"The King" is a character sketch depicting the reluctant King Henry V of England as they go to war with France in the early 1400s. Played by Timothée Chalamet as Henry V, The King portrays a young ruler coming to power and leading the country of England to dominance.
Written and Directed by David David Michôd, "The King" is loosely based off of Shakespeare’s iconic play “Henry V” as he assumes the throne after his late father’s death. It is what you can expect from a period piece in most aspects, but its vivid depiction of a reluctant King coming to power is what is will be remembered for. While most period pieces take their time to set the stage and circumstances of the plot, "The King" almost solely focuses on King Henry’s decisions that lead the country to battle that encompasses "The Hundred Year War".
Playing the Prince Regent of France, Robert Pattison covers maybe 20 minutes of the film and should definitely win points for his…interesting French accent and his hair. Stunner.
Chalamet, already known for his great performances in “Call Me By Your Name” (2017) and “Beautiful Boy” (2018), sheds his boy-ish charm and makes a breakout performance as a serious adult actor. The most striking scene is when he rallies his troops before going into battle with the French – the speech in it of itself is stirring and moving and is the stuff of Award potential.
But that doesn’t necessarily mean that he will receive an Oscar Nomination this year – with an already packed category for Best Actor and already having received an Oscar Nomination in 2017 for CMBYN, it seems unlikely that Chalamet will receive another nod this year.
A category where "The King" might receive a nomination is in Cinematography – one of the most impressive scenes in cinema this year takes place during the battle between England and France where Joel Edgerton’s character leads the charge. Shot very similarly to “Game of Throne: Battle of the Bastards” by Miguel Sapochnik the scene spans 15 minutes showing the raw footage of war. It has been discussed that the Battle of the Bastards was drawn from inspiration from the Battle of Agincourt between England and France in 1415 – the reference points are there.
What Worked?
The Movie itself was shot beautifully, character close ups, scenic landscapes and gritty battle scenes. The movie is visually stunning.
What Didn’t Work?
Spanning 2 hours and 20 minutes, you can feel some parts of the story start to drag. The dialogue is sparse but the shots and character portrayal are worth it. And I have to mention the hair cuts, I just….no.
Released in select Theaters and on Netflix, The King is streaming now and its worth the watch.
EL DE Movie Rating: 6.5/10.
And that’s the sitch.
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