Christian Parent Movie Review

of The Kid Who Would Be King

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Adventure. History. Comedy. Moral lessons. These are all the elements necessary for a movie to get on my recommended list. But the movie must not have foul language or other elements that I don’t need my children seeing. So in this Christian parent movie review of A Kid Who Would be King, I will answer the following questions? Is it worth seeing? What age range is it suitable for? And most importantly – what elements should parents be aware of?

Synopsis for Christian Parent Review of A Kid Who Would be King:

The Kid Who Would Be King is set in present-day London. Alex, played by Louis Ashbourne Serkis, is a 12 year old boy who is not afraid to stand up for his one true friend, Bedders (Dean Chaumoo) even if it means getting beat up and detention himself. When he runs away from the school bullies, he enters a construction site where he finds a sword sticking in a concrete barrier. Is this the legendary sword in the stone? And will Alex be the one true king? 

Alex manages to convince his enemies, Lance (Tom Taylor) and Kaye (Rhianna Dorris) to join him on his quest to save the world against the evil Morgana.

THE GOOD:

Young Merlin (Angus Imrie) and Old Merlin (Patrick Stewart) are both excellent in their roles. The movie is entertaining and had me laughing out loud several times. The storyline takes an epic tale and sets it in the modern day. I am sure young kids will appreciate the modern twist on this centuries old story. 

WHAT PARENTS NEED TO KNOW:

There is plenty to warn parents about. While this movie is rated PG, I do feel like it just skirts a PG-13 rating. 

Language: D-mn, hell and Oh My G-d are used. But there are other sayings such as, “What the flip’s happened?” 

Scare Factor:

There are many “scary” moments throughout the film. The movie begins with scenes depicting evil throughout the world. In addition to the depressing outlook, there are homeless people on the sidewalks, a fight on the bus, and increasing mayhem throughout the world.

Morgana talks before you see her. Her voice is low and whisperlike, but is pure evil in tone. The scenes where Morgana is part of the tree are just weird, but when Morgana shapeshifts into “part Gollum, part dragon, and part Noel Fielding” (from the Great British Baking Show), the result is dark and creepy. Morgana’s army appears as dead skeleton men on skeleton horses. These creatures rise up out of the ground and are ominous. These creatures definitely have a Lord of the Rings feel to them.

While there is plenty of fighting throughout the movie, no one besides the evil characters, are seriously injured. There is little blood – in one scene blood is on Alex after a fistfight. 

Other elements: We see scenes of bullying in the school. Alex disobeys his mom. There are characters who lie. Merlin says he needs beetle blood, beaver urine, and animal bone to sustain himself. There is plenty of “magic” within the movie – reproducing swords and coins, Merlin turning into an owl. 

TEACHABLE LESSONS:

My favorite line of the movie is “Evil turns people against each other.” This is such a fitting line for our current culture. Most people who are fighting and arguing believe they are good people, but they have bought into the way evil works pitting one person against another. The code within the movie has such moral lessons as honesty, honor and doing the right thing. 

RECOMMENDATION:

While I do recommend this film for the family, I do so with the following reservation – this films thematic elements can be scary for children. Therefore, my age recommendation is ages 8-10 and up. My 14-year-old autistic son was bothered by the evil within the film. Exercise extreme caution when taking sensitive children to see this movie.

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To READ More Movie Reviews – See my Review of Mary Poppins Returns HERE