A modern story, inspired by King Lear, set in contemporary Liverpool.A modern story, inspired by King Lear, set in contemporary Liverpool.A modern story, inspired by King Lear, set in contemporary Liverpool.
- Awards
- 1 nomination total
Ingi Thor Jonsson
- Dutch Farmer No 2
- (as Ingi Thor Jonssen)
Featured reviews
and one his best. He plays the boss of a Liverpool rime family, whose own naivety brings his downfall. This is based on King Lear but it doesn´t really work for me here. We´re supposed to believe that this tough, streetwise gang boss would be stupid enough not to see the consequences of his actions (I don´t want to give the story away, but those familiar with King Lear will know what happens. This supposed sudden naivety goes totally aginst the grain of the character Harris portrays in the film up until his fateful decision.
It was an interesting idea but just doesn´t work for me and the second half of the film becomes increasingly silly as a consequence. I´ve also no idea why one of the main gangsters is a Sihk. Liverpool is unusual amongst British cities in having a very small asian population and I don´t think I´ve ever seen a Sihk there. Strange.
That said, it´s not a bad film. There´s some good camerawork, Harris is on good form and the supporting cast are mostly very good. 8/10 for the first half of the film, 5/10 for the second.
It was an interesting idea but just doesn´t work for me and the second half of the film becomes increasingly silly as a consequence. I´ve also no idea why one of the main gangsters is a Sihk. Liverpool is unusual amongst British cities in having a very small asian population and I don´t think I´ve ever seen a Sihk there. Strange.
That said, it´s not a bad film. There´s some good camerawork, Harris is on good form and the supporting cast are mostly very good. 8/10 for the first half of the film, 5/10 for the second.
My Kingdom was sufficiently entertaining for a rainy Sunday but that is where the upside ends.
Maybe it's that I'm American and have been overexposed to Capone, Gotti and Luciano but the characters in this movie fall miserably short as mobsters. Rule one: Mobsters are scary people. Mother (Mandy) and daughter (Jo) are so wholesome they could pass for GoodHousekeeping covergirls (Mandy even resembles Martha Stewart!). Apparently, Jo (Moll-turned-preppy coed) managed to just "walk away" from her position with "The Chair". Shouldn't she be dead?
Dad is apparently so important that he asks the lowest of thugs, "Do you know who I am?". Where are his bodyguards? Why is he sitting in the cheap seats at the show? Also, it would have been nice if someone clued us in as to how this giant-among-men built his empire: Drugs? Prostitution? Gambling? Stamp-collecting?
Lastly: Where was the trademark blood? Guess the budget was too low for a few bottles of Ketchup.
All-in-all, My Kingdom had a good plot-line and decent actors but it was a little low-calorie for my gangster-genre diet.
Maybe it's that I'm American and have been overexposed to Capone, Gotti and Luciano but the characters in this movie fall miserably short as mobsters. Rule one: Mobsters are scary people. Mother (Mandy) and daughter (Jo) are so wholesome they could pass for GoodHousekeeping covergirls (Mandy even resembles Martha Stewart!). Apparently, Jo (Moll-turned-preppy coed) managed to just "walk away" from her position with "The Chair". Shouldn't she be dead?
Dad is apparently so important that he asks the lowest of thugs, "Do you know who I am?". Where are his bodyguards? Why is he sitting in the cheap seats at the show? Also, it would have been nice if someone clued us in as to how this giant-among-men built his empire: Drugs? Prostitution? Gambling? Stamp-collecting?
Lastly: Where was the trademark blood? Guess the budget was too low for a few bottles of Ketchup.
All-in-all, My Kingdom had a good plot-line and decent actors but it was a little low-calorie for my gangster-genre diet.
I like this movie. Someone mentioned in a previous comment that they must be use to the mobsters in the US because of the demur wife etc. I disagree completely. I went to school with a few children of the Mob and they were all very low keyed people. The family of the mob are far removed from the action. My friends mothers looked like most people mothers. They don't walk around looking or acting flamboyant. They are just regular folks married to a mobster. I did not even know they were children of mobsters until YEARS later. That is how low keyed they are. That is why I like this movie. The mobsters in here are not bombastic ala Goodfella's, which is not really true to form. They have problems with their kids like everyone else. They have a life that we the public see but they have the life we don't see. But mostly only their associates see. If every mobster looked and acted the way the Goodfella's portrayed them the Mob would not exist because they would no longer be a secretly run organization. The mob thrives on secrecy and a need to look legit. Mr Harris portrays that type of modern mobster. In this movie his daughters seem to be rebelling. One runs a whore house, one is a ex pro junkie. In the US most of the mob daughters are either married or very highly educated or both. So it is unusual to have all 3 of his daughters rebel. This is a nice small movie, with a little violence. But I feel it is a more realistic portrayal of mobster then the movies we usually see in the United States. Oh one last note the guy that plays the young cop is now on The Wire playing a very ambitious politician...with a New York accent. It is strange seeing him acting in his native tongue.Actually The Wire has more then a few actors from Great Britian
I watched "My Kingdom" on Pay-per-View. Luckily, I didn't pay for it, my friend did. How anyone can like this movie is beyond me. I like Shakespeare very much, and maybe even King Lear, but "My Kingdom" sucked. I am beginning to hate gangster movie, whether they are American or British. In this one, the plot is so confusing and some of the characters I couldn't figure out either. But I don't need to ask questions about the plot or the characters because I really don't care. I don't remember much about King Lear, I saw it a long time ago and obviously, this movie is much worse. It should have never been made in the first place. Lynn Redgrave was a total waste in that role. Yeah, and for those who liked the movie... well, just shoot me.
This film is about gangster in the mean streets of Liverpool about the ups and down of the underworld and one man who was at the top became bottom after what the family did to him. There is some nice acting northing really bloody in the film but can't understand why its an 18 and over to watched this film but anyway it had a fine cast but really felt sorry for the little boy.
I did find Sexy Beast alot better then this but My Kingdom is worth watching and mostly BRITISH GANGSTER FILMS ARE ALOT BETTER THEN AMERICAN GANGSTER FILMS
Give this film 5/10
I did find Sexy Beast alot better then this but My Kingdom is worth watching and mostly BRITISH GANGSTER FILMS ARE ALOT BETTER THEN AMERICAN GANGSTER FILMS
Give this film 5/10
Did you know
- TriviaMost of the bondage gear, and four pairs of size ten stiletto-heeled shoes went missing during the course of the shoot.
- SoundtracksThen Shall The Eyes Of The Blind
Written by George Frideric Handel (as Georg Friedrich Händel)
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Моє королівство
- Filming locations
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Gross US & Canada
- $4,296
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $2,607
- Dec 8, 2002
- Gross worldwide
- $4,296
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