The King

A film set in Texas. Elvis is discharged from the navy. He has a car, a suitcase and an address. The address is a church. David preaches there; he has a large congregation, is respected, and lives with his family. Elvis is his son. Years ago the man was with a woman and never told anyone the child existed. He goes to the church. He introduces himself and is refused; the man tells him not to come again. Then Elvis chooses another route. Malerie is sixteen and David's daughter. Elvis meets her and does not say who he is. From there the film is a story of infiltration. Meetings, lies, a motel room, and a family drawing steadily closer. There is Paul as well. David's son runs a campaign against evolution at school and is looking for his father's approval. What the narrative is interested in is not revenge but acceptance: what Elvis wants is left uncertain; whether to do harm or to take a place, the film never makes clear. Religion is inside the narrative. The preacher is not drawn as a hypocrite; he genuinely believes, and that is exactly what makes carrying his past impossible. The tone is cold. The camera keeps its distance, there is little music, and the violence is never raised. Gael García Bernal plays the part deliberately blank. What the character thinks cannot be read in any scene. Gael García Bernal, William Hurt, Pell James and Laura Harring are in the cast. James Marsh directed and co-wrote. Who it is for: anyone who likes cold American provincial drama. Who it is not for: anyone expecting explanation; the narrative justifies no behaviour and the ending is left entirely suspended.