The King Is Alive

Wow. I was speechless after seeing this movie for the first time (a feeling I still experience even after almost a dozen viewings). I've never seen such an eloquent, spellbinding, and above all logical, presnetation of King Lear. Truly the best setting for such a play is by a broken down bus in a desert.

The first thing that struck me about the film was the unsurpassed clarity of the footage. Even in dark scenes around the campfire everyone's face is perfectly in focus and the viewer feels he is with this poor unfortunate bus travelers in where ever it was they got stuck. The well placed cut aways of the lost traveler in the desert enhance the story-telling experience.

Sike, this movie sunks.

I remain unimpressed, worried, and confused about "Dogma". Is there anything fresh being done here? As for the existential possibilities of a group stranded together in unfamiliar, perhaps threatening conditions; as for the warped-mirroring of theatre and life; and as for disjointed filming and bumpy cameras -- please, don't anyone get their hopes up that there's anything revealing, glimmering, or meaningful here. The film takes a small view of human nature, yet there is one character, the native who watches and narrates, who seems to have a genuine eye. Why couldn't this have been the film- maker's eye? Perhaps ancient cultures are just not "Dogmatic" enough for this postmodern world. I am only glad that the film-makers had room in their hearts for this character.

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")

This film is flawed, there is no question.

But it's highest moments soar high above anything that the film making corporations could hope to attain.

See it if you're not afraid to see the best and worst of humanity, in a story told by someone who makes films for adults.

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.