradition, sometimes change is good. Rosalind then shows Paige the vault where all her jewels are kept and allows Paige to pick one of her most valuable.
At the ball, Edvard asks Paige to dance, after a few minutes, Paige realizes the song being played is from the night she was dancing as they closed the bar at the university. After the dance, they go into the study. As soon as Paige and Edvard have some privacy, Soren interrupts and informs Edvard that the prime minister would like to see him. While Paige is alone, she explores the study and finds a globe. The globe reminds her of the places she always wanted to travel to before she met Edvard. When Edvard returns, she tells him that she does not want to sacrifice her dreams. She also says that Edvard has to stay for his country. She says she cannot be queen. After hugging, they realize the relationship is over.
Edvard is soon crowned King. Paige returns to Wisconsin and graduates from college. At the graduation, Paige hears Edward's voice quoting Shakespeare. She sees him there, runs to him and kisses him. She warns him that Denmark may not be ready for a queen like her. The movie ends with a kiss.[1]
Cast
- Joanne Baron as Marguerite
- Sarah Manninen as Krista
- Tony Munch as Keith Kopetsky
- John Nelles as Race Announcer (as John E. Nelles)
- Claus Bue as Lutheran Archbishop
- James McGowan as Photographer
- Jean Pearson as Photographer
- Dagmar Blahova as Lady in Waiting (as Dasha Blahova)
- Henrik Jandorf as Prime Minister
- Niels Anders Thorn as Thomas Anderson
- Jesper Asholt as Cab Driver
- Andrea Veresova as Eddie's Girlfriend
- Winter Ave Zoli as Eddie's Girlfriend
- Jennifer Roberts Smith as John's Wife
- Zdenek Maryska as Corporation Negotiator
- Vladimir Kulhavy as Union Negotiator
- Garth Hewitt as Desperate Dan
- Patricia Netzer as Royal Palace Maid (Brigget)
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Soundtrack
The Prince and Me: Soundtrack is the soundtrack for the movie The Prince and Me released on March 30, 2004 in the United States by Hollywood Records.[2]
Track Listing
- "Everybody Wants You" - Josh Kelley
- "Just a Ride" - Jem
- "Fire Escape" - Fastball
- "Man of the World" - Marc Cohn
- "Calling" - Leona Naess
- "Good Intentions" - Jennifer Stills
- "I Hope That I Don’t Fall in Love with You" - Marc Cohn
- "Symphony" - Jessica Riddle
- "It Doesn’t Get Better Than This" - Katy Fitzgerald
- "Freeway" - Scapegoat Wax
- "Presidente" - Kinky
- "Drift" - Forty Foot Echo
- "Party" - The D4
- "Bloodsweet" - Scapegoat Wax
- "Separate Worlds" - Jennie Muskett[3]
Reception
Critics gave the film mixed reviews. Rotten Tomatoes rated it 27% based on 116 reviews giving it a overall "rotten" rating. They describe the film as "bland, fluffy, and predictable bit of wish fulfillment".[4] Metacritic reported the movie had an average score of 47 out of 100, based on 31 reviews.[5] The Christian Science Monitor's David Sterritt gave the film a good review, stating that the movie was "quite appealing, thanks to good-humored acting and to Martha Coolidge's quiet directing style." Meanwhile, Manohla Dargis of The Los Angeles Times criticised the movie, calling it "a blandly diverting, chastely conceived and grammatically challenged fairy tale"[6] USA Today commented that The Prince and Me was overall "well-meaning, cute, sweet" but that the film could have been improved with "a bit more quirkiness and a little less formula."[7]
Filming Locations
- York University was where the bar scene was filmed. The bar at York University is named The Underground.
Discrepancies between the movie and reality
- Though the plot revolves around the Danish royal family, very little information provided in the film seems to be factual, and places such as Folketinget and Amalienborg look nothing like they do in reality.
- Denmark does not currently have a king. Denmark is ruled by Queen Margrethe II, and her husband is the French-born Prince Consort of Denmark.
- The name, King Haraald, is not a real name. Harald V is the name of the king of neighbouring Norway. Harold Godwinson was the last Anglo-Saxon king of England in the 11th century. Harold is the name of the fictional king in Shrek 2.
- The names of Danish crown princes, and hence kings, have by tradition alternated between Frederik and Christian ever since the 15th century.
- As opposed to what the plot claims, Denmark did not have a parliament in the 13th century.
- The film depicts the Royal Family as having a substantial political influence. In reality, Denmark is a constitutional monarchy where the Queen and the Royal Family are above party politics. Instead, the role of the monarchy is mainly to represent Denmark abroad while serving as a unifying institution at home. However, the Queen does have a constitutional role in appointing the Prime Minister of Denmark and members of the Cabinet, as well as giving royal assent to bills passed by Parliament. (This power, however, is purely traditional and the King/Queen is not allowed to oppose any proposed law, or deny to apoint the democratic-elected Prime Minister.
- The movie was released one month before the real life marriage of Crown Prince of Denmark. Prince Frederik married Mary Donaldson, an Australian commoner. Mary did not know that Frederik was a prince when they first met, which was in a bar during the Sydney 2000 Olympics.
Sequels
The film was followed by a straight-to-DVD sequel, The Prince and Me 2: The Royal Wedding (2006), starring Mably and Kam Heskin and 2008 sequel The Prince and Me 3: Royal Honeymoon. It has now[when?] been confirmed that The Prince and Me 4 has started shooting in early 2009, rumors in Thailand.
References
External links
