The Prince and Me (2004) [PG] **** (last updated Jan. 4th, 2023)

The Prince and Me is a fairy tale romance told from the 21st century point of view. It's based on the traditional schoolgirl fantasy of growing up and falling in love with a handsome prince, while offering the perspective of female independence and empowerment. Most viewers, however, do not know that it's based on fact. In 2000, Denmark's Crown Prince Frederick was in Sydney, Australia for the 2000 Olympic Games. He happened to visit the Slip In Pub in Sydney where he met Mary Elizabeth Donaldson, an Australian commoner. They announced their engagement in 2003 and were married in 2004, the year of the release of The Prince and Me. So, Mary is now the Crown Princess of Denmark and since Frederick is Crown Prince and heir apparent to the throne, when he ascends, Mary will become Queen consort of Denmark.

This is an extensive review, it's continually evolving, and it's full of movie spoilers, so don't say you weren't cautioned. If you make it to the bottom there are links to YouTube videos of scenes from the movie, JPEGs and dialogue from some of the deleted and extended scenes, dialogue from several additional scenes I have written, and a treatment for a sequel titled The Prince and Me: Twenty Years Later.

SYNOPSIS:

Paige Morgan (Julia Stiles) is a hard-working senior pre-med student at the University of Wisconsin. Her every waking moment is devoted to getting the grades necessary to ensure acceptance to Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. However, while Paige excels at math and science, she has problems when there's a need to engage her right brain. Things like Shakespearean sonnets, which do not rely on literal interpretation, are much more difficult for her to understand than organic chemistry. (This is somewhat ironic since Julia has appeared in contemporary adaptations of Hamlet, Othello, and The Taming of the Shrew.) And focused as she, Paige has intentionally avoided the distraction of dating, so she has yet to fall in love.

Prince Edvard Valdemar Dangaard (Luke Mably) is the handsome, charming and easily bored crown prince of Denmark. Needing a distraction after having disappointed his father in a conference about a possible national labor strike, Edvard sees a Girls Gone Wild TV commercial about the girls of Wisconsin taking their tops off and decides an escape to America's heartland, where there are really uninhibited coeds, is just what he needs. He enrolls at the University of Wisconsin and ends up paired with Paige as organic chemistry lab partners. Going by the name Eddie Williams, Edvard keeps his royalty secret, so Paige assumes he's just a spoiled, rich kid. After a while, however, opposites attract, and after Eddie spends Thanksgiving vacation with Paige and her family on their organic dairy farm in Manitowoc, the two fall in love. That's when two Danish press photographers find out where Prince Edvard is and they surprise Paige and Eddie making out in the stacks of the university library. Once Paige discovers who Eddie really is, she realizes he is exactly the kind of distraction she was trying to avoid, and breaks up with him. Soon after that Edvard returns to Denmark because his father is very ill and wants to pass the crown to him. And then, while taking her Shakespeare class oral final, Paige realizes what she has done, recognizes that she really is in love with Eddie and if she doesn't go to Denmark and find him she will always wonder if she made the right decision.

FEMALE EMPOWERMENT:

The theme of female empowerment, of a woman determined to follow her own dreams, is the kind of story we'd expect from director Martha Coolidge, whose earlier movies included Rambling Rose and Angie. It's also an interesting follow-up to Julia's earlier film, Mona Lisa Smile, which was about women's liberation in 1953-4 at Wellesley College in Massachusetts. Julia played a young woman who rejected the opportunity to go to Yale Law School and instead embraced the traditional role of a stay-at-home wife. In The Prince and Me, Paige is faced with a similar choice.

THE ACTORS:

As the daughter of Wisconsin organic dairy-farming parents, Julia brings life to the character of Paige and we love her. She shines in comparison to co-star Luke Mably, but that's alright, since in many ways he's just window dressing. Luke does a good job of playing a young, handsome, irresponsible prince who gradually matures and accepts responsibility. The real scene-stealer is Ben Miller, who plays Soren, Eddie's sardonic equerry (personal assistant to a royal), and most of his lines are priceless. Respected actors James Fox and Miranda Richardson have supporting roles as Eddie's parents, King Haraald and Queen Rosalind, twelve-year-old Eliza Bennett is introduced in her first film role as Eddie's little sister, Princess Arabella, and Elisabeth Waterston, daughter of actor Sam Waterston, plays Paige's college roommate Beth Curtis. But this is really Julia's movie, and she rises to the occasion. When Paige's mother Amy (the late Alberta Watson) tells Paige that Chemistry isn't just in a class, kiddo. And you guys have it, speaking about Paige and Eddie, she's simply acknowledging something the viewer already feels.

JULIA AND PAIGE:

One of the reasons Julia is so appealing and believable in this film is that, as she told an interviewer, her character is very similar to Paige's character. Paige's goal is to go to Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, become a doctor and work for Doctors Without Borders in South America helping to provide good medical care, vaccinations and clean drinking water. Julia has worked for Habitat for Humanity, building housing in Costa Rica, and she has worked with Amnesty International raising awareness of the harsh conditions of immigration detention of unaccompanied juveniles. This can be found on Julia's Wikipedia page. LINK

MY OPINION:

I found this film and its theme of female empowerment utterly charming. There's a terrific screenplay, appealing chemistry between Julia Stiles and Luke Mably, and a memorable soundtrack, including the song I Hope That I Don't Fall In Love With You which becomes their song. Some viewers might find that the last five minutes dilute the film's female empowerment message. I would have written the final scene so it was clear that Paige would return to Denmark, marry Eddie (now King Edvard) and enroll in medical school at the University of Copenhagen, and, at the bottom of this blog review I have actually written the dialogue for that final scene. This is, in fact, what happens in the film's sequel. Unfortunately I cannot recommend the sequel The Prince and Me 2: The Royal Wedding. The script is terrible and the only actor returning is Luke Mably, playing King Edvard. Nevertheless, here is the YouTube link if you want to watch it. LINK

PIVOTAL SCENES:

A pivotal scene is one upon which the believability of the film rests. There is a strong flow of emotion between the actors, and the director tries to capture it all in a single take. There are several pivotal scenes in this film. According to Director Martha Coolidge's DVD commentary, the first pivotal scene (and the only one she specifically identifies) takes place when Eddie watches Paige dancing as she's cleaning tables in the college Student Union. This is the moment when Eddie falls in love with Paige. (For her part, Paige doesn't fall in love with Eddie until they share their first kiss, on her family's dairy farm in Manitowoc.) The second is Paige's reaction, standing with Eddie under a bridge out of the rain, when she realizes who he really is, tells him he is exactly the kind of distraction she was trying to avoid, questions whether he really loves her and tells him to stay away from her.

Of course, if you tell a young, spoiled crown prince he can't have something, that is exactly what he wants. In Eddie's case, when he first asked Paige on a date and she rejected him, Soren pointed out that he'd never been attracted to anyone who didn't know he was a prince. Then, having her break up with him made him want her even more.

The third pivotal scene is when Paige is taking her Shakespeare oral final and in a stream-of-consciousness monologue she realizes she really is in love with Eddie and nothing else matters except to be together with him. And so she decides to get on a plane and fly to Denmark.

The fourth pivotal scene takes place in the palace in Copenhagen. Paige has just arrived and Eddie wants to propose to her, but naturally his mother, Queen Rosalind, objects, while his father, King Haraald, watches. Eddie feels so strongly about Paige that he would rather marry her than be king. He tells his parents he hopes they think Arabella is fit to be queen at the age of 12. And then he reminds them about Cousin Bartholomew's idiot son Nestor, the 47-year-old virgin in diapers, to which his mother replies by telling him not to threaten them. Finally, we have this dialogue:

Haraald: Enough! Edvard, you will be the next King of Denmark. Do you hear me?

Edvard: Yes, sir.

Haraald: Now, about your young lady. If you say you love her as you do, and you believe she will make you happy, then marry her.

Rosalind: Haraald, you can't mean that. Maybe this is not a good time to discuss...

Haraald: No, it's a perfect time. It is at the end of a man's life when he realizes how important his decisions were at the beginning.

This pivotal scene is an example of the layers in this film and why I believe the film critics totally missed the point by focusing only on the theme of female empowerment. Edvard knows his father and mother had an arranged royal marriage, that they did not marry for love, that Haraald was forced to marry Rosalind in the same way that Prince Charles of England was forced to marry Diana Spencer when Camilla was the one he really loved. Edvard is not going to let this happen to him. Basically he is saying I'm going to marry Paige and you can take the crown and shove it. Haraald wants his son to have the chance to marry for love and he supports him, just as he supported Edvard's desire to go to college in America. Clearly, he is proud of Edvard for defending so fiercely his right to marry Paige.

The fifth pivotal scene takes place in Queen Rosalind's office. Rosalind has just watched her son Prince Edvard solve a national management-labor dispute and avert a labor strike, using knowledge he got from Paige's father while visiting her family's organic dairy farm the previous Thanksgiving:

Rosalind: I know you think I don't like you. I like traditions. I like traditions and I like consistency and continuity, and I don't like change. But... when that change is for the better... when it helps turn a boy into a man... then I have to reconsider.

Rosalind: Two weeks ago I thought you were the end of the monarchy. Now I see you may be the best thing that ever happened to us.

Paige: Thank you.

Rosalind: And now we have that settled... we have to make you into the best queen that Denmark has ever had. Come with me.
Rosalind: Between you and me, Paige, being queen is not without its charms.
[Rosalind leads Paige down into the cellar where the crown jewels are kept in a vault guarded by a uniformed guard.]
Rosalind: So, my dear, what would you like to wear to the coronation ball?

The sixth pivotal scene is when Paige is shut out of a royal Danish-Norwegian meeting about fishing rights, and finds herself standing alone in a huge room, waiting for Eddie, now her fiancé, to return. As she runs her fingers over a large antique globe of the world, you can see the expression on her face change as she realizes that this is the male-dominated Old World, she will abandon her hopes of ever becoming a doctor and working for Doctors Without Borders, she will be regarded only as a baby-maker and will never really be taken seriously. And so she makes her decision and when Eddie returns she tells him that she cannot stay.

While we're on the subject of pivotal scenes, I believe that every great romantic drama has at least one, and here is a classic example, from Pride & Prejudice (2005), between Mr. Darcy (Matthew Macfadyen) and Elizabeth Bennett (Keira Knightley) which also takes place in the rain. LINK

As you watch The Prince and Me, I invite you to consider these three questions: (1) How do I know if I'm loved and appreciated for myself rather than for my wealth or celebrity or royalty? (2) How do we make the transition from the freedom of youth to the responsibilities of adulthood, and what are the triggers that begin that process? (3) Is there a difference between what I want to do with my life and what I was meant to do with it?

TRIVIA:

At the start of the film Prince Edvard engages in a road race with his mother's BMW against Eddie Irvine, a real-life former Formula 1 Grand Prix racer and winner who has 28 acting credits in his filmography. Perhaps Prince Edvard was reminded of Eddie when he took the name Eddie to establish his anonymity.

THE TIMELINE PROBLEM:

The main problem with the timeline is that Paige would be flying to Copenhagen after her Fall Semester finals ended in mid-December, and she would be on break until the end of January, about six weeks. The problem is the weather in Copenhagen looks rather more like May or June than December or January. The rest of the timeline works. Paige is in Denmark for perhaps four weeks, returns in time for Spring Semester, and Edvard arrives in June to congratulate her on graduating and tell her he still wants to marry her. So the only solution is just to suspend disbelief. Frankly I believe it was a mistake to shift the seasons. The Holiday Season is a joyous, festive time, the perfect time for romance, as the abundance of seasonal Hallmark romantic films (several of which involve royalty and commoners) can attest.

Labels: Cinderella-story, college, comedy, cross-cultural, drama, family, Julia Stiles, rom-drama-faves, romance

IMDb 58/100

MetaScore (critics=47, viewers=74) 

RottenTomatoes Averages (critics=48, viewers=68) 

scene from the film - And I Hope That I Don't Fall in Love with You

Scene 1/8 Would you take your top off for me?

Scene 2/8 Would you please put a shirt on

Scene 3/8 A Shakespeare lesson

Scene 4/8 First kiss

Scene 5/8 The truth about Eddie

Scene 6/8 Paige realizes she's in love

Scene 7/8 A royal horse ride

Scene 8/8 I can't stay

THE DVD:

The Special Collector's Edition DVD, released in 2017, is the one to buy, since the Blu-ray is not yet available. The UPC code is 032429287052 and it is available on amazon and ebay as well as other sources. (I should point out, however, that the HD version shown on Netflix and other premium channels is the complete film and has a better video and audio quality than the DVD.) This is the widescreen version with a director's commentary and several special features:

DELETED/EXTENDED SCENES:

Deleted Scene - Beatrice Sells Eddie's Location to Photographers:

Are you ready for a little palace intrigue? This is a short 24-second scene that has no dialogue and was deleted from the film. Ostensibly Beatrice (Queen Rosalind's equerry) is selling Eddie's location at the University of Wisconsin to some Danish press photographers. Do you believe that? No, nor do I. Beatrice is devoted to Queen Rosalind. She would never do something like this on her own. The more likely story is that Queen Rosalind wants to keep tabs on Prince Edvard and has "hired" the press photographers to do it and report back to Beatrice. And it was only after Thanksgiving vacation, when they reported to Beatrice that Eddie and Paige were having a love affair, that Rosalind decided to try and break them up.

Why would Rosalind do this? Is she just a scheming, manipulative bitch? Well, it's more complex than that. Rosalind only became queen by marrying Haraald. The line of succession goes from Haraald to Edvard; Rosalind will never ascend to the throne, so her only path to continuing to control Edvard is through his wife. So she has to select Edvard's wife and that definitely does NOT include an American commoner like Paige Morgan.

The problem for Rosalind is she is not really prepared for Edvard to threaten to give up the throne to be able to marry Paige, and for Haraald to support Edvard. To her credit, Rosalind knows when she's been beaten.

Extended Scene - Eddie and Paige in Denmark:

Dialogue from the extended picnic scene that was cut from the film:

Paige: So where do the future king and queen go on their honeymoon? I was thinking Morocco.

Eddie: It's really hard to organize security there.

Paige: Oh, right, OK. What about Spain?

Eddie: Yes, Spain is good. I'm sure King Juan Carlos won't mind lending us his private island for a few weeks in the summer.

--- start of deleted portion of the scene ---

Paige: Wow. That's totally insane. We can go right after my graduation.

Eddie: And when is that?

Paige: June 5th.

Eddie: No, that's not gonna work. We have to be here. It's Constitution Day. We have to open the royal festival.

Paige: But it's my graduation. I'm summa cum laude. [This is why Paige wears the school colors on her black cap and gown in the film's final scene.]

Eddie: You'll get your degree if you're there or not, won't you?

Paige: Yeah.

Eddie: Well, then we'll have our own private ceremony right here. Just like the real thing.

Paige: With a cap and gown?

Eddie: With a cap and a gown and a dreadfully boring speaker.

Paige: And my parents embarrassing you with the video camera?

Eddie: Absolutely.

Paige: Promise?

Eddie: Promise.

Paige: Swear?

--- end of deleted portion of the scene ---

Eddie: I swear.

Extended Scene - Fitting for Paige's gown for Eddie's Coronation Ball

Marguerite: Well, it's hanging well in front.

Paige: Is this part supposed to be loose?

Marguerite: She doesn't speak.

Paige: At all?

Marguerite: To you.

Paige: Oh. Well, is this part supposed to be loose?

Marguerite: Well, it has been worn that way for the past two hundred years.

--- start of deleted portion of the scene ---

Soren: Now, I've obtained a seating chart for today's luncheon, and the queen has seated you between the Kenyan president and the Kenyan ambassador.

Paige: Soren, I really suck at this.

Soren: You know, I think you may be the first queen in our history to use that colorful term. Now. Things to avoid: his failed presidential campaign, Kenya's loss at the 1990 World Cricket Championships. Things he loves: his humanitarian work and his family. Oh, yes, and something called Pringles.

--- end of deleted portion of the scene ---

There are several interesting things about this scene. First, the cover art on the DVD shows Paige seated while wearing her unfinished ball gown. Second, Paige's observation that she sucks at diplomatic protocol, and Soren's reply. And third, Soren's reference to Pringles which he claims not to be familiar with. However, at the 1:05:50 mark of the film, Soren is playing a first-person-shooter videogame on Scotty's XBox in their Brenner Hall dorm room at the Univ. of Wisconsin, and there is a can of Pringles sitting next to the display. So, clearly Soren would have been familiar with Pringles.

Deleted Scene - Paige Wishes Eddie Luck in Negotiations

Paige: Are you scared?

Eddie: No, absolutely not.

Eddie pauses for a moment.

Eddie: I don't know if I could do this if it wasn't for you standing here right now.

Paige: The king reposeth all his faith in me.

Eddie: Are you reciting Shakespeare to me?

Paige: Yes. Yes, I am.

Eddie: Well, I suppose anything is possible now.

[Paige's line The king reposeth all his faith in me, is from Richard II, Act 2, Scene 4: The king reposeth all his confidence in thee.]

IDEAS FOR ADDITIONAL SCENES:

I have seen this film countless times and have found myself imagining several additional scenes:

(1) Paige calls her mother just after breaking up with Eddie:

Paige: Mom, I just broke up with Eddie.

Amy: Oh, sweetie, what happened?

Paige: Mom, I found out he's not just a spoiled, rich, Danish exchange student. He's actually the crown prince. We were kissing in the library stacks and a couple of Danish press photographers surprised us and were calling him 'Prince Edvard' and 'Your Highness' so I asked him and he admitted he just didn't want to be Prince Edvard for once in his life. Oh, and he told me he loved me and I told him he was just pretending - you know, like he was just pretending to be an exchange student.

Amy: Oh, sweetie, I'm so sorry. But he really is nice. Are you sure you're doing the right thing?

Paige: Mom!

(2) Eddie calls the palace and talks to his mother after Paige breaks up with him:

Eddie: Well, mother, I hope you're proud of yourself. Paige just broke up with me.

Rosalind: I have no idea what you're talking about, Edvard. And who is Paige?

Eddie: Paige is my girlfriend, mother, and I'm in love with her. She's a senior pre-med student and I spent Thanksgiving with her family. And don't lie to me. Two Danish press photographers found us making out in the library stacks and there is only one way they could have known we were there. Either you or Beatrice told them. But I want you to know, it won't work. I am going to get Paige back, and you will regret having done this.

(3) Paige calls her mother after taking her Shakespeare oral final:

Paige: Mom, I was taking my Shakespeare final and I realized I really am in love with Eddie and I have to go to Denmark to find him. The girls are going to help me with the plane ticket but I have to put some money on the credit card. OK?

Amy: Yes, that's fine, sweetie, but please don't get your hopes up. You know, he might have moved on.

Paige: I don't think so, Mom. He left me the marbles he won in the lawnmower race with a quote from a Shakespeare sonnet, so I think he still loves me. In any case, I have to go. If I don't find out for sure, I'll always wonder.

(4) Paige calls her mother on her first morning in the palace:

Paige: Hi, Mom!

Amy: Ben, it's Paige. Pick up the other phone. Alright, sweetie. Talk to us.

Paige: Well, I got to Copenhagen and there was a big parade for the royal family and I waved to Eddie and he helped me up behind him on his horse. Then we opened the session of parliament and Soren gave me a tour of the palace grounds and then Eddie told me the reason he had to come back was because his father is going to pass the crown to him. And then he asked me to marry him.

Amy: Wow! So, what did you say?

Paige: Well, I thought about it for about five seconds and then I said 'yes'. And he gave me the most beautiful engagement ring. And, Mom, this means I'm going to be queen! Can you believe it? Queen of Denmark.

Amy (yawning): That's wonderful, sweetie. Congratulations, but you know, it's not even six o'clock.

Paige: I'm sorry, mom, but it's 12:40 here and I wanted to call you as soon as I had the chance. I already have a schedule, if you can believe it. We did a ground-breaking this morning, had a hand-holding photo op on the royal yacht, opened a Miro exhibit at the art museum, and I have a luncheon with Queen Rosalind in about ten minutes. It's been a busy morning.

Amy: Well, it sounds wonderful, sweetie. We are so excited for you. Please give Eddie a big hug for me and tell him we're so happy for you both. What about clothes? Did you take any?

Paige: Well, it turns out Queen Rosalind has this huge clothes closet and most of the stuff she's never worn, or maybe just once, and we're basically the same size. So that's not a problem.

(5) Paige is back in Manitowoc and explains why she ended the engagement:

Amy: Tell us what happened, sweetie.

Paige: Well, Eddie had left to meet his father and talk with the King of Norway about fishing rights, and Soren closed the door so I couldn't hear the conversation and I realized I was going to end up just like Queen Rosalind. I'd just be a baby maker. I wouldn't get to go to medical school and be a doctor and work for Doctors Without Borders, which is what I've always wanted to do.

Amy: Oh, sweetie, I'm so sorry it didn't work out.

 

(6) Final scene - Paige's graduation - existing scene:

Eddie: I want you in my life, Paige.

Paige laughs quietly.

Eddie: And if that means I have to wait until you finish medical school and become a doctor and anything else you want to do, then I'll do it. I'll wait.

Paige: Denmark isn't ready for a queen like me.

Eddie: Well, then they'll have to be... because I am.

Eddie and Paige embrace and kiss passionately.

-- start of extended portion of the scene ---

Eddie: Oh, I talked with the Medical School dean at the University of Copenhagen and because Johns Hopkins has accepted you, you're automatically accepted, and the classes are taught in English, so you can start medical school this fall after we're married. Alright?

Paige: Alright! Let's tell mom and dad.

Background:

Mother of Paige's friend Stacy: Who's that Paige is kissing?

Stacy: That's her boyfriend, Eddie.

Beth: Yes, and he's also the king of Denmark, so it looks like Paige is going to be queen after all. Maybe she'll ask us all to be her bridesmaids.

TREATMENT FOR A SEQUEL:
This is a treatment for a sequel. Now I have to write the screenplay.
© Copyright Peter A. Bock 2021  Updated 28 Feb 2021.

The Prince and Me: Twenty Years Later reunites Luke Mably and Julia Stiles as King Edvard and Queen Paige and the rest of the supporting cast - Ben Miller as Soren, James Fox as King Haraald, Miranda Richardson as Queen Rosalind, Elisabeth Waterston as Paige’s best friend and college roommate Beth Curtis, Eliza Bennett as Princess Arabella and John Bourgeois as Paige’s father Ben Morgan.

It’s 2024, twenty years after Paige graduated summa cum laude at 22 from the University of Wisconsin. On June 5^th, her graduation day, she accepted Edvard’s second proposal and they were married later that month in Copenhagen in a ceremony that included her three college friends Beth, Stacy and Amanda as bridesmaids. Paige was then installed as Queen in a palace ceremony and, in the fall of 2004, she entered the University of Copenhagen School of Medicine. Graduating four years later in 2008 at age 26 Paige did an internship followed by a residency at a major hospital in Copenhagen. She became pregnant with their first child during her residency and their daughter was born in the spring of 2010 so now, in the spring of 2024, she is 14. Two years later in 2012 their son was born, and he is now twelve.

Paige’s mother Amy passed away from cancer in 2015 and her father Ben turned over management of the family organic dairy farm to his sons Mike and John and moved to Copenhagen to be near Paige and Edvard and his grandchildren. It was a positive move, since the farm and his sons were a painful reminder of the loss of his wife, Amy, and spending time with Paige and his grandchildren became a part of the healing process.

Princess Arabella (Ari) who was born in 1992 and was twelve in 2004 is now 32. She and Paige grew especially close, became almost like sisters and Ari was Paige’s maid of honor at her wedding. Ari is married and has a preteen daughter of her own.

Beth Curtis, Paige’s college roommate and close friend, is married but has no children. She loves to come to Copenhagen and spend time with Paige.

So, these days the palace is rather full.

Edvard and Paige have understandably grown apart as Edvard focuses on his duties as king while Paige fulfills the roles of queen, wife, mother and occasional volunteer at one of the local hospitals and clinics. But Edvard and Paige have their individual dreams that have nothing to do with being king and queen of Denmark.

For years, Paige has dreamed of working for Doctors Without Borders in Central or South America. Now that her children are becoming more independent, her desire is growing stronger. After months of trying, she has finally convinced Edvard to let her go to Costa Rica for a month to work as a doctor, and she leaves during Act 2 of the film.

Edvard, for his part, had never lost his desire to race cars. One day, several years earlier, while he was visiting the local race car circuit in Copenhagen he ran into Eddie Irvine, the real-life retired Formula 1 driver and race winner. Edvard invited Eddie to join him for a beer at Fermentoren and while they were reminiscing about their road race twenty years earlier Edvard asked Eddie if he missed the thrill of Formula 1 racing. One thing led to another and they began discussing putting together a racing team. Over time they found financial backing and formed the Racing Point Denmark Formula 3 racing team using cars of their own design and engines purchased from Mercedes-Benz. By 2024 they had begun to race at both of the racetracks in Copenhagen, Bellahoej Park and Jyllandsringen.

In Act 3 of the film, one day, not long after Paige has left for Costa Rica to work for Doctors Without Borders, the team mechanics complete modifications to the front and rear wings and, despite Eddie Irvine’s reservations, Edvard takes the car out for a test drive. In an event eerily similar to 32-year-old Bruce McLaren’s fatal crash while testing an experimental rear wing on his car at Goodwood, England on June 2, 1970, the rear wing of Edvard’s car comes off and the loss of aerodynamic downforce destabilizes the car, which spins, leaves the track, and hits a protective barrier. Edvard’s injuries are minor but since he is king, he is airlifted to the hospital for treatment and observation. Paige is notified and immediately boards the royal jet and flies back to Copenhagen. After a short convalescence Edvard is back to normal, but the inside joke in the royal family is that Edvard will do anything to keep Paige by his side. © Copyright Peter A. Bock 2021

MORE THAN JUST A CAST REUNION:

This sequel is designed to be more than just a simple cast reunion. It is meant to remind us how short life is, how fast it moves and how much we can change over the course of twenty years. As Edvard's father, King Haraald said, when he supported Edvard's desire to marry Paige twenty years earlier: It is at the end of a man's life when he realizes how important his decisions were at the beginning.