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Movies / On DVD / King of California
King of California

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King of California (2007)

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Reviews Counted:66

Fresh:42

Rotten:24

Average Rating:6.2/10

Consensus: A quirky and often touching comedy about a mature teenager and her manic depressive father, King of California is a charming tale of familial relations and treasure hunting.

Rated: PG-13

Runtime: 1 hr 33 mins

Genre: Dramas

Theatrical Release:Sep 14, 2007 Limited

Synopsis: Michael Douglas gives a bravura performance in writer-director Mike Cahill's feature-length debut, KING OF CALIFORNIA. Douglas stars as Charlie, a troubled musician who has just been released from... Michael Douglas gives a bravura performance in writer-director Mike Cahill's feature-length debut, KING OF CALIFORNIA. Douglas stars as Charlie, a troubled musician who has just been released from a mental hospital. He returns home to live with his 16-year-old daughter, Miranda (Evan Rachel Wood), who is not exactly thrilled to have him back. Miranda has been forced to quit school and get a job in order to support herself and hold on to her beat-up old car and the family house, which is right in the middle of a new development--but she has refused to sell out. Instead, she works extra shifts at McDonald's and has no social life. But her father--still suffering from mental illness--insists that she join him on a wild adventure in search of supposedly long-buried treasure, and soon the two of them are combing through California, facing danger as Charlie leads them on a crazy quest that takes them through major chain stores and restaurants. Wood (THIRTEEN) is excellent as Miranda, walking that fine line between wanting to believe in her father and feeling he should be hospitalized again--but she never stops loving him, even against her better judgment. Bushy-haired and wild-eyed, Douglas shines every second he's onscreen, dreaming the impossible dream. The outstanding soundtrack features songs by John Coltrane, Seals and Crofts, Bud Powell, Fats Waller, Yma Sumac, and Billy Bragg and Wilco. [More]

Starring: Michael Douglas, Evan Rachel Wood

Starring: Michael Douglas, Evan Rachel Wood

Director: Mike Cahill

Director: Mike Cahill
Screenwriter: Mike Cahill
Producer: Michael London, Alexander Payne, Avi Lerner, Randall Emmett
Composer: David Robbins
Studio: First Look

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Jan 29, 2008

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Reviews for King of California

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Full Review Source: St. Louis Post-Dispatch | comment Comment
10/06/07
St. Louis Post-Dispatch

[A] small but cuddly film.

Full Review Source: Orlando Weekly | comment Comment
10/11/07
Adam Bregman
Adam Bregman
Orlando Weekly

Moviegoers will delight in excavating the strata of motifs in King of California.

Full Review Source: Boxoffice Magazine | comment Comment
09/14/07
Annlee Ellingson
Annlee Ellingson
Boxoffice Magazine

Michael Douglas clearly enjoys himself while Evan Rachel Wood looks appropriately exasperated throughout King of California. My sympathies were with her.

Full Review Source: Los Angeles Daily News | comment Comment
09/14/07
Bob Strauss
Bob Strauss
Los Angeles Daily News

Writer-director Mike Cahill explores Charlie's foolishness with funny-sad fondness.

Full Review Source: Houston Chronicle | comment Comment
10/05/07
Bruce Westbrook
Bruce Westbrook
Houston Chronicle
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

[A] strange, funny and sad story.

Full Review Source: Los Angeles Times | comment Comment
09/14/07
Carina Chocano
Carina Chocano
Los Angeles Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The treasure of the film is the unearthing of the family bond, magically played by Douglas and Wood.

Full Review Source: Philadelphia Inquirer | comment Comment
09/28/07
Carrie Rickey
Carrie Rickey
Philadelphia Inquirer
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

This movie requires a little patience to appreciate it, but for me, Evan Rachel Wood (and the final plan) made this worth the wait.

Full Review Source: TheMovieChicks.com | comment Comment
09/28/07
Cherryl Dawson and Leigh Ann Palone
Cherryl Dawson and Leigh Ann Palone
TheMovieChicks.com

'The King of California' is an easily-entertaining film that features two bravura performances. Douglas plays the character of the loony treasure-hunter Charlie with zest, passion, comedy and, well, hyperactivity - its Jack Colton post-drugs, if you will

Full Review Source: Moviehole | comment Comment
02/11/08
Clint Morris
Clint Morris
Moviehole

...one of those efforts that's destined to improve on subsequent viewings.

Full Review Source: Reel Film Reviews | comment Comment
01/31/08
David Nusair
David Nusair
Reel Film Reviews

There's so little authenticity between them, it destroys the story's most crucial element: the love between father and daughter. And finding the gold becomes our only reason to watch.

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
09/27/07
Desson Thomson
Desson Thomson
Washington Post
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

This is mighty tricky territory, and Cahill deserves major credit for keeping the story from becoming mawkish or twee.

Full Review Source: New York Daily News | comment Comment
09/14/07
Elizabeth Weitzman
Elizabeth Weitzman
New York Daily News

As an adventure-obsessed father released from asylum, Michael Douglas renders a wonderfullly eccentric and manic performance in a feature that should serve as a companion piece to Wonder Boys, his previous high as actor.

Full Review Source: EmanuelLevy.Com | comment Comment
08/21/07
Emanuel Levy
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com

It's barely distinguishable from the many other independent films about eccentric people who do odd things, but hey, it ain't bad.

Full Review Source: EricDSnider.com | comment Comment
12/28/07
Eric D. Snider
Eric D. Snider
EricDSnider.com

However much Douglas might have savored making it, this King deserves no royal welcome.

Full Review Source: One Guy's Opinion | comment Comment
09/24/07
Frank Swietek
Frank Swietek
One Guy's Opinion

A vacuous and boring tale about an outrageous quest for lost treasure.

Full Review Source: Spirituality and Practice | comment Comment
09/15/07
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
Spirituality and Practice

King of California gets an 'A' for effort -- as well as for its fine lead performances -- but the movie just never rises above a trying premise and an unconvincing narrative.

Full Review Source: Reel.com | comment Comment
09/22/07
Gary Goldstein
Gary Goldstein
Reel.com

Good things happen when Michael Douglas exposes his edges to the elements and smudges his screen persona with thick dollops of shadow.

Full Review Source: Newsday | comment Comment
09/13/07
Gene Seymour
Gene Seymour
Newsday
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The success of those sequences only underline how good the film might have been if it wasn't so busy trying to be cute.

Full Review Source: Metromix.com | comment Comment
10/10/07
Geoff Berkshire
Geoff Berkshire
Metromix.com

Michael Douglas plays the year's most lovable cuckoo.

Full Review Source: Compuserve | comment Comment
09/14/07
Harvey S. Karten
Harvey S. Karten
Compuserve
 
 
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