My Kingdom (2001)

Wonderful character development!

The Age of Commercialism

Excellent but underrated film

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

If you have seen the Godfather (1-3) in one sitting and you don't realize that Mario Puzo only wrote the first as his novel of the same name--this movie is a breath of fresh air that incorporates the tragic elements better as an adaptation of Shakespeare's King Lear.Richard Harris, in one of his last films, plays an aging patriarch of a Liverpool crime family (think Genovese, Soprano, Corleone) that has outlived his welcome suffice to say. His character is brilliantly played if not autobiographical in some regards. His 'loving' family is feuding among its own ranks--bent on claiming the throne of their dying father--trying to kill him for lack of a proper euphemism (off).Excellent acting, fluid story (occasional wanders) with a strong script and probably great direction. My Kingdom is highly enjoyable if you are willing to suspend some disbelief in regards to the serendipitous plot, lack of humour, underdeveloped characters and a story that you've most likely seen before.It was missing Joe Pesci stabbing someone with a pen or borrowing his mother's kitchen knife, maybe needed Ray Liotta, Robert DeNiro, Michael Caine, Roy Scheider, but this is a film about the Mersey.

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.

I was completely unfamiliar with this film but as I was watching it I felt it to be something that Shakespeare would have written if he were a contemporary writer.I was surprised to see that the movie was inspired by King Lear. The movie is dynamic and unsettling and although the setting up of the story is a little slow the perfect ensemble playing keeps the viewer gripped throughout.There are no weak performances but, as ever,Tom Bell takes the acting honours. I recommend this to anyone seeking a change from the usual sanitized mindless fare.

Richard Harris leads a wonderful cast in this powerful, moving, beautiful film, 'My Kingdom'. Liverpool's grit and squalor, in its underworld of gangsters and corruption, is depicted with vibrant colour and power by Boyd. Harris plays a quasi -modern Lear, drawing us all in to his kingdom of gangster Liverpool and his three daughters. 'My Kingdom' is wonderfully realistic , helped by the superb acting of the fine cast, and the intuitive, dynamic direction of Don Boyd. There is also a feeling that you're entering another unknown world, as with Orpheus and his underworld. It's a brilliantly captivating 2 hours well worth spent at the movies.Don't miss the US previews of this must-see movie, at the Newport Film Festival, Rhode Island, June 6th and 8th.