The King Is Alive (2000) Reviews

• A Double Tragedy

  claudio_carvalho2010-02-27

  While shifting airports by bus in Africa, a group of passengers is driven to the middle of nowhere in the desert by the driver that is following a defective compass. They run out of gas and they reach a ghost village inhabited by a single man, Kanana (Peter Kubheka). One passenger that has experience with desert gives five advices to the others to survive in the spot, among them to keep the spirit high, while he travels through the desert seeking for help. One intellectual in the stranded group suggests the performance of King Lear to keep the morale of the survivors. Along the days, while hope decreases, the tension increases among the survivors. "The King is Alive" is a tragedy in a tragedy, with a group of people stranded in the desert performing King Lear to keep the spirit of the survivors. The story has a breathless beginning with the driver absolutely lost and the despair of the passengers and is raw and disturbing, when the survivors return to a primitive stage of human condition. The performances are outstanding and this Dogma 85 film was released in Brazil on VHS by Cult Films Distributor. My vote is seven. Title (Brazil): "O Rei Está Vivo" ("The King is Alive")

• A brilliant and yet cruel tale of the human condition by the words of Shakespeare's King Lear.

  joaofds2003-09-30

  A brilliant and yet cruel tale of the human condition by the words of Shakespeare's King Lear. The true nature of this film is in the relationship between the rawness of the desert and the fragility of the social being. Amazingly, the spirit of the desert witnesses the demise of a group of people who are facing death, acting Shakespeare to deceive it and ironically get deceived by fate itself at the end. The realistic notion, given by hand-held camera as well by the wonderful colors captured, will dive one's in the crucial themes of the movie: death, love and hope.

• Desolate.

  nycritic2005-04-17

  When a bus load of tourists from all walks of life runs out of gas in the middle of an apparently endless desert the set slowly gets staged not for a tale about survival via leaving the bus and searching for help, but of staging an improv version of "King Lear" that somehow manages to insinuate itself into the characters. While events predictably turn tragic for many if not all and the situation devolves into near-complete hopelessness (made the more intense by the use of digital video which creates a hell out of sunlight and sand), there is a sense of elements left untold and aspects left unexplored in THE KING IS ALIVE, leaving a bare-essentials character study which eventually semi-collapses in on itself. An interesting experiment of a film with great improvised performances by Jennifer Jason Leigh, Janet McTeer, Bruce Davidson, and Romaine Bohringer, and one that perhaps with subsequent viewings could evolve within itself like many "experimental" films tend to do, but that at this moment remains a little too outré for the usual film-goer.

• A real life changer

  sarahm-112005-05-31

  I was speechless after seeing this movie. I started watching it late on a weekday, knowing I would have to get up the next day but couldn't tear myself away! I had to know what would happen to the characters. The situation was starkly realized, and I could feel the slow dawning of awareness as the bus passengers see how futile their schedules and agendas are, survival quickly becomes the priority. I think to center criticism on the chances of getting lost like that and other plot details miss the point. The choice of "Lear" as a play to put on to distract from the terrible circumstances does not seem contrived, and this would not be the first movie to work the Shakespearean tragedy into its story, with, I thought an awful premonition of what was to come.

• A consuming well acted film.

  pazu72003-01-15

  I cannot pretend to understand all the subtleties of the film as I am sure they are tied metaphorically to the subtext of King Lear, which I am only remotely familiar with. However, this film captured my attention and kept it. Wonderfully acted and refreshing casual with it's loose style, the human drama and character relationships are immediately captivating. There are some slow sections and bits where the movie strains belief, especially in the sudden decision to do a play, but overall a worthy experience for those, like myself, bored with shallow, explosion ridden, special-effects driven blockbusters. At any rate, this is one of those where you have to decide for yourself.