The new animated biblical epic from Angel Studios, “The King of Kings” directed by Seong-ho Jang, is in peak discussion among the critics. The film is inspired by Charles Dickens’ classic “The Life of Our Lord.”
The film features the voices of Oscar Isaac, Pierce Brosnan, Uma Thurman and Kenneth Branagh according to IMDb. In the film, a father shares bedtime stories of the life of Jesus to his son.
The boy, with a big imagination, finds himself on a journey that allows him to learn alongside Jesus while witnessing life changing trials and miracles.
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The end credits scene features a new song, “Live Like That” by Kristin Chenoweth, as previously reported by the Deseret News.
How are critics receiving the new film?
- Film critic Kevin Maher with the Times UK gives "The King of Kings" a “rotten” review on Rotten Tomatoes, calling it “a faith-based South Korean animation with a top-tier voice cast and a penchant for interrupting pivotal moments from the Bible with nonsense slapstick involving a wacky 19th-century house cat.”
- Film critic Carlos Aguilar with Variety said, “To explain Passover and the exodus, as well as Adam and Eve’s exile from paradise, the filmmakers briefly use graphic animation that more closely resembles book illustrations, but that’s as far as formal inspirational goes in this South Korea-produced project, ripe for a Sunday youth group but not much else.”
- Film critic Leslie Felperin with The Guardian said, “It rather drags out what is already a pretty long running time given the attention capacity of its target audience.” While Felperin was underwhelmed with the film, she said, “The whole package isn’t on a par with the best biblical epics, but it’s serviceable enough.”
- Film critic Linda Marric with HeyYouGuys said, “With a creative narrative structure, a talented voice cast, and a sincere emotional core, it is a film that will resonate with families and faith-based audiences alike.”
- Film critic Alissa Wilkinson with The New York Times said, “As a Christian — and as a movie critic — I would like to say this loudly, with my whole chest: This movie doesn’t need to exist. I have grown weary of people telling me they think Hollywood has ‘run out of ideas’ in an age of reboots and remakes — a sentiment I agree with, by the way — when movies like this one are made, often with the aim of pleasing those exact complainers."
