Customer Reviews

King Ralph

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

This is a great movie - it was made in 1991 but is still hilarious! John Goodman plays an American who inherits the throne in England and has to deal with the culture shock and his new-found royal obligations. If you liked him in the role of Dan Conner on Roseanne, you will enjoy him in this movie. Peter O'Toole plays his loyal assistant who has to teach him how to act like a king and steals many of the scenes much the way Hobson did in the movie Arthur. I highly recommend this movie! It is very funny and one of those movies you can watch over and over and still crack up every time - and the great thing about DVD is you can skip to the highlights!

HM King Ralph is an exceptionally well done film, and is hilarious footage for the whole family. The movie King Ralph begins with the recent deaths of the entire British Royal Family. Britains then trace back Royal liniage to find that a Casino gambling American (Goodman) is next in line to the British Throne of Whindom. John Goodman brings laughs and spunk into the walls of Buckingham Palace, and an emotional ending leaves you ready to watch it again!

in a word: SUPERIOR

Where to begin? The dry subtle wit of that sly thespian, John Goodman? The breathtakingly succinct portrayal of the supercillious and sinister aristocracy? The tear-jerking and anguished forbidden love of Ralph and what's her name? Whoa! This movie's got it all.

Goodman's masterful command of his roll as the common, beer-drinking, blue-collar Everyman (the most riveting depiction ever in film history) obliterates the shackles of his usual Shakespearean type-casting. What can't this man do? He is clearly the perennial uber-chameleon of stage and screen.

Whether you are trying to find meaning in the existential malaise of our time; searching for a film that would inspire and impart the necessary ethical ideals our children so desperately need and yearn for; or maybe you're just in a mood for mesmerizing adventure, rib-breaking humor, and scintillating romance - do your soul a favor: BUY THIS FILM!

A very good movie indeed, but as a Finnish person I find it completely absurd to have the king of England arrange a reception to the royal family of Finland. Why, you ask? Because Finland hasn't got a king! Finland isn't a country of monarchy but a republic. Still they play the Finnish national anthem right. Doesn't make sense to me whatsoever. This might seem like a tiny and pointless detail to you, but I have to wonder why didn't they pick for example Finland's werstern neighbor Sweden instead, which IS a monarchy?

In spite of all this, the movie is really good. Recommended.

King Ralph rules. I didn't expect this to be a good movie, but I was wrong. Aside from one overlong slapstick episode, King Ralph was a delight. John Goodman, Peter O'Toole and John Hurt are outstanding in this surprisingly warm and entertaining film.

John Goodman shines in this comedy about an American commoner ascending to the British throne in an extremely-unlikely situation. A lot of good acting and funny moments in a seamless plot.

The plot is simplistic, the gags are often infantile and the characters are shallow. That does not stop this film from being funny, as long as nothing cerebral is wanted.

A tragic accident wipes out most of the British royal family. Genealogist scramble to find the next in line to the throne and ulitimately, to their horror, find Ralph, a loser barfly from Las Vegas played by John Goodman.

The culture shock goes beyond European vs. American or even aristocrat vs. plebian. A bigger concern to Ralph is that his life is no longer his own. His tastes in women run towards tarts instead of princesses and his political savvy is nil. Just to keep things complicated, A powerful Lord is scheming to bring about his downfall so that his own family can return to the throne.

Although Ralph is lousy at playing the aristocratic pinnacle, he turns out to be a better king than anybody has any right to expect.

The humor in this movie is almost always at somebody's expense. Sometimes it is the crass American being portrayed and other times it is the pompous Brits. There are some politically incorrect jabs at other as well but they do not take themselves too seriously. The ranking Brits are played by a first string cast including Peter O'Toole. You can almost see him wince at times due to the corniness of some of the situations but, overall, the movie is mindless fun.

Too bad for all the people who either haven't seen this movie and/or for the educated "critics" who've trounced it. Goodman gives perhaps the BEST depiction of Joe Six-pack, the everyday American guy. John Hurt's version of an aristocratic cutthroat is outstanding! O'Toole's character defines the word "regal" FAR better then any attempt to come out of Buick. And let's not forget the stacked Blonde, played by Camille Coduri! Whoa! How can anyone forget the scene before she enters the palace whereas she adjusts her, ahhh, assets.... LOL! This movie has it all and delivers the goods in an appropriate manner. John Goodman was recently on SNL, and cracked a joke about only 7 people going to watch this movie of his when it was in the theaters; everybody laughed...they would have laughed a ...lot more had they seen the thing. WATCH THIS MOVIE!! You'll get many a laughs out of it -- I did.

A Warm Romantic Comedy and at the same time.........An Excellent History Lesson! KING RALPH gives all of its viewers an excellent lesson on the process used in determining the order of succession to the British Throne while, at the same time, doccumenting the trials and tribulations of slightly unrefined Las Vegas Lounge Lizard Ralph Jones (played to the hilt by John Goodman [I was actually kind of impressed by his singing abilities]) during his brief but eventful tenure as King of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Head of the Commonwealth, Defender of the Faith, etc., etc. etc. Ralph, who, at the film's begining, wore a tux bearing a slight resemblence to Reynolds Wrap, is schooled in the art of English Royalty by Sir Cedric Charles Willingham, brilliantly portrayed by Peter O'Toole. Before the film's conclusion, Sir Ced learns some hard lessons of his own. Another character worthy of close attention is the evil Lord Percival Graves, played to villanous perfection by John Hurt. As the last of last of the previous royal line, the Stuarts, he would assume the throne should no Windham (the film pseudonym for Windsor) heir be found. Graves spends the whole film undermining Jones' efforts to learn the tricks of his new trade so he can steal the throne for himself. In the end, he gets his. Ralph is also torn between the duties of his office and his affections for wholesome English beauty Miranda Green (Camille Coduri), a commoner, kind of remeniscent of the Edward VIII/Wallis Simpson Affair, which, incedently, is also mentioned in the film. For a while, it looked as though Ralph would have to settle for Anna, the Finnish Princess with "a voice like a tuba", but "at least the party stunk". By the way, the last time I checked Finland was a REPUBLIC with a PRESIDENT as its Head of State, a minor flaw in an otherwise very enjoyable film. Also, look for Goodman's Carlton Fisk immitation as he attempts to learn the traditional English game of Cricket. Believe it or not, I would recommend that World History teachers show this film to their students, at the same time, they would have some laughs and....horror of horrors......LEARN SOMETHING!

When the British royal family (yes, every one of them!) is wiped out in a tragic photography accident, the hunt is on for an heir to the throne. Unfortunately for Britain, when one is found it turns out to be Ralph Jones (played by John Goodman), an American lounge singer from far over the wrong side of the tracks. As Lord Percival Graves (John Hurt) schemes to dethrone Ralph I, Fredrick Willingham (Peter O'Toole) works feverishly to keep Jones' feet on the straight and narrow. [Color, created in 1991, with a running time of 1 hour, 36 minutes.]

As you can tell from the summary above, this is not a movie to be taken seriously! It is outrageously funny, being both outrageous and funny. The downside is that there is one scene where Ralph goes to a strip club, and several women are seen in less than family-oriented clothing (there's a joke in there somewhere). So, if you have young children, like me, then you will need to hit stop, and fast-forward past the offending scene, as it is too long to simply cue through.

That said, though, for adult viewing, this is a great movie! It has a wonderful, heart-warming message, and is funny without much swearing or any violence. I highly recommend this movie.