The King Is Alive (2000)

60% of critics liked it
(65 reviews)
53% of users liked it
(1,057 ratings)

Shot against the barren sand dunes of Africa's Namib Desert, The King Is Alive is the fourth film to adhere to the stripped-down aesthetic of the Dogma 95 movement, and the first to bear the directorial stamp of the manifesto's co-author Kristian Levring. The improvised, shot-on-digital video… More Shot against the barren sand dunes of Africa's Namib Desert, The King Is Alive is the fourth film to adhere to the stripped-down aesthetic of the Dogma 95 movement, and the first to bear the directorial stamp of the manifesto's co-author Kristian Levring. The improvised, shot-on-digital video production concerns the exploits of almost a dozen tourists who find themselves stranded when their bus breaks down miles from civilization. A thespian amongst the group, Henry (David Bradley), is the first to suggest that their situation may be more dire than it seems. His doubts send the rest of the folks -- including American travelers Ray (Bruce Davison), Liz (Janet McTeer), Ashley (Brion James), and Gina (Jennifer Jason Leigh), and a high-minded Parisian, Catherine (Romane Bohringer) -- into fits of fear and dread. To get their minds off the heat, hunger, and dehydration, the castaways stage an impromptu reading of Shakespeare's King Lear, which they can only fitfully remember. As their situations worsen, the tourists begin to take out their personal aggressions on one another. The King Is Alive was shown as part of the 2000 Cannes and Toronto Film Festivals. ~ Michael Hastings, Rovi

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Rating, Runtime: R, 1 hr. 49 min.
Directed By: Kristian Levring
Written By: Anders Thomas Jensen, Kristian Levring
Genres: Drama, Horror, Art House & International

In Theaters: May 11, 2001 Wide
On DVD: Nov 19, 2002
Studio: IFC Films

Critic Reviews

Lisa Nesselson, Variety
:ags in the middle, growing more interesting -- if hardly more original -- only as the situation deteriorates.
Desson Thomson, Washington Post
It doesn't escape its own ascetic pretensions.
Lisa Schwarzbaum, Entertainment Weekly
Pulsing with color and movement in a vast, dune filled landscape, this is a whole new way of using a now familiar bag of tricks.
Jay Carr, Boston Globe
Sinks under the weight of its ever more inescapably apparent contrivance.
Desmond Ryan, Philadelphia Inquirer
Has its flaws, but remains a fascinating and strangely involving piece.
Wesley Morris, San Francisco Chronicle
The project seems unsure about how to push the fighting, trysting and synthesized misery to higher ground.
, Film4
The endless vistas of sand that surround the forlorn settlement embody the void at the heart of its abandoned, terrified characters.
Brandon Judell, Detour Magazine
Here is a small masterpiece about the erosion of civilized egos by the elements.
Geoff Andrew, Time Out
It's all very watchable, thanks to excellent performances all around...
Rich Cline, Film Threat
The real problem is the way the story tries so hard to incorporate Shakespearean themes.
Dan Lybarger, Nitrate Online
Even for a Dogma 95 movie, this one is unusual because it features a remote, exotic setting and a Shakepearean subtext.
Joshua Tanzer, Offoffoff
About as far from a Shakespearean stage but as close to Shakespearean essence as it can be.
Brian Mckay, eFilmCritic.com
An imaginative film that feels ten times more genuine than any ten movies of the "Castaway" variety (or as I like to call it, "The 90 million dollar Fed-Ex Commercial")
Kimberley Jones, Austin Chronicle
Somebody should really plop these guys down in front of an old Rodgers & Hammerstein spectacle.
Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews
Admittedly not for all tastes, but I liked what I bit into even if there was some sand in the offering.
Ernest Hardy, L.A. Weekly
Levring's film isn't nearly as smart or original as he seems to think it is.
Jean Lowerison, San Diego Metropolitan
By the time you figure out who's who, you've almost ceased to care.
Ted Murphy, Baseline.Hollywood.com
... sitting through "The King Is Alive" was a tedious exercise that tried my patience and bored me.
Rich Cline, Shadows on the Wall
Despite astonishing camera work and editing, it just gets duller and duller even as the story is supposedly heating up.
Lawrence Toppman, Charlotte Observer
A piece of art rather than reality -- and a slo-o-o-w piece of art, though it rewards your patience.