The King of Kings Review
It’s a strange time for faith-based cinema. Gone are the days of Ben-Hur or The Ten Commandments, epic tales from the Bible backed generously in Hollywood’s golden era. In the decades since, Christian films have been relegated to lower-budget, modest independent flicks often released direct-to-video. As the West has embraced modernity, stories of Christ have seldom left the Church bookshelf. This is what makes The King of Kings even more fascinating. Is it another retelling of the gospels? Yes. Is it independent? Yes. But the crucial difference is that it’s a theatrical release featuring a star-studded Hollywood cast.
Loosely based on The Life of Our Lord, the film follows Charles Dickens (Kenneth Branagh), who, to bond with his son, tells him the biography of Jesus Christ. Branagh takes on a narrative role here, for which his commanding voice is apt. It’s heartwarming to see an animated Dickens and son walking through the 1st Century, although the connection feels flimsy. Whilst the real Charles Dickens indeed wrote a private Biblical retelling for his children, his faith was more philosophical than dogmatic. Perhaps the filmmakers’ attempt to sew these historical figures together took priority ahead of any logical reasoning behind it. But this is a children’s film, and logic may not be the sturdiest foundation to build a children’s film on.
Aside from Branagh, the film brims with talents like Uma Thurman, Pierce Brosnan, and Ben Kingsley. Oscar Isaac takes on the titular role, and the chemistry between the cast feels genuine. There are no glaring faults here, but the standout performance goes to Mark Hamill’s Herod. The actor’s signature raspy, frying voice pairs so well with the Biblical villain. Although it’s somewhat reminiscent of his role as The Joker, Hamill’s delivery reminds viewers of his knack for playing animated bad guys with such flair. Although they sound terrific, it’s the way these characters look that poses the biggest problem for The King of Kings. With blocky heads and elongated necks, they look like half-done leftovers from the first Ice Age, without any of the early 2000s’ charm. It’s easy to ignore when one can focus on dialogue, but a few moments of Jesus gazing around inadvertently thrust his dense appearance back to the forefront.
Overall, there’s little to disappoint in The King of Kings, and although it’s not exactly a golden age Epic, it certainly stands out in 2025’s slew of releases. Its 100-minute runtime keeps things brisk yet still packs a surprising amount of depth. Whilst the characters look void of any nuance, they are delivered with class by an experienced and ionate cast. It’s a solid effort all around, and at the very least, it’ll capture children’s imaginations, even if it points them to better-told stories first.
★★★
In UK cinemas on April 11th / Oscar Isaac, Kenneth Branagh, Roman Griffin Davis, Pierce Brosnan, Uma Thurman, Mark Hamill, Ben Kingsley, Forest Whitaker / Dir: Seong-ho Jang / Angel Studios / PG
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