The King Is Alive

The King Is Alive (2001)

Genres - Drama  |   Sub-Genres - Ensemble Film, Psychological Drama  |   Release Date - Apr 25, 2001 (USA), May 11, 2001 (USA - Limited)  |   Run Time - 110 min.  |   Countries - Denmark, Sweden, United States  |   MPAA Rating - R
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Review by Jason Clark

This potentially eruptive chamber drama in reverse has the makings of a truly tense feature (especially with its foreboding and haunting desert landscapes), but is actually the least provocative entry in the Dogma 95 sweepstakes thus far, eventually painting itself into a corner despite some terrific details around the edges. Director Kristian Levring never fully exploits the desert territory or the narrative metaphor (in this case, King Lear) to its full potential, and the prosaic execution makes viewers feel as stranded and frustrated as the characters, which could be the film's intention, but the drama is lacking in a story that should be ripe with it. Jennifer Jason Leigh, and especially the inventive Janet McTeer, forge compelling mini-dramas in their characterizations, but the film is missing the dryly black humor that ignited the other films (by Lars Von Trier and Thomas Vinterberg, among others) in the Dogma oeuvre, and as a result, the film feels stagnant and not terribly memorable. Like the other features, the digital video representation is fully acceptable in the context of the story, but the follow-through is less successful.