Very disappointed :(

Self-important, over-dramatic, uninspired.

This movie was so-so. It had it's moments, but wasn't the greatest.

if their story seems completely bonkers, almost like a feverish work of fiction, you ain't heard nothing yet.

if you're in the mood for a flick with some substance to it, go rent 'the king is alive.' you will not be disappointed! this movie has excellent writing, superb acting, and has a unique video-like cinematography that adds to the grittiness of the picture.when i saw this last month, i was expecting just another survival movie. and, i have to admit, in the first 10 minutes i was a bit put off by the low-budget "look" of it. if this happens to you, just give it 10 minutes, the writing and the characters will reel you in.without spoiling it, this movie is about a group of perfect strangers who get stranded, out in the middle of the African desert. in order to keep their spirits up, they prepare to put on Shakespeares' King Lear.this is an uplifting movie about the strength of the human spirit. I highly recommend it.-pran

One of the Dogme 95, this is the story of a bus load of people who end up lost in the African desert thanks to a non-functioning compass. Stranded at a deserted mining camp the group decides to put on a production of King Lear to pass the time. Tempers and passions flair as emotions become raw and exposed in the burning sun.As with all Dogme films this is low tech and in your face. The people and the emotion are the story. These are films that allow actors to show you how good they are. These are also films that can irritate the hell out of you because very often they come across as extremely contrived. This film is an example of both being a really good actors showcase and being contrived.The problem for me with this film is that at the outset I didn't care about anyone. I found the group to be a bunch of high maintenance people who are now in a situation where they can whine some more. The feeling lessened as time went on and things begin to happen, but it took awhile. I think part of the problem was that I disliked the set up, which seemed far too artificial, though certainly it's plausible.I also wasn't that keen on how some of the film was shot. Like all Dogme 95 films its shot using only hand held cameras so the film has an odd feel at times. It mimics, as some people have pointed out, the look one would get if one had shot the film using a camcorder, which lends a sense of being an actual record, but at the same time it seems careless and jarring, and less than natural, despite the fact it strives to be.I liked this film. I didn't love it. I think I would have liked it more if I had come in a few minutes late and could have thought that I missed something. It's a rather bleak film with some people I didn't care for. It's a hard film to warm up to for that reason. If you're interested in an off beat dark drama I'd give this a try, though I would suggest you weigh your decision against how you feel about any previous Dogme films you've seen.6 out of 10 (your mileage may vary)

The movie is being televised as I write.I simply forgot how horrible an experience I had watching it in the cinema.The whole idea of the movie is flawed. The fact that intelligent Europeans and Americans stranded in the desert forget all concept of morals and civilization within a couple of days is laughable. The madness of Lord of the flies was longer in the making.Details that annoy are plenty. One is the single African god-like character that mysteriously survives the horrible climate and have done so for ages without losing his mind and he seems to have no supply-problems either. Ridiculous. So too is the rescue attempt from the tour guide, an Indiana Jones look-alike, whose rescue attempt ends in tragedy and death a 5 minute walk from the hut. Then there's the choice of Lear, imposed onto the group by a guru-like joke of an artist. He reminded me of my hippie high school art teacher.The worst thing though is Levrings choice of Lear. Obviously is an intellectual brain-fart. How that ever was going to be an pass-time is never clear to me.Positives are few and far between. It's a beautiful movie, but that's never important.High school intellectualism. Weird for the sake of weird. It's a complete waste of time unless you like thrashing useless art movies.

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.