The real acting sparks are generated by Hurt, delivering an absolutely sincere performance as a reformed sinner basking in God's love.
The King (2006)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:76
Fresh:42
Rotten:34
Average Rating:6/10
Consensus: This disturbing film about the past coming back demanding its due evokes classical tragedy, but is ultimately too heavy-handed.
Synopsis: Gael Garcia Bernal (THE MOTORCYCLE DIARIES) may posses the rugged good looks of a classic screen star but he continues to dodge Hollywood, instead choosing to follow his own idiosyncratic path with... Gael Garcia Bernal (THE MOTORCYCLE DIARIES) may posses the rugged good looks of a classic screen star but he continues to dodge Hollywood, instead choosing to follow his own idiosyncratic path with movies like THE KING. Bernal stars as Elvis Valderez, a recently discharged Navy recruit who travels to Corpus Christi, Texas, to track down the father he's never met. But when he finds him, Elvis is in for a shock; his father, David Sandow (William Hurt, who surely based his performance on the all-too-real John Mark Byers from PARADISE LOST), is the leader of a Baptist congregation in Corpus Christi, and has instilled strong Christian values in all of his family. David wants the rogue-like Elvis to steer clear of his flock, perhaps fearing that he'll reveal long-buried secrets about David's past. But when the ex-Navy man sees his father's daughter, 16-year-old Malerie (Pell James), he longs to form a romantic bond with her. Initially unaware that Malerie is his half-sister, Elvis continues to pursue her even when he discovers their family relationship, leading to smalltown tumult with plenty of unexpected twists in the plot. Despite having only one prior film to his name (the wonderfully gloomy documentary WISCONSIN DEATH TRIP) director James Marsh pulls some great performances from Bernal and Hurt, and beautifully captures the dazzling sunlit countryside of this small Texan outpost. Indeed, cinematographer Eigil Bryld--who also worked with Marsh on his previous film--plays a big part in setting the tone of the movie with his stark use of color, which is well matched by an accomplished script from Milo Addica (MONSTER'S BALL). [More]
Starring: Gael Garcia Bernal, William Hurt, Pell James, Paul Dano
Starring: Gael Garcia Bernal, William Hurt, Pell James, Paul Dano, Laura Harring
Director: James Marsh
Director: James Marsh
Studio: ThinkFilm
Reviews for The King
While Elvis' briefly startled face isn't precisely legible, your reading is pretty much ordained.
The King suffers from an overbearing sense of its own self-importance.
So wildly and absurdly melodramatic in every way, shape and form that many viewers will be unable to decide whether it is a flat-out masterpiece or the most lurid piece of junk that they have ever seen.
Offers a fascinating consideration of religion and religiosity, sin and revenge, and the ultimate question for Christians: Can evil be forgiven?
It really is reprehensible and disgusting, not only because we've seen far too many sociopaths in movies over the past 20 years, but because it deals with horrid clichés and presents them as something indie-hip and morally provocative.
Milo Addica's script delves into emotionally messy territory... and director James Marsh embraces the ambiguity, sometimes at the expense of the characters.
A strange, disturbing movie that will appeal to you if you like to leave the theater with lots of questions to mull over.
"The King" is a very distasteful picture that left me feeling uneasy and irritated.
A deeply involving film where intentions are as cryptic as the title, and the reckoning of past sins opens fresh wounds.
The soundtrack is brilliant, the cinematography strange and wonderful and the performances are creepy good.
The web gets more tangled until, midway through, the drama drops and the film becomes yet another bloody horror show.
Even if the filmmakers are to be distrusted as slumming ethnological tourists, they treat the message of religious fundamentalism seriously.
He's played morally unsettled men before, but Marsh doesn't bring a sense of torment or menace out of Bernal the way other directors have.
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