Joe the King

Play trailer

Joe the King

R

Released Jan 22, 1999

1h 41m

Drama

Play Trailer

Watchlist

Watchlist

Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

68%

Tomatometer

28 Reviews

72%

Popcornmeter

1,000+ Ratings

A teen (Noah Fleiss) with an alcoholic, abusive father (Val Kilmer) and a harsh mother (Karen Young) turns to theft to vent his frustrations.

Watch on Fandango at Home

Buy Now

Globe and Mail

Rated: 2.5/4

Mar 22, 2002

Full Review

Marc Savlov

Austin Chronicle

Rated: 3/5

Jan 1, 2000

Full Review

Stephen Holden

New York Times

Rated: 2.5/5

Jan 1, 2000

Full Review

Michele James

Out Magazine

Perhaps the most hopeful note in this despondent yet beautifully poignant tale is that Whaley emerged to tell it.

May 27, 2022

Full Review

Brian Costello

Common Sense Media

Coming-of-age movie with mature themes, lots of profanity.

Rated: 4/5

Jul 12, 2016

Full Review

Felix Vasquez Jr.

Cinema Crazed

Even with warts and all, "Joe the King" is a very worthwhile drama.

Apr 21, 2014

Full Review

Read all reviews

Shock Therapy R

Excellent character development that led to nowhere. Perhaps a documentary on why people, beginning in their youth, are incompatible with "civilized" society, but absolutely no story that is instructive or inspires thought outside the box within which we all live.

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

03/03/23

Full Review

Steve D

Not sure who this drudgery was made for but it wasn't me.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

02/12/23

Full Review

James V

Go back and forth on this movie. I like the realistic elements, but that realism also makes it a boring film.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/27/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Noah Fleiss makes a strong impression in Frank Whaley's exceedingly grim coming-of-age film.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

02/27/23

Full Review

Audience Member

*Worst Movie . Im sorry to say but i hated this movie. The supporting characters don't support him or the story. he fails at everything and just winds up in juvy. That's the entire movie.

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

02/01/23

Full Review

Audience Member

The realistic spanking scene sets the tone of the movie.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/01/23

Full Review

Read all reviews

Read More

Read Less

POST RATING

WRITE A REVIEW

EDIT REVIEW

Frank Whaley

Director

Noah Fleiss

Joe Henry

Val Kilmer

Bob Henry

Karen Young

Theresa Henry

Ethan Hawke

Len Coles

John Leguizamo

Jorge

Show Less Cast & Crew

Show More Cast & Crew

Julien Donkey-Boy

29%

72%

Julien Donkey-Boy

Watchlist

Bringing Out the Dead

73%

70%

Bringing Out the Dead

Watchlist

King of the Jungle

24%

61%

King of the Jungle

Watchlist

Spring Forward

88%

81%

Spring Forward

Watchlist

Boogie Nights

94%

89%

Boogie Nights

Watchlist

Discover more movies and TV shows.

View More

View more photos

Synopsis

A teen (Noah Fleiss) with an alcoholic, abusive father (Val Kilmer) and a harsh mother (Karen Young) turns to theft to vent his frustrations.

Director: Frank Whaley
Producer: Scott Macaulay, Lindsay Marx, Robin O'Hara
Screenwriter: Frank Whaley
Distributor: Trimark Pictures
Production Co: Lower East Side Films, 49th Parallel Productions
Rating: R
Genre: Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jan 22, 1999, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Aug 1, 2009
Box Office (Gross USA): $59.0K
Runtime: 1h 41m

Most Popular at Home Now