DVD Review: Hyde Park on Hudson (+trailer)

Bill Murray portrays Franklin D Roosevelt as a a busy character juggling international affairs with family - and a mistress.

The success of The King's Speech in 2010 showed the appetite for good period stories is always strong.

Although not as high-profile as the Oscar winner starring Colin Firth as King George VI, Hyde Park On Hudson is based around the same King's visit to the United States in June 1939.

With war clouds gathering over Europe, King George visited US President Franklin D Roosevelt (Bill Murray) at his country estate, Hyde Park on Hudson, in upstate New York seeking support should war arrive on the Continent.

Breaking new ground as a British monarch visiting the US, the King is unsure how he will be received.

But Roosevelt has more than international affairs to juggle with the King; he has a wife, mother, and mistresses to manage during the visit.

Central to the storyline is Roosevelt's distant cousin, Daisy (Laura Linney), who comes to occupy a pivotal place in his life.

Starting off as his companion, she soon becomes his secret confidante and lover. She is swept away into a life she has never known and grows attached to the President. Over the tumultuous weekend, she must determine her place in his life and whether that is enough for her.

HYDE PARK ON HUDSON
(M), Roadshow Entertainment
Rating: 3.5 / 5