The King
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Movie Reviews of The King
Movie Review: Days later I still don't know how I feel about this movie
Summary: 3 Stars
3.2 stars. Really odd movie, not quirky as in cute or coy. Elvis (Gael GB) straight out of the navy comes looking for his father whom he has never seen. Father is William Hurt who is now a born-again preacher (which almost makes me want to stop watching) and in his pre-Christian days had sex with Elvis' Latina mother who was apparently a prostitute. Hurt has a daughter and son from his Christian long-term monogamous marriage.
Elvis settles in to the town, gets a job and begins to court his half-sister. She doesn't know Elvis is her half-brother and Elvis seems to just ignore this very crucial fact. It gets steamy and after a time, Mallory is pregnant. Elvis' half-brother is hip to the relationship but still doesn't know the blood connection to Elvis. SPOILER: When the brother comes to the motel to tell Elvis to stay away from his sister, Elvis stabs him and then hides the crime.
THIS is where I felt the movie went off the rails. There was no clue that such savage anger was in the Elvis character. Even in the stabbing scene itself, it felt unreal or surreal or dream-like. I didn't understand the chemistry between Elvis and Mallory--she was a wimpy and totally dull religious girl under the thumb of her autocratic father. And with her innocence and religious background, how easily she succumbed to Elvis. He didn't have to work very hard to seduce her.
With the loss of the son (who is believed to have left home to pursue his own agenda for living his life) Elvis is brought into the fold and Daddy makes a speech before his congregation and tells of his sin with Elvis' birth mother. OK, this is Texas, so a lot has to be forgiven, but it was still too odd and the pieces just didn't fit.
I saw it to the end and the end is interesting--a leave 'em hanging kind of ending. Surely repercussions would abound when Elvis tells Hurt the truth so he can "get right with God." Where oh where in the movie did this conversion happen, when did Elvis begin to care about God? Big missing piece.
It coulda been slam dunk brilliant but it was far less. It lacked some kind of internal coherence and energy so it wasn't propelled forward, it just sort of dribbled along. I think it's interesting that Gael GB and Hurt would choose this film as they both probably have tons of scripts thrown at them and can do just about what they like. So whatever it was that walloped them in their gut and made them say yes to the project, somehow it didn't quite make it to the screen.
Movie Review: [3.5]--"The King" will leave you with some mix emotions.
Summary: 3 Stars
I was happy to come across this film due to Bernal and after viewing this it certainly left me unsettled. This story revolves around a very unsavory topic with very unlikable (albeit well played) characters. The director has chosen to deal with the films events in a very blunt manner and it as result does not make it a very enjoyable viewing. To no surprise, Gael Garcia Bernal, Pell James, Paul Dano and Laura Harring are all convincing in their respective roles, as well. For some reason though, this film reminded me of Gus van Sant's "Elephant": the absurdity of Reality (cinéma réalité).
In here we found the main character is discharged from the Navy, Elvis (Gael Garcia Bernal) who travels to Corpus Christi, buys a '69 Cougar and visits a church. He flirts with sixteen-year-old Malerie (Pell James), daughter of the minister, David (William Hurt). The minister learns that Elvis is his son, rejects him and Elvis goes on to secretly pursue a heated sexual relationship with the girl who becomes pregnant. After this, the story inexplicably takes a much darker turn. Surprisingly, the treatment of religious fundamentalism is not heavy handed. But once revealed, Bernal's character is confusing, reprehensible and difficult to explain. Elvis takes responsibility for his actions and is clearly a sensitive, caring person, but an understanding of his horrific behavior is never remotely attempted. His schizophrenic turns are as thoughtless and empty as the rest of this valueless and we are never given an ample history about Elvis' background and perhaps the filmmakers wanted us to fear him for that reason.
What's also confusing is the musical score, to me it somehow sounds displaced through out the film but perhaps I am wrong or I'm just being a little too picky. I think the movie could have gone just a little more at the end, gone a little darker perhaps, and accentuated the final effect that much more. While it works at the same time because of its constraint... my guess is that if it were redone it would dwell on longer and more closely scrutinize Hurt's face, even just freeze for some time there.
Anyway, "The King" does make an impression on the viewers because it certainly did with me. This film is a must-see if (and I'm stressing that word IF) you are a Hurt and Bernal fan.
Movie Review: If someone could let me know the point that would be appreciated...
Summary: 2 Stars
Okay, here's the issue I have. While I love the whole idea of creating a film that makes you think, that makes you second guess yourself and your beliefs and your entire philosophy of life, and while I love endings that leave you with more than a mere ambiguous answer to your many questions I still have trouble enjoying this film for the mere fact that I fail to see a point amidst all it's originality.
I kept trying to at least assign a motive to the central character of Elvis (Gael Garcia Bernal) or at least an ounce of humanity but I couldn't and still can't. His actions, while repulsive, could have been at least slightly justifiable if he had only hinted towards a reason, hinted towards anything really. I found his character more than just ominous; he was void of everything but animal lust.
I guess that's my main problem with this film, for while it presents itself like that small indie with a message it fails to relay that message properly. Films like this are best a canvas for human relationships and the dark demons in us all but `The King' fails to reveal any layers in its stock of characters.
The only person I felt remotely connected with was Twyla (Laura Harring), for she was the only character who showed real emotion. Even Gael and Hurt failed to capitalize on their acting abilities (as we all know they have them) and instead delivered almost flat performances. If the movie was just given a pulse, a reason to exist, then I could begin to try and care about it, but it has no pulse, it has no meaning and thus it delivers just that, nothing.
Movie Review: The King....of Pseudo-Art
Summary: 1 Stars
As a latecomer to this film I just happened upon it in the Used DVD section of a local music store the other day, and I eagerly purchased it while being curious how this Pastor's family tale would unwrap itself, no pun intended.
To say that I was and still am disturbed by the story is to write the obvious, not to mention a bit cliche judging by some reviews I've read for this film. The long lost son is looking for his father who rejects him right off the bat, which makes for some interesting and deeply sad foundation to the story....something which I was very moved by being that I am a product of the Christian Church and even a seminary graduate....how I was trying to rewrite the story on-the-spot that Elvis was hugged and embraced by the pastor and courageously welcomed into the congregation! ( That is the true love of God, the forgiveness and grace of Christ that I wanted to see shown through this pastor, yet I was also intrigued by the very real possibility and humanity of the pastor being ashamed and protective and hypocritical....so I was not in the least bit turned off by this film portraying that ). So, even before that meeting between said Elvis and Pastor the former "son" had already taken a liking to the pastor's daughter,Mallory...and he moves in for the kill, pun intended, when he later defends his right to be with her (after manipulating her and crossing her boundaries, romantically and sexually) by killing off Mallory's brother who has come to protect her (protecting her innocence and/or maybe he thinks this Elvis guy is "shady" unlike the filmmakers' commentary that the pastor's family just had fear towards the Elvis guy so they wanted to eliminate him----which is an obvious blanket prejudice of the filmmakers which I do not support---if someone were following my car home from church to give my husband/father a "hug" and I didn't know who that person was you better believe that I'd wonder if this person was very hurt/needy or perhaps unstable or perhaps even dangerous...that's not a bad thing, but being wise and discerning, aka Street-Smarts!) Anyway, I digress.
I don't know what is more disturbing about this film: the fact that the filmmakers stated that some people saw Elvis as "not bad" OR the "fairy tale" music that permeated some creepy scenes of Elvis fairly graphically "making love" to Mallory (he is 21 and she's 16, so it's statutory rape, yes?!) OR that this sweet music (kind of Motherspaugh-esqe a la "Bottle Rocket") is continuing through scenes where the pastor is unknowingly taking Elvis under his arm (with the kind of love he SHOULD have shown at the outset) while his missing son, who Elvis has killed, is still manipulated from the pastor's understanding by Elvis' cruel, lying ways OR how he clued Mallory in to how her brother died by lying to her ("he threatened me"...oh, poor baby) OR how Elvis abused Mallory's trust by praying with her for God's forgiveness AND lying to God in his prayer!? I mean, Elvis was one sick mutha...so was that music chosen as a kind of pseudo-artistic means towards irony....I am wondering if the filmmakers are a little sick in the head...if irony was the slant, then they did a very poor job of showing contrast in that regard...that did NOT work at all. And in their commentary at the end they stated, in a surprised tone, that people thought Elvis looked mad AS IF he was gonna do something bad to the pastor AFTER he had killed of Mallory and her mother!? Give me a gigantic break! Elvis was on his way to becoming a serial killer, wasn't he? Are we supposed to be so sympathetic towards him AFTER he played God (not really what God would do) by murdering now 3 people and burning down the house then going to the pastor's office to "get right"? He ultimately showed his true colors...that he cared more about himself than Mallory or her brother or her mother or his father/pastor or the honor of his mother...he truly disrespected her ( but God the most) in committing these grave acts!
Seldom do I not recommend films, but this is one of those times. While I found the acting to be solid, the storyline and disturbing commentary and directing decisions (to show the bare breast of a "16 year-old" while Elvis was grinding away) led me towards a rejection of the film. Believe me, I am no prude, but to passively portray the sick behavior in the film as just a part of "everyone has something wrong with them", something to that effect that the filmmakers stated, as if there is a moral/immoral equivalence throughout all the characters, is just plain rubbish and cowardly, in my opinion.
Why not have the courage to draw out the drama of Elvis' horrible/terrible acts against more sinister or troubling music? Why not draw out the contrast of Elvis' criminal behavior against the devastating realization that the pastor was a part of Elvis' deep pain and loss of his father in his life? ( Who wouldn't want to see William Hurt act out the complexity of mourning the loss of his family, feeling the rage towards Elvis, and grieving his previous "sin" of seeing a prostitute and having a son he didn't know about for 21 years? ) No, it seems like the filmmakers put the resulting burden subtly back on the pastor, like it's really his fault----as if they were indirectly telling us, "Well, ya know, he was never there for Elvis, then rejected him, so really what Elvis did was basically, pretty much that Christian pastor's fault." Whoops, maybe I just opened a can of worms....was this film in the end a knock against "religious" folks and/or Christians? Maybe. If so, do the filmmakers have the courage to admit that? I think not.
So, in the spirit of the film, I "courageously" recommend this film.....NOT!
Movie Review: The devil's dream
Summary: 1 Stars
James Marsh, the writer and director of this film admits to the great influence of watching horror movies and the yearning to see sex, nudity, blood and violence, orgies and devil worship. The main character captures what the Bible describes, "The thief (the devil) comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I (Jesus) have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." John 10:10.