Beautifully shot and played, this tale of a young boy coping with the depression better than his father (who has left him alone in seek of work) trips along nicely, detailing the superkid's adventures in thirties America in rich colours and lavish period detail. Although it could be accused of overdoing the rose-tinted spectacles, it's a warm and mellow look at a dark and grimy time, and includes enough unpleasantness to keep that fact in the viewer's mind. Although the hotel-dwelling salesman living on the edge of subsistence is not a new theme, any more than that of the capable child flourishing in adversity, Soderberg brings a timeless quality and a steady, gentle mood to this piece, making it more about the hearts of the people than the tragic times which are displayed. Jesse Bradford, as the central child, and Adrien Brody as his older friend, really shine. Nice.
60 Reviews
Adrien Brody is a great actor. Soderburg must see this film in order to reinvent his old style.
FilmCriticLalitRao14 June 2007
The good and unique thing about "King of the hill" is that it cannot be pigeonholed. It is neither the run of the mill, hippie dippy graced by the box office Hollywood flick not it is a sensible sample of the American independent movement. It is a film which is rarely made these days. This is because such films are made through a stroke of luck. A must for all the young kids who have ever had a bold direct personal encounter with poverty. Jesse Bradford is a joy to behold. So are Jeroen Krabbe, Splading Gray and Elisabeth Mcgovern. However the crowd puller is the great performance by Adrien Brody. He plays his role with tremendous dedication. Anyone could have easily predicted that he is a star in the making. As far as captain soderburg is concerned. Just a word of advice : kindly reinvent your lost style by watching some of your old films. May be the world might surely benefit due to your watching your own films.
Fine film
AKS-618 August 2000
"King of the Hill" is a great film. The acting is brilliant. Jesse Bradford is a stand out and it's one of those performances where you're awed by the fact that someone that young can be such a fantastic actor (like with Haley Joel Osment in "The Sixth Sense" and Eamonn Owens in "The Butcher Boy"). It's also interesting to see Adrien Brody in an early role as I just noticed him a few weeks ago when I saw "Summer of Sam". The film itself is also a very interesting and touching drama. Bravo Soderbergh! (7/10)
Every Little Bit
don_agu1 January 2005
Over the years this little gem of a film has become a personal favourite. I revisit it continuously, I enjoy showing it to someone who never heard of it and it never fails. The emotions are renewed and reinvigorated with each viewing. Jesse Bradford is simply phenomenal and so is Adrian Brody, yes him, "the kissing pianist" in a remarkable early performance. The face of Karen Allen, as the teacher, listening to Jesse Bradford read his tall tale, profoundly aware that she has someone truly special in her class, is so beautiful that goes in an out of my memory bank more often than the names of some of my closest relatives. Spalding Gray and Elizabeth McGovern's characters deserve a full movie of their own. Lisa Eichhorn's tender fear of having to leave her children behind is just another of the ravishing notes of this stunning film. If you haven't seen it. Give yourself the pleasure. You are going to love every little bit of it.
The best American film of the nineties
AdFin16 February 2002
Without a doubt, I would argue King of the Hill to be the best American film of the 1990's above any other American film you can think of. The subtlety of the performances and the evocative production design pull you into the carefully constructed world of Aaron Kurlander, building the right level oh humour and drama, and never allowing it's self to become bogged down with tacky sentimentality. Steven Soderbergh really out-did himself with this one, and it's by far the best thing he's done, you can forget the overrated, over-hyped Oscar nabbing rubbish of Traffic, this showed a young director willing to experiment with tried and tested film-making techniques and find the right visual language for the film. King of the Hill is a film that is so deliberately paced, and so elegantly put together, that at times it's as though your not watching an American film at all, there is such a European atmosphere that it seems out of place with some of the other U.S. film released in the same year (Jurassic Park, Mrs Doubtfire and Cliffhanger being just three of the top grossing movies of 93).
So is it any wonder that King of the Hill failed to set the box office alight with popcorn based seat fillers like that, I mean, who wants to see the story of a young boy coming of age under the harshest conditions when you can see Robin Williams vacuuming in drag to the sounds of Aerosmith. Yeah, sounds like a safe bet for all the family. But King of the Hill is such a good movie, that the hard-to-describe plot should be overlooked, and people should just give it a chance, they will be so moved by Aaron's plight, and so drawn in by Soderbergh's direction (coupled with Elliot Davis' composition heavy cinematography) and detailed production design that they will not be able to pull themselves away. Added to that the great acting from the entirety of the eclectic cast, that includes Jeroen Krabbe, Spalding Grey, Elizabeth McGovern, Karen Allen, new comers Jesse Bradford and Cameron Boyd, and (then) unknowns Adrien Brody (who was great as Ritchie in Spike Lee's Summer of Sam) and Roswell star Katherine Heigl. Soderbergh's handling of his young actors is nothing short of genius, their characters and characterization is multi-layered to the extent that we never doubt that their characters are real.
King of the Hill is an unbelievable film that, as I have already said, is (in my opinion) the greatest American film of the nineties and should be seen by everyone who is a fan of not just intelligent cinema, but film lover's in general. And it's about time the film got some kind of proper video and/or DVD release, as it's unavailability is scandalous. 10/10
So is it any wonder that King of the Hill failed to set the box office alight with popcorn based seat fillers like that, I mean, who wants to see the story of a young boy coming of age under the harshest conditions when you can see Robin Williams vacuuming in drag to the sounds of Aerosmith. Yeah, sounds like a safe bet for all the family. But King of the Hill is such a good movie, that the hard-to-describe plot should be overlooked, and people should just give it a chance, they will be so moved by Aaron's plight, and so drawn in by Soderbergh's direction (coupled with Elliot Davis' composition heavy cinematography) and detailed production design that they will not be able to pull themselves away. Added to that the great acting from the entirety of the eclectic cast, that includes Jeroen Krabbe, Spalding Grey, Elizabeth McGovern, Karen Allen, new comers Jesse Bradford and Cameron Boyd, and (then) unknowns Adrien Brody (who was great as Ritchie in Spike Lee's Summer of Sam) and Roswell star Katherine Heigl. Soderbergh's handling of his young actors is nothing short of genius, their characters and characterization is multi-layered to the extent that we never doubt that their characters are real.
King of the Hill is an unbelievable film that, as I have already said, is (in my opinion) the greatest American film of the nineties and should be seen by everyone who is a fan of not just intelligent cinema, but film lover's in general. And it's about time the film got some kind of proper video and/or DVD release, as it's unavailability is scandalous. 10/10
Lovely hidden gem
SanTropez_Couch19 April 2003
Steven Soderbergh is a talented, experimental, sometimes avant-garde filmmaker that doesn't make jokey movies (the Coen Brothers) or gimmicky ones (Christopher Nolan) or Tarantino ones. In even his more mainstream movies, he's distinguished. He's one of the few (relatively) young directors that makes "real" movies (not to knock the "fake" ones) about a wide array of subjects. He doesn't need to be cool or ambiguous all the time.
Set in St. Louis in 1933, "King of the Hill" is like a light kids version of "The Pianist" (it's even got Adrien Brody!). The film centers around the 12 year-old Aaron Kurlander, and his family -- his mother, father, and younger brother, Sullivan. The Depression is in full force, and Aaron's parents have come to the agreement that the only way to save money and be able to continue raising their two sons is to have young Sullivan shipped off on a Greyhound bus to live with his uncle. Soon thereafter, Aaron's mother is taken out of the picture when she has to go for a stay at a sanitarium. The family lives in a hotel run by a bank, and Aaron's father isn't paying the bills; soon he's out of the picture when he goes off looking for work, leaving Aaron on his own to fend for himself.
He makes friends with a rich nerdy kid at school when he rescues him from some school marble bullies, and comes up with schemes of how to make money, like having canary's mate, since a newborn will fetch three dollars. He spins tall tales in order to get by at school, like telling his teacher that his parents work for the government. His hunky, older pal also living in the hotel, Lester (Adrien Brody) helps him about; in one incident they end up stealing Aaron's father's car, and with Aaron too small to be able to reach the brake pedal, he ends up going on a scary trip around town.
When one girl from school invites him over for supper, he gets caught in his own web of deceit when the school kids, at an after-graduation party where Aaron wins a special prize, hear different stories about what his parents really are. (Government workers, archaeologists, pilots.) At the same party, he's exposed for what (they think) he is: a poor kid and a teacher's pet.
He befriends a gawky girl in his hotel with a crush on him when she invites him over for hot dogs and dancing, but ends up having some sort of fit on the floor. (Epileptic seizure?)
The cop out in the street is just looking to bust some young punk kid, and the hotel bellhop is just waiting for Aaron to slip up, so he can lock him out of his room. (Look fast for Lauryn Hill as the hotel elevator operator!)
The movie looks great, both in the set deco and the juicy, round cinematography. The music is a plus, and nearly all the performances are first-rate. Jesse Bradford, with his big, expressive eyes, is just terrific as Aaron. He's got an ultra-pleasant face to watch, and his acting is totally fresh, without any hint of affectation. (Unlike his father's strange accent.)
"King of the Hill" is a lovely, great-looking period piece. A sometimes heartwarming, sometimes heartbreaking dramedy without any pretensions to be anything other than a good little gem of a movie. And that it is.
****
Set in St. Louis in 1933, "King of the Hill" is like a light kids version of "The Pianist" (it's even got Adrien Brody!). The film centers around the 12 year-old Aaron Kurlander, and his family -- his mother, father, and younger brother, Sullivan. The Depression is in full force, and Aaron's parents have come to the agreement that the only way to save money and be able to continue raising their two sons is to have young Sullivan shipped off on a Greyhound bus to live with his uncle. Soon thereafter, Aaron's mother is taken out of the picture when she has to go for a stay at a sanitarium. The family lives in a hotel run by a bank, and Aaron's father isn't paying the bills; soon he's out of the picture when he goes off looking for work, leaving Aaron on his own to fend for himself.
He makes friends with a rich nerdy kid at school when he rescues him from some school marble bullies, and comes up with schemes of how to make money, like having canary's mate, since a newborn will fetch three dollars. He spins tall tales in order to get by at school, like telling his teacher that his parents work for the government. His hunky, older pal also living in the hotel, Lester (Adrien Brody) helps him about; in one incident they end up stealing Aaron's father's car, and with Aaron too small to be able to reach the brake pedal, he ends up going on a scary trip around town.
When one girl from school invites him over for supper, he gets caught in his own web of deceit when the school kids, at an after-graduation party where Aaron wins a special prize, hear different stories about what his parents really are. (Government workers, archaeologists, pilots.) At the same party, he's exposed for what (they think) he is: a poor kid and a teacher's pet.
He befriends a gawky girl in his hotel with a crush on him when she invites him over for hot dogs and dancing, but ends up having some sort of fit on the floor. (Epileptic seizure?)
The cop out in the street is just looking to bust some young punk kid, and the hotel bellhop is just waiting for Aaron to slip up, so he can lock him out of his room. (Look fast for Lauryn Hill as the hotel elevator operator!)
The movie looks great, both in the set deco and the juicy, round cinematography. The music is a plus, and nearly all the performances are first-rate. Jesse Bradford, with his big, expressive eyes, is just terrific as Aaron. He's got an ultra-pleasant face to watch, and his acting is totally fresh, without any hint of affectation. (Unlike his father's strange accent.)
"King of the Hill" is a lovely, great-looking period piece. A sometimes heartwarming, sometimes heartbreaking dramedy without any pretensions to be anything other than a good little gem of a movie. And that it is.
****
A Depression Story
gavin69429 March 2017
A young boy struggles on his own in a run-down motel after his parents and younger brother are separated from him in 1930s Depression-era Midwest.
Being based on a memoir, I have to wonder how much of this is fact and how much is fiction. There is nothing fantastical, so I am inclined to believe that it is largely true. However, given that the main character is prone to telling stories, it leaves me to wonder if perhaps the narrator may even have fudged a few things in the process.
Ultimately, it does not really matter either way. The story is enjoyable and the whole thing is very tightly directed and edited. Although not very much actually happens to this kid, it is still fun to watch him get himself into and out of jams... and we have to wonder how much of a con artist the pet store owner is.
Being based on a memoir, I have to wonder how much of this is fact and how much is fiction. There is nothing fantastical, so I am inclined to believe that it is largely true. However, given that the main character is prone to telling stories, it leaves me to wonder if perhaps the narrator may even have fudged a few things in the process.
Ultimately, it does not really matter either way. The story is enjoyable and the whole thing is very tightly directed and edited. Although not very much actually happens to this kid, it is still fun to watch him get himself into and out of jams... and we have to wonder how much of a con artist the pet store owner is.
Spielberg eat your heart out, this is a real feel good movie
ztruk200112 March 2005
Not to be confused with that T.V. show thing. King of the Hill is one of the most vivid film experiences I remember as a child. No, I wasn't lucky enough to catch it on the big screen. Instead I rented it and watched it one night and was totally absorbed into it. Jesse Bradford, despite his current film career, did a damn fine job as Aaron Kurlander, a young boy struggling to survive during the Great Depression. He uses his wits and imagination to make the best out of the worst of times. Bradford was 12 or 13 years old at the time he filmed the movie and as an actor it must've been a heavy burden. The main focus is on him as its his story and shown from his point of view. Bradford doesn't let the ball drop once and more than carries his weight. It's another one of those rare great child performances. Jeroen Krabbé plays Aaron's (Bradford) father who is a struggling traveling salesman. Lisa Eichhorn plays his mentally unstable mother who goes in and out of various institutions. Rounding out the cast of the interesting people that fill Aaron's life are Karen Allen as the warm and understanding school teacher, Cameron Boyd his younger brother, Adrien Brody as the "cool" big brother figure, John McConnell as the fat and troublesome patrol cop, Elizabeth McGovern as a prostitute working in the same hotel Aaron lives at, and Spalding Gray as her creepy, manipulative, and suicidal pimp. So yes the film is filled to the brim with worth while supporting players adding so much depth and dimension to Aaron's world.
Soderbergh had double duty as writer and director. He scripted the novel by A.E. Hotchner and I think it's his best film. As I mentioned it takes place during the Great Depression in St. Louis Missouri. Watching Aaron fight for survival is one of the best charms of the film. It's done realistically. The audience is able to believe his methods. There's a nice mix of drama, dark somber humor and dire situations, but there's also enough humanity and hope in the movie to send an uplifting message. For those who enjoy Andy Dufresne's message of hope and persaverence in the more widely known The Shawshank Redemption, seek out this film. I would argue it's even superior to Frank Darabont's movie. It's one of the great and underrated modern films and ranks with the best using the Great Depression setting. Sadly King of the Hill isn't released yet on DVD and it's not very likely that you'll be able to find it at your local video store. Especially if all you have is the local communist Blockbuster near you. Anyway, King of the Hill should be regarded and known far more highly than what it is. It's a sin for a movie this great to not get its due.
Grade: A+
Soderbergh had double duty as writer and director. He scripted the novel by A.E. Hotchner and I think it's his best film. As I mentioned it takes place during the Great Depression in St. Louis Missouri. Watching Aaron fight for survival is one of the best charms of the film. It's done realistically. The audience is able to believe his methods. There's a nice mix of drama, dark somber humor and dire situations, but there's also enough humanity and hope in the movie to send an uplifting message. For those who enjoy Andy Dufresne's message of hope and persaverence in the more widely known The Shawshank Redemption, seek out this film. I would argue it's even superior to Frank Darabont's movie. It's one of the great and underrated modern films and ranks with the best using the Great Depression setting. Sadly King of the Hill isn't released yet on DVD and it's not very likely that you'll be able to find it at your local video store. Especially if all you have is the local communist Blockbuster near you. Anyway, King of the Hill should be regarded and known far more highly than what it is. It's a sin for a movie this great to not get its due.
Grade: A+
interesting characters
SnoopyStyle16 February 2016
It's 1933 St. Louis. Aaron Kurlander (Jesse Bradford) is an imaginative kid in Miss Mathey (Karen Allen)'s class. Christina Sebastian (Katherine Heigl) is the pretty girl in class. He befriends rich classmate Billy Thompson and puts up a front about his family. His friend Lester (Adrien Brody) gets him a job as a caddy. Ella McShane (Amber Benson) is a shy neighbor who likes him and suffers from seizures. Patrolman Burns is the corrupt cruel traffic cop. Doorman Ben uses Aaron to deliver booze to Mr. Mungo (Spalding Gray) who spends time with call girl Lydia (Elizabeth McGovern). His little brother Sullivan is sent to live with their uncle. His mother (Lisa Eichhorn) goes back to the sanatorium for tuberculosis. His domineering father (Jeroen Krabbé) leaves for a job to sell watches. He is left alone having to survive with only his wits.
This is an interesting place that Steven Soderbergh has brought the audience to. The many side characters are all great. There are so many of them that the movie relies a lot on its young star to keep it together. Jesse Bradford is a competent child actor and he keeps the character compelling. It's a really tough job and it would have been great for him to have a companion best friend. Adrien Brody is the closest character and should have more screen time. I also would like it to take on a darker tone. This reminds me a bit of Barton Fink and it would be great to have more of that tone.
This is an interesting place that Steven Soderbergh has brought the audience to. The many side characters are all great. There are so many of them that the movie relies a lot on its young star to keep it together. Jesse Bradford is a competent child actor and he keeps the character compelling. It's a really tough job and it would have been great for him to have a companion best friend. Adrien Brody is the closest character and should have more screen time. I also would like it to take on a darker tone. This reminds me a bit of Barton Fink and it would be great to have more of that tone.
This is not Norman Rockwell's America
WriterDave5 December 2006
I can recall first seeing "King of the Hill" shorty after its initial release when I wasn't much older than the main character, Aaron (Jesse Bradford, who displays the natural swagger of a young George Clooney here). I was totally enthralled by the story, and this was one of the pieces that ushered in my complete love for and eerie obsession with Depression Era America.
Steven Soderbergh as a director over the years has been wildly all over the map traversing genres and styles from top-notch cracker-jack indie flicks (the superb "Limey") to vapid star-studded populist entertainment (the "Oceans" series) to entertaining star vehicles (the excellent "Erin Brockovich") to overblown misguided message movies ("Traffic") to Kubrickian quandaries (the unfairly maligned "Solaris"). In 1993, still in his formative early years, he hit all the right notes with his vividly detailed and heartbreaking tale of a young boy (Bradford) abandoned in a sleazy hotel room on the edge of a Hooverville in 1933 St. Louise by his flaky salesman father, consumption riddled mother, and little brother who got shipped off to live with relatives so he wouldn't starve to death. The boy lies, steals, woos girls and wins academic awards at school propelled only by his keen wit and innate will to survive. Soderbergh brilliantly abandons almost all sentimentality (the exchanges between the brothers are heartfelt but raw, between mother and son tragically subdued, and between father and son frightfully cold yet honest) and views not the actions of the characters through the lens of our modern moral codes, but through the lens of the era in which the characters survived.
Special note has to be given to the cinematography, which in lesser period pieces can so easily succumb to stylish excess. The film looks real and puts you right there in the middle of this American quagmire. There's also one amazingly rendered shot of a traffic cop holding up a squealing street urchin by the ear after capturing the boy stealing an apple that is so painstakingly lighted and framed that it serves as the complete flip-side of your classic Norman Rockwell painting from the same era.
Viewing this film recently on cable, I was even more transfixed than the first time over thirteen years ago. There's also delight to be found in seeing Oscar winner Adrien Brody in his first major role as Aaron's "big brother" role model, and Grammy winner Lauryn Hill in a nice bit part as a sympathetic gum-chewing elevator operator.
Although historically little seen, this film has been universally lauded, and as the early masterwork of an Oscar winning director, it's a crime that there has been no DVD release.
Steven Soderbergh as a director over the years has been wildly all over the map traversing genres and styles from top-notch cracker-jack indie flicks (the superb "Limey") to vapid star-studded populist entertainment (the "Oceans" series) to entertaining star vehicles (the excellent "Erin Brockovich") to overblown misguided message movies ("Traffic") to Kubrickian quandaries (the unfairly maligned "Solaris"). In 1993, still in his formative early years, he hit all the right notes with his vividly detailed and heartbreaking tale of a young boy (Bradford) abandoned in a sleazy hotel room on the edge of a Hooverville in 1933 St. Louise by his flaky salesman father, consumption riddled mother, and little brother who got shipped off to live with relatives so he wouldn't starve to death. The boy lies, steals, woos girls and wins academic awards at school propelled only by his keen wit and innate will to survive. Soderbergh brilliantly abandons almost all sentimentality (the exchanges between the brothers are heartfelt but raw, between mother and son tragically subdued, and between father and son frightfully cold yet honest) and views not the actions of the characters through the lens of our modern moral codes, but through the lens of the era in which the characters survived.
Special note has to be given to the cinematography, which in lesser period pieces can so easily succumb to stylish excess. The film looks real and puts you right there in the middle of this American quagmire. There's also one amazingly rendered shot of a traffic cop holding up a squealing street urchin by the ear after capturing the boy stealing an apple that is so painstakingly lighted and framed that it serves as the complete flip-side of your classic Norman Rockwell painting from the same era.
Viewing this film recently on cable, I was even more transfixed than the first time over thirteen years ago. There's also delight to be found in seeing Oscar winner Adrien Brody in his first major role as Aaron's "big brother" role model, and Grammy winner Lauryn Hill in a nice bit part as a sympathetic gum-chewing elevator operator.
Although historically little seen, this film has been universally lauded, and as the early masterwork of an Oscar winning director, it's a crime that there has been no DVD release.
Good but not great
LeRoyMarko25 April 2001
Good film by Soderbergh about life in Saint-Louis in 1933, during the Great Depression. It's interesting because we see it through the eyes of a 12 years old, played by Jesse Bradford. Some parts of the films are very emotional and touching, other are just plain Disney-like. The photography is good.
Out of 100, I gave it 76.
Out of 100, I gave it 76.
Neglected Little Gem
ptcan11 November 2005
This is a beautiful movie about an enterprising young man who survives various hardships during the depression. It has a bitter edge but isn't excessive and brings back tales of my grandmother's of how her family coped during the depression. My grandmother's parents were far more functional than the frail ill mother and the traveling salesman father who basically abandons his child to work out of state. I agree with other comments it hardly seems American because it is so deep without smashing the hammer down on our heads. Even though it is harsh I think it is suitable for older children if nothing more than an abject lesson about how real and difficult life really was. The irony is that America still exists to a lesser degree we just don't see it in the movies or on TV.
The "Real" King of the Hill: Studio Intervention in 90s Independent Cinema
mwpm14 January 2014
King of the Hill is an impressive film, and I wanted to like it more than I did, but throughout the film I found myself asking: "Is this the same Soderbergh who made Sex, Lies, and Videotape? The same Soderbergh who would become one of the most innovative and versatile directors of 90s and 2000s American cinema?" The film, however, is encumbered by corny music, cheap sentimentality, and bad special effects. I don't know much about the production, but if I had to guess I'd say that these discrepancies are not the work of Soderbergh, but the studio behind him. Soderbergh was, after all, a fresh faced Independent director looking to find his footing, and landing in Universal Studios. It wouldn't be the first case of studio intervention in 90s Independent Cinema - specifically the early 90s, when Independent Cinema was still on the rise and didn't have the strength it had after the success of films like Clerks, Pulp Fiction, etc. (but before the late 90s and subsequent failure of various studio funded films by "Independent" directors). Universal Studios in particular is notorious for its "intervention". I'd like to refer readers to the case of Terry Gilliam's Brazil. Where the film succeeds, it triumphs. The performance of young Jesse Bradford (in the lead); supporting performances by Spalding Gray, Karen Allen, and a young Adrian Brody; masterful adaptation and direction by Steven Soderbergh... If only the quality was consistent.
No Real Story Line, No Imagination, Awful Script
Snowgo13 September 2015
This film is absent a plot. Since there is really no solid story line, it is just another slice-of-life film. I am somewhat upset and confused that I spent about an hour and a half following this (mostly mute) kid around, waiting for either him to do something major, or for something major to happen to him. Alas, nothing ever happens.
Even when the kid (and the director) is presented with something substantial ( a doomed friendship with Ella, played by Amber Benson), the main character and the film fail to seize the moment and create something for us to focus on. How can a producer con a large Hollywood studio into producing a picture with no real story.., and which subsequently loses over six million dollars at the box office? Is it something to do with tax write-offs or contracts?
Even when the kid (and the director) is presented with something substantial ( a doomed friendship with Ella, played by Amber Benson), the main character and the film fail to seize the moment and create something for us to focus on. How can a producer con a large Hollywood studio into producing a picture with no real story.., and which subsequently loses over six million dollars at the box office? Is it something to do with tax write-offs or contracts?
emotions
Vincentiu31 May 2014
it is not exactly a movie. but a very precise map. for feelings, emotions and essence of a period from American history. example of admirable script and acting, it is a film of strong characters and deep exploration of atmosphere pieces. a touching film who reminds old truths and gives a splendid story. short, a film about courage and hope with a magnificent young Jesse Bradford. one of films who, after years, preserves in its title sound not insignificant memories. a film by Soderbergh who can be useful for many viewers. not only for certainly artistic virtues but for a story not very rare but powerful and convincing in every moment. a real good film. see it !
Moving Memoir With Hard-Won Triumphs & Great Cast of Present & Future Stars
dtb10 September 2009
Warning: Spoilers
Based on A.E. Hotchner's memoirs, writer/director Steven Soderbergh's 1993 adaptation of KING OF THE HILL (KofH) is the poignant, often dark, but ultimately uplifting story of 12-year-old Aaron Kurlander (Jesse Bradford, who comes across as sensitive and resilient at the same time), whose family struggles to get by in St. Louis, Missouri during The Great Depression. Like many of their neighbors, the Kurlanders can barely hold onto their cheap, shabby hotel room, though they do their best to find work and keep up a facade of doing well. Aaron contributes to the charade by telling his classmates wild yet convincingly-told stories of the glamor of his parents' lives as spies and archaeologists hobnobbing with the likes of Charles Lindbergh. Despite the Kurlanders' best efforts, they're slowly pulled apart when Aaron's traveling salesman dad (Jeroen Krabbe) can't make enough money to feed everyone. Soon Aaron's little brother Sullivan (the appealing Cameron Boyd, who looks strikingly like a little-boy version of the Olsen twins back in their FULL HOUSE days) is sent to live with relatives for the time being; Mom (Lisa Eichhorn) has TB, eventually going to a sanitarium; and finally Dad finds a job as a traveling watch salesman in Oklahoma, leaving Aaron to fend for himself and dodge the mean hotel porter to keep from being locked out of the family's apartment.
Aaron tries all kinds of money-making schemes so he can bring his family back home, but it seems like God or Fate or whoever is in charge of KotH's universe insists on bitch-slapping the kid every step of the way. A rich, sympathetic classmate (who doesn't know Aaron's broke because our hero is too proud to admit it) gives Aaron canaries to breed in order to sell them to the pet shop, but when the canaries are born, they're all female, and female canaries don't sing, so all Aaron can get is 50¢ for the lot of them. A pre-PIANIST Adrien Brody, about 19 or 20 during filming, is a raffish presence as Lester, the juvenile delinquent down the hall with a heart of gold and a brotherly attitude towards Aaron. Lester tries to include the kid in jobs such as caddying for rich golfers, but Aaron tees them off by losing the ball in the ball-washing doohickey. Aaron tries to be kind to their neighbor Ella (Amber Benson), a sickly but sweet young girl, but that backfires when she gets so nervous dancing with him that she has an epileptic fit. When Aaron gets a medal during his graduation ceremony (nice bit with Lester there to cheer as Aaron's name is called, what with the Kurlanders being scattered all over the country), even that bit of joy is snatched from him as he overhears jealous classmates whispering that he only got the medal because the school authorities know he's poor and feel sorry for him (yeah, it couldn't possibly be because Aaron gets the best grades and writes imaginative stories and essays that blow those over-privileged brats out of the water).
Over the course of KotH, just about everyone Aaron cares about is either sent away, moves away, dies, or gets arrested. Jeez, if it wasn't one thing, it was another! Interestingly, it seems like every time Aaron has an emotional upheaval, the film becomes more beautiful to look at, thanks to Elliot Davis' golden-hued photography, and yet the film's beauty doesn't cheapen or sentimentalize the painful events our young hero must live through. Aaron and the film's other good guys are kind-hearted, unself-pitying, and earnest enough that I was rooting for them even as I groaned to myself, "Good grief, isn't this poor kid ever gonna catch a break?" Much like the final reel of THE PIANIST, when the resourceful Aaron's plans to reunite his family finally succeed and life becomes good again, it's as much of a relief to us viewers as it is to the Kurlanders. Soderbergh's adaptation of Hotchner's life story often slathers the misery on so thick, I was still afraid something else might go horribly wrong for our beleaguered hero at the last minute. (For instance, as little brother Sullivan jumps up and down on his new bed, I half-expected him to accidentally bounce off the bed and break his neck. Don't worry, he doesn't. :-)). I came away with the feeling that Aaron would never again take the good things in his life for granted. The delicate balance of drama and humor in Soderbergh's fine writing and direction, as well as superb acting from an ensemble that also includes Spalding Gray, Elizabeth McGovern, Karen Allen, and Lauryn Hill -- yup, that Lauryn Hill (who later appeared with Brody in the 1998 indie drama RESTAURANT) -- makes KotH a little gem well worth seeking out on TV, especially since it's still not on DVD but has been on the HBO and Cinemax lineups lately as of this writing. If you like fact-based stories about young people overcoming obstacles, or if you want to catch folks like Brody, Bradford, or a very young Katherine Heigl in memorable early roles, check out KotH.
Aaron tries all kinds of money-making schemes so he can bring his family back home, but it seems like God or Fate or whoever is in charge of KotH's universe insists on bitch-slapping the kid every step of the way. A rich, sympathetic classmate (who doesn't know Aaron's broke because our hero is too proud to admit it) gives Aaron canaries to breed in order to sell them to the pet shop, but when the canaries are born, they're all female, and female canaries don't sing, so all Aaron can get is 50¢ for the lot of them. A pre-PIANIST Adrien Brody, about 19 or 20 during filming, is a raffish presence as Lester, the juvenile delinquent down the hall with a heart of gold and a brotherly attitude towards Aaron. Lester tries to include the kid in jobs such as caddying for rich golfers, but Aaron tees them off by losing the ball in the ball-washing doohickey. Aaron tries to be kind to their neighbor Ella (Amber Benson), a sickly but sweet young girl, but that backfires when she gets so nervous dancing with him that she has an epileptic fit. When Aaron gets a medal during his graduation ceremony (nice bit with Lester there to cheer as Aaron's name is called, what with the Kurlanders being scattered all over the country), even that bit of joy is snatched from him as he overhears jealous classmates whispering that he only got the medal because the school authorities know he's poor and feel sorry for him (yeah, it couldn't possibly be because Aaron gets the best grades and writes imaginative stories and essays that blow those over-privileged brats out of the water).
Over the course of KotH, just about everyone Aaron cares about is either sent away, moves away, dies, or gets arrested. Jeez, if it wasn't one thing, it was another! Interestingly, it seems like every time Aaron has an emotional upheaval, the film becomes more beautiful to look at, thanks to Elliot Davis' golden-hued photography, and yet the film's beauty doesn't cheapen or sentimentalize the painful events our young hero must live through. Aaron and the film's other good guys are kind-hearted, unself-pitying, and earnest enough that I was rooting for them even as I groaned to myself, "Good grief, isn't this poor kid ever gonna catch a break?" Much like the final reel of THE PIANIST, when the resourceful Aaron's plans to reunite his family finally succeed and life becomes good again, it's as much of a relief to us viewers as it is to the Kurlanders. Soderbergh's adaptation of Hotchner's life story often slathers the misery on so thick, I was still afraid something else might go horribly wrong for our beleaguered hero at the last minute. (For instance, as little brother Sullivan jumps up and down on his new bed, I half-expected him to accidentally bounce off the bed and break his neck. Don't worry, he doesn't. :-)). I came away with the feeling that Aaron would never again take the good things in his life for granted. The delicate balance of drama and humor in Soderbergh's fine writing and direction, as well as superb acting from an ensemble that also includes Spalding Gray, Elizabeth McGovern, Karen Allen, and Lauryn Hill -- yup, that Lauryn Hill (who later appeared with Brody in the 1998 indie drama RESTAURANT) -- makes KotH a little gem well worth seeking out on TV, especially since it's still not on DVD but has been on the HBO and Cinemax lineups lately as of this writing. If you like fact-based stories about young people overcoming obstacles, or if you want to catch folks like Brody, Bradford, or a very young Katherine Heigl in memorable early roles, check out KotH.
Really enjoyable
trpdean24 March 2004
Everything works with this one. Really interesting and heart-rending story, great characters, fine sets, lighting, costumes, music, excellent acting.
Someone compared this to The Pianist and I see what he means. It reminds me of a movie like Paper Moon, but whereas I disliked the Tatum O'Neal character (stealing from those who could not afford to lose the money), I really like this boy. I also think the pangs of missing family, what it's like to be a child, are more realistically done in this movie than in Paper Moon.
I really can't imagine anyone who wouldn't like this - it's very mainstream, very good - and in contrast to those who say this reminds them of some European movie, I would say it's as American as apple pie.
I highly recommend it. (It also helps that Lisa Eichorn is my favorite living actress - and Karen Allen would be in the top ten).
Someone compared this to The Pianist and I see what he means. It reminds me of a movie like Paper Moon, but whereas I disliked the Tatum O'Neal character (stealing from those who could not afford to lose the money), I really like this boy. I also think the pangs of missing family, what it's like to be a child, are more realistically done in this movie than in Paper Moon.
I really can't imagine anyone who wouldn't like this - it's very mainstream, very good - and in contrast to those who say this reminds them of some European movie, I would say it's as American as apple pie.
I highly recommend it. (It also helps that Lisa Eichorn is my favorite living actress - and Karen Allen would be in the top ten).
Soderbergh's usual technical mastery, but more heart
sacusanov21 November 2005
As Soderbergh has risen to the stratosphere of Hollywood enablers, he seems to have replaced character with something else -- odd collections of in-jokes, hand ringing and Oscar-worthy speeches. If he's connected with the pulse of America, he has done so by losing the pulse of his stories. Even his small anti-commercial films seem to have lost their human touch. Oh, they're fun, and technically masterful all -- but looking back only this one suggests the small Satyajit Ray style humanist Soderburgh might have become if he didn't have the mega-hit touch. A part of me mourns the loss, though another part of me imagines how horribly treakly Erin Brockovich would have been with any other helmer. I've spent a lot of good hours watching his works, but only a couple great hours, and this 1 hour and 43 minutes of greatness
Coming of age drama...
AlsExGal29 January 2023
... set in 1933 Missouri, from director Steven Soderbergh, based on the autobiographical book by A. E. Hotchner. It's the height of the Great Depression, and the family of young boy Aaron (Jesse Bradford) is struggling to survive. Younger brother Sullivan (Cameron Boyd) is sent away to live with relatives, mother (Lisa Eichorn) is sick with a serious illness and must be sent to a hospital, and salesman dad (Jeroen Krabbe) must travel far and wide for his job, meaning Aaron is eventually left for fend for himself.
This is one of most evocative Depression-set films that I've seen that weren't actually made during the Depression. The performances are good, with Bradford a standout in the lead. The supporting characters are vivid and memorable. I only vaguely recall hearing about this movie when it came out, and nothing really since, but it should be better known. Recommended. By the way, the author of the source book and the character played by Bradford, writer A. E. Hotchner, lived to be 102, dying just three years ago.
This is one of most evocative Depression-set films that I've seen that weren't actually made during the Depression. The performances are good, with Bradford a standout in the lead. The supporting characters are vivid and memorable. I only vaguely recall hearing about this movie when it came out, and nothing really since, but it should be better known. Recommended. By the way, the author of the source book and the character played by Bradford, writer A. E. Hotchner, lived to be 102, dying just three years ago.
Shattering and unforgettable
joelovesbabs10 August 2003
Soderbergh delivers a heartfelt story that is both entertaining and compelling, without getting too overly sentimental, but moving and inspiring nevertheless. The impeccable cast includes a smashing young Jesse Bradford and a very appealing Adrien Brody in an early role. A definite must.
St. Louis Blues
slokes9 March 2015
A coming-of-age story set in the nadir of the Great Depression, "King Of The Hill" presents a series of episodes as seen by adolescent Aaron Kurlander (Jesse Bradford), whose descent into full-on poverty and seeming abandonment while holed up in a seedy St. Louis hotel doesn't deprive him of his wit or imagination. The more circumstances place him on the narrowest margins of life, the more he bears down.
Summarizing "King Of The Hill" is much less easy than simply enjoying it. Taken from the memoir of A. E. Hotchner, "King Of The Hill" is not so much a single story but a series of vignettes involving Aaron's experiences during the spring and summer of 1933. The pictures are often beautiful, sunlight streaming everywhere without a cloud in the sky, but you always see the sweat on the faces.
As Aaron tells his younger brother Sullivan (Cameron Boyd): "All the important stuff can't be taught. It has to be learned."
For Aaron, this means faking it. A lot. The movie opens with him in a fancy public school where he isn't supposed to be, reading aloud his tale of receiving a phone call from Charles Lindbergh just before the latter's solo flight across the Atlantic. Later, he tells Sullivan how not to get in trouble when filching meals from more advantaged classmates. "I told you a thousand times, you only take food from the fat kids, and you never take a kid's dessert."
All this could be grim material in another director's hands, but Steven Soderbergh applies a delicate touch throughout, aided by the sterling lenswork of Eliot Davis and a beguiling score (by Cliff Martinez and Michael Glenn Williams) mixed with some understated period music.
Everything is understated in "King Of The Hill." There are some rotten characters about, like a bullying cop and a nasty bellhop at the poorly-named Empire Hotel, which is in the process of tossing their many indigent tenants out. But most of the people Aaron meets, even the rich ones, are decent. A well-heeled boy named Billy (Chris Samples) shows Aaron how to make some money breeding canaries, while his teacher (Karen Allen) does what she can to help Aaron despite knowing he lives outside her district.
In the excellent DVD package put out by Criterion, Soderbergh expresses some dissatisfaction with "King Of The Hill," wishing he had made it "grittier." I doubt the film would be such a sleeper for so many had it taken a harder approach. We see Aaron alone in his apartment, in fear of being locked out (his often-absent father owes $172 he can't pay), making due with a meal from pictures of food cut out of a magazine, while outside the streets roar with the din of policemen tearing down a nearby Hooverville. You need the humor and the beauty to cut away from that and give us a window into Aaron's fertile, optimistic mind.
Bradford is brilliant and affecting in the lead role, aided by a colorful supporting cast that includes Spalding Gray as a mysterious, down-on-his-luck man across the hall; Adrien Brody as Aaron's streetwise pal; and Amber Benson as a sickly neighbor named Ella who nurses a crush on Aaron, who tries to be nice but isn't yet interested in such things. Even rap star Lauryn Hill is on hand as an elevator operator, and a pre-teen Katherine Heigl, too, as a well- off classmate whom Aaron tries to impress with stories of his parents being lost on an archaeology expedition.
"They've been lost lots of times," Aaron says, trying to tamp down her responsive anxiety, in a scene that might be more tragic if it wasn't so funny.
There are glimmers of hope in this bleak vision, but even the ending leaves you feeling more unsettled than reassured. There are no easy answers in the world Aaron lives in, just a precious will to endure.
The lack of a central, unifying story makes "King Of The Hill" a challenge to enjoy as thoroughly as one might, and there's sometimes a patness to the way good and bad things happen for Aaron. But overall, "King" is triumphant, and a film that stays with you when it is over.
Summarizing "King Of The Hill" is much less easy than simply enjoying it. Taken from the memoir of A. E. Hotchner, "King Of The Hill" is not so much a single story but a series of vignettes involving Aaron's experiences during the spring and summer of 1933. The pictures are often beautiful, sunlight streaming everywhere without a cloud in the sky, but you always see the sweat on the faces.
As Aaron tells his younger brother Sullivan (Cameron Boyd): "All the important stuff can't be taught. It has to be learned."
For Aaron, this means faking it. A lot. The movie opens with him in a fancy public school where he isn't supposed to be, reading aloud his tale of receiving a phone call from Charles Lindbergh just before the latter's solo flight across the Atlantic. Later, he tells Sullivan how not to get in trouble when filching meals from more advantaged classmates. "I told you a thousand times, you only take food from the fat kids, and you never take a kid's dessert."
All this could be grim material in another director's hands, but Steven Soderbergh applies a delicate touch throughout, aided by the sterling lenswork of Eliot Davis and a beguiling score (by Cliff Martinez and Michael Glenn Williams) mixed with some understated period music.
Everything is understated in "King Of The Hill." There are some rotten characters about, like a bullying cop and a nasty bellhop at the poorly-named Empire Hotel, which is in the process of tossing their many indigent tenants out. But most of the people Aaron meets, even the rich ones, are decent. A well-heeled boy named Billy (Chris Samples) shows Aaron how to make some money breeding canaries, while his teacher (Karen Allen) does what she can to help Aaron despite knowing he lives outside her district.
In the excellent DVD package put out by Criterion, Soderbergh expresses some dissatisfaction with "King Of The Hill," wishing he had made it "grittier." I doubt the film would be such a sleeper for so many had it taken a harder approach. We see Aaron alone in his apartment, in fear of being locked out (his often-absent father owes $172 he can't pay), making due with a meal from pictures of food cut out of a magazine, while outside the streets roar with the din of policemen tearing down a nearby Hooverville. You need the humor and the beauty to cut away from that and give us a window into Aaron's fertile, optimistic mind.
Bradford is brilliant and affecting in the lead role, aided by a colorful supporting cast that includes Spalding Gray as a mysterious, down-on-his-luck man across the hall; Adrien Brody as Aaron's streetwise pal; and Amber Benson as a sickly neighbor named Ella who nurses a crush on Aaron, who tries to be nice but isn't yet interested in such things. Even rap star Lauryn Hill is on hand as an elevator operator, and a pre-teen Katherine Heigl, too, as a well- off classmate whom Aaron tries to impress with stories of his parents being lost on an archaeology expedition.
"They've been lost lots of times," Aaron says, trying to tamp down her responsive anxiety, in a scene that might be more tragic if it wasn't so funny.
There are glimmers of hope in this bleak vision, but even the ending leaves you feeling more unsettled than reassured. There are no easy answers in the world Aaron lives in, just a precious will to endure.
The lack of a central, unifying story makes "King Of The Hill" a challenge to enjoy as thoroughly as one might, and there's sometimes a patness to the way good and bad things happen for Aaron. But overall, "King" is triumphant, and a film that stays with you when it is over.
A wonderful film!
JimC-79 July 2005
What a wonderful film. So evocative of the 1930s.
Jesse Bradford was terrific as the main character. I had the opportunity in 2004 while working as an extra on Oceans 12 in Chicago to tell the director of "King of the Hill", Steven Soderbergh, what a great film he made (He said "thank you"). How did he ever find such a beautiful story and get the job to direct the film? An overlooked classic! I was glad to see recently that Jesse Bradford has been making a career as an adult actor now, appearing in several recent films, and he will be one of the lead characters in Clint Eastwoods's upcoming production, "Flags of our Fathers", due out in 2006. Also, with Jesse's training in film studies in college, I predict that he will turn to directing movies as he gets more experience, and what better mentor than Clint Eastwood! Be sure to see "king of the Hill", i believe you will love it.
Jesse Bradford was terrific as the main character. I had the opportunity in 2004 while working as an extra on Oceans 12 in Chicago to tell the director of "King of the Hill", Steven Soderbergh, what a great film he made (He said "thank you"). How did he ever find such a beautiful story and get the job to direct the film? An overlooked classic! I was glad to see recently that Jesse Bradford has been making a career as an adult actor now, appearing in several recent films, and he will be one of the lead characters in Clint Eastwoods's upcoming production, "Flags of our Fathers", due out in 2006. Also, with Jesse's training in film studies in college, I predict that he will turn to directing movies as he gets more experience, and what better mentor than Clint Eastwood! Be sure to see "king of the Hill", i believe you will love it.
Good Depression-era flick
zetes10 March 2013
A charming and gentle period piece set during the Depression. Jesse Bradford stars as a teen whose family, along with so much of America, is not doing well financially. They've moved into a hotel, and the father's traveling salesman gig is going terribly. Bradford's younger brother is sent away to their uncle's place and, soon after, his mother has to go stay in a sanitarium. Finally, his father gets a job selling watches out west, and is forced to leave Bradford alone in the hotel room, surviving on a very small sum. Bradford's a resourceful kid, but he struggles to outlast the ordeal. Jeroen Krabbe and Lisa Eichhorn play Bradford's parents. Other familiar faces include Spalding Gray, Elizabeth McGovern, Karen Allen and Adrien Brody (I don't think I'd ever seen him in a movie before The Pianist, although, looking it up, apparently he shows up in an uncredited role in Natural Born Killers). The film is somewhat reminiscent of the classic Depression-era film Wild Boys of the Road, though this one is actually a lot less gritty. This film has never been available on DVD (it was on VHS), but it has recently popped up on Netflix Instant. It streams in its original aspect ratio and, all around, it looked gorgeous.
Beating Depression in St. Louis
pmarquis10 February 2006
I enjoyed this movie more than I thought I would. This is an evocative tale of life before food banks and the welfare system. Watching the young protagonist pretend he enjoyed eating his "delicious" cut-from-a-magazine food was pretty poignant. The performances put in by the young actors are believable without being too sappy. Jesse Bradford is charming. Also worth seeing is Adrien Brody. He sparkles with a to-the-gut vitality. But in the end it is the kid's grit and determination that holds this movie together. His pride in himself and his dogged pursuit of his creativity, integrity and ingenuity makes this movie worth seeing. A great scene to be on the look out for is when the beautiful gum-snapping elevator girl gives the young Aaron a graduation gift. In addition, I especially enjoyed John McConnell's performance as the mean "Big Butt" cop. I'm pretty sure he was also in the recent Ladykillers with Tom Hanks. He's fun to watch.
Perfect Film
A_Different_Drummer19 September 2015
Simple review.
When Olympic judges rate a performance, they look for flaws and deduct accordingly.
When beauty contest judges look at a pretty girl, they do not look at what works, they look at what doesn't.
Same with film reviews.
I watched mesmerized. One of the most perfect films I have ever seen. Perfect casting, action, direction, writing, pacing, music.
Possibly one of the most perfect films ever.
And, most astonishing of all, not well known even to film buffs.
When Olympic judges rate a performance, they look for flaws and deduct accordingly.
When beauty contest judges look at a pretty girl, they do not look at what works, they look at what doesn't.
Same with film reviews.
I watched mesmerized. One of the most perfect films I have ever seen. Perfect casting, action, direction, writing, pacing, music.
Possibly one of the most perfect films ever.
And, most astonishing of all, not well known even to film buffs.
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