Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * *

Cast: Louis Ashbourn Serkis, Rebecca Ferguson, Patrick Stewart, Mark Bonnar, Denise Gough, Dean Chaumbo, Tom Taylor, Rhianna Dorris, Nathan Stewart-Jarrett, Noma Dumezweni, Angus Imrie, Louis Martin, Joey Anash, Adam Leese, Alexandra Roach, Nick Mohammed, Myra McFadyen, Adam Buxton, Genevieve O’Reilly.

It is a desired mirror held up to our uncertain, even dangerous, times that we undoubtedly look to stories and myths in which to console us, to see us through the damage done and the spectres and evils that haunt our land. We look back through time to draw parallels, to join up the dots of mayhem and division, and come to the conclusion that it all comes down to one thing, we have become infatuated with stuff, rather than the joy of simply being free.

There is a reason why the tales of King Arthur, of the legends of the Knights of the Round Table and the perils and glory that lived and breathed in the land of Camelot, it is written in the D.N.A. of the land and was captured superbly by Mallory in a time when division was just as rife, when it was a matter of life and death and religious dogma threatened all who stood in its way. Now of course politics threatens us again, in hate, in inertia, of the weak and self-serving, people are driven to extremes because of this, there is no middle ground because it has been deemed a waste land of opinion, and in all honesty no mythical king is going to come our way,  no magic is going to repair what has been split apart.

Whilst it is enjoyable to think such fancy, it is persuasive to implore in the minds of the young the point of standing up to evils, to get them to embrace a more chivalrous and gallant life, it is also a positive step to remind those whose lives have outgrown such legends that it is possible to turn their back on neglect, to at least facilitate change, and in The Kid Who Would Be King, that reminder, if at times understandably shrouded in cotton wool, is plainly there to be learned.

There is no vagueness to the film, it is aimed rightly at a different generation than other films have been catered for, but it is also a family film, one that reinforces bonds but doesn’t hide away from a couple of tough questions, including of what it means to have responsibility, both to your country and the world, and to those who are your family.

With good performances from Patrick Stewart and Angus Imrie as the older and younger appearing as Merlin, and Louis Ashbourn Serkis as Alexander, The Kid Who Would Be King serves its purpose as an introduction to a legend that we have collectively never fallen out of love with, a simple tale perhaps but one with valuable lessons weaved gently throughout.

Ian D. Hall