The 10th Kingdom
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Movie Reviews of The 10th Kingdom
Movie Review: 10th Kingdom definitely a ten!
Summary: 5 Stars
In a land called the "Nine Kingdoms" where the Grimm Fairy Tales of our childhood and history actually happened the great-great grandson of Snow White; Prince Wendell is in danger of loosing his kingdom to his stepmother, the "Evil Queen" through a rather elaborate and complex plot. When he accidentally ends up in New York City through a magic mirror he fell into while running from his Stepmother and through a rather complex set of events has to try and save his kingdom with Tony Lewis and his daughter, the heroine Virginia. With three rather bumbling royal troll siblings, children of the Troll King and a feisty half man half wolf (played by Scott Cohen), in pursuit of the Prince; who happens to fall in love with Virginia and is unsure of whether he wants to eat her or marry her.
A Hallmark movie that was supposed to be NBC and Hallmarks television miniseries blockbuster, opened up to rather dismal ratings in terms of what NBC was expecting. Despite the cult status the movie has achieved, the movie is considered a flop in regards to the amount of money that was spent making it. Over seven hours long and encompassing four DVD disks, the movie is an epic undertaking to watch but well worth it. But these aren't the dumbed down Disney Fairy Tales versions that most children and adults are familiar with; but rather the original darker versions originally intended for Adults only. Virginia and Tony soon learn that Happily Ever After, doesn't last as long as they imagined. Aside from visuals and a fascinating background and history of the "Nine Kingdoms", the best and most appealing part of The 10th Kingdom is perhaps the characters themselves.
Virginia and Tony are expertly played by Kimberly Williams Paisley and John Larroquette. Williams-Paisley has the right amount of cynicism and humanity as Virginia. A young woman who still secretly bears the pain of loosing her Mother. While most will remember Larroquette as the sleazy and promiscuous Dan Fielding from the show "Night Court", Larroquette doesn't stretch too far in in terms of character development as Tony Lewis a rather pitiful, good hearted yet bumbling man who's past failures as a business man and single father. But what Larroquette, does as Tony and did as Dan, he does well and still manages to earn our sympathy and approval despite his sometimes less then honest motivations. Scott Cohen plays Wolf, with relish and while he obviously seems to be enjoying his job. All other characters, The Evil Queen played by Diana Wiest, Ed O'Neil as Relish the Troll king and even Cameryn Maneheim as an aged Snow White make an appearance.
As the movie goes on, the plots grow more intricate and darker as the characters and past histories all intertwine and some very dark disturbing subjects are perhaps brought to life but not dwelled upon as everything comes to a resolution. Without spoiling anything a sequel is hinted at towards the very end of the Mini-Series and while it's creator Simon West expressed his desire and plans to continue on with the story it's unlikely this will happen. Despite that sad bit of news, the movie still deserves much more praise and attention then it gained when it first aired. The 10th Kingdom definately deserves a shelf on every fantasy and fairy tale lovers movie shelf.
Movie Review: On my top-ten list; watched many times
Summary: 5 Stars
I have watched all seven and a half hours (or so) of this miniseries many times, and I still haven't gotten tired of it. And that is from someone who normally only watches even really good movies only once or maybe twice. Why do I love this one so much that it is in my top ten, and is also in my top ten viewed movies of all time?
The very basic plot is that Virginia (played by the very talented Kimberly Williams), a young woman still living with her father (played by the equally talented John Larroquette) in New York City, encounters a dog who is actually an enchanted prince from another dimension, the Nine Kingdoms, in which all our fairy tales actually happened.
The prince came through a magic traveling mirror to get to New York. He is followed by a trio of trolls, Burly, Blabberwort, and Bluebell, who are a bit less than the brightest bulbs in the bunch. These trolls were sent on the behest of, of course, a wicked queen (played perfectly by Dianne Wiest) who wants to take over the Nine Kingdoms, and she doesn't care who dies on the way. She's also sent Wolf (played wonderfully by Scott Cohen), a man who is part werewolf and considerably brighter than the trolls, after the trolls to make sure they do a good job.
Trolls, prince, Wolf, Virginia, and her father all end up back in the Nine Kingdoms. Through various events, Virginia and her father quickly find themselves trapped there, and much of the movie *seems* to be about the two of them, traveling with the prince, trying to find the magic traveling mirror again while being pursued by the trolls and the wicked queen. After many plot twists and turns, the story comes to a grand climax, with everyone getting pretty much what they deserve.
I say "seems to be," because there is a much deeper story line going on, which I won't reveal because it would be a major spoiler. Suffice it to say that it is beautifully developed, makes perfect sense, and rounds the story out even more richly. It is partly for this more serious story line that I love this movie so much. I would love to discuss this story line, but I know a lot of people dislike spoilers. Suffice it to say that it has to do with a theme that not many movies seem to address.
In addition, the writing is unaffected and the story is fun. It can seem a bit episodic at times, but each event contributes to our understanding of the characters and their stories. Some of these are low key and gentle; others are not. And I haven't even touched on some of the characters, such as the frightening Huntsman, played by Rutger Hauer, or others, all played well and convincingly.
There is plenty of humor in this movie (I especially love how the troll siblings take to the Bee Gees!), but not all fairy tales are free of blood, and this one has some truly chilling moments in it. Because of that, and because of the major story line that I am not revealing, this might not be suitable for smallish children who are easily scared. Otherwise, it is an excellent movie.
Movie Review: Loved the 10th Kingdom's adventure, magic, romance and charm
Summary: 5 Stars
The 10th Kingdom This movie is so adorable and charming on so many fronts. And yes it does have some violence yet Hallmark seemed to trust the directors (and screenwriter's) ability to keep a balance for the younger crowds.
The humorous Larroquette, Troll Kids, Bee Gee's 'Night Fever', mushroom island's comedic shrooms and especially Scott Cohen's Wolf character were some of the many, many highlights.
Then there is the romantic aspect which after seeing a singing ring's rhyming chimes for the first time was the tip of the melting snow cone of Kissing Town's charm.
We loved the weaving of the fantastical fairy taie worlds of which we grew up reading as children) with the everyday life of a couple of middle class New Yorkers trying to eck out a living, thinking 'this is all there is' in life, and then adding to the mix the element of powerful emotional release and family matters, well, this is actually a movie for the not-so-faint-of-heart because it will deeply touch your heart.
The evil queen (done beautifully by Dianne Wiest) touched our hearts deeply with her own tragic story. We're not used to seeing Wiest in this type of role so it was a great pleasure seeing her step up to the plate and pull off a very convincing character. Usually she has a squinty-eyed soft/vulnerability but this time it was wide-eyed and powerful (even if it was evil), and was thrilling to witness.
Cohen's Wolf stole the show completely and it was as if he slipped into the role so seamlessly that the role appeared effortless and second-nature; not knowing the person, we feel he did a heck of a job fleshing (or furring) out this complex character.
The magic of this movie continues to sit with us as many of the classic character's lines and quips pop up in our daily life. Truly an enchanting fairy tale. Yes it was long, and we loved every single second. Well done!
A word of caution to parents of children under 10: View this first then you decide, you know your kids and what they can handle, what is violent to them, what is prudent and what is considered to be an adult theme; you have the power to use your own discretion, so use it here.
The most important thing to consider is that the fairy tale stories we all grew up with held the very same elements this epic tale presents: the violence, adult themes of morality and responsibility, etc. are all there to teach lessons, and help guide and direct, showing consequence for every action. This is exactly what the original fairy tales did. Hats off to those that wrote, directed and produced this project and who chose not to shy away from or water down the power that these tales present in real life.
Mostly, enjoy this adventurous fairy tale romp of fun, excitement, romance and ultimately happy (surprising) endings!
Deidre & Michael
Sedona, AZ
Movie Review: Complex Epic Fantasy
Summary: 5 Stars
Until the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy this movie was the most complex fantasy ever attempted. In some ways the story does ramble, but the intricate elements are woven together so coherently that they smoothly fit into the quest undertaken by the principal characters.Virginia and Tony Lewis (Kimberly Williams and John Larroquette) live in a New York apartment. One day a dog enters Virginia's life. However, the dog is not just any ordinary dog, but Prince Wendell (Daniel Lapaine) changed into a dog by an evil Queen (Dianne Wiest). Soon trolls enter the story along with magic, and the story begins.
Virginia and Tony travel through a magic mirror into the land of the nine kingdoms (with New York being the 10th kingdom. It takes Virginia and Tony little time to realize that the world they have entered has very different rules from their own. Their goal is to find a mirror that will allow them to travel back to their own world, and the quest for the mirror forms the heart of the story.
Along the way both Virginia and Tony, but most especially Virginia, are on a voyage of discovery about themselves. Through a series of vignettes they learn the history of the nine kingdoms, and learn there are mysteries related to that history. One of the most startling revelations is that Virginia and Tony are somehow involved in the nine kingdoms, but it's not until we get well into the movie that we understand the nature of their involvement.
The plot is generally coherent and I had little trouble keeping track of the parallel stories. I admit that there were a few things that confused me when I watched the story in its original television debut, but my confusion was cleared up by watching the DVD version without the commercials and all in one 7+ hour sitting.
The acting talent in this movie is phenomenal. Rutger Hauer plays the Queen's woodsman, with his own poignant story. Warwick Davis is Acorn, a criminal with a tongue-in-cheek character. Ed O'Neil is perfect as Relish the Troll King. Scott Cohen as Wolf took a little getting used to, but once I realized how he fit into the story I enjoyed his antics and characterization. Camryn Manheim makes an interesting Snow White. Ann-Margret brings class to Queen Cinderella. This list is but a fraction of the cast possible by the epic nature of this movie.
The story is an adult fairy tale. There is violence in the movie as well as a number of intense scenes that are likely inappropriate for children below the age of 7 or 8. However, for everyone else this movie is fun and complicated. If you enjoy fantasy, and you can be open-minded about how fantasy is approached, this movie could be perfect for you.
Movie Review: bad ratings? no way.
Summary: 5 Stars
I remember being so excited to see The Tenth Kingdom when in first premiered in 2002. I've always been partial to fantasy, fairy tales and adventure and when I saw the previews The Tenth Kingdom appeared to be all of that. I would sit glued to the television for two hours every night that it was on. It is a wonderful story that pulls you in and can entertain for hours and is great even on repeated viewings. Don't be put off by the length, time will fly by and it presents the opportunity to go into a characters background, subplots and misadventures. The people that populate the Nine Kingdoms are some offer some of the best parts of the movie.
John Larroquette is hilarious but offers touching (for lack of a better word) acting near the end. Kimberly Williams is convincing as the emotionally hurt but resillient main character. Scott Cohen is everybody's favorite character as the lovable Wolf. All of the characters are complex and three dimensional, even the evil Queen isn't black and white.
I have not seen many children's movies that could also pass as an adult adventure. Many movies that claim to be for everyone in the family offer not-so-subtle innuendo and graphic situations or language. But this truly is for everyone. I've watched it with my younger siblings many times and then had my own friends come together to watch it. We all love it. If you love fantasy, you'll love this. If you don't you probably still will love it as there's plenty for everyone. "Suck an elf" has made it's way into the venacular of our world.
Minor 'gripes' (heh). The trolls. Their goofy physical comedy isn't so funny. They get annoying at times but it's nothing big.
The effects are cool, kind of. This IS a TV movie so it's not like I was expecting The Matrix of mini-series but they tend to look a little weird some times.
The DVD quality is great, with about the amount and quality of special features that you'd expect for a made-for-TV movie. Nothing to write home about but this is a huge step up from the taped VHS version I had. I caught it the second time around when they trimmed about two hours out of it and I had forgotten about some of the parts. It was good to discover them again.
Don't expect "High Art" as one reviewer put it. This isn't a masterpiece of film and/or television and it wasn't meant to be. This is meant to be fun and entertaining and it acheives those goals wonderfully.