Joe the King
Tags: violence, autobiographical, romantic

Plot synopsis:
14-year-old Joe Henry (Noah Fleiss) has spent his life in an abusive household. His father Bob (Val Kilmer) is a raging violent alcoholic, while his mother, Theresa (Karen Young) feels too stressed to pay attention to him and lives in fear of getting caught in the path of her husband's wrath. His brother, about a year older, is normal and friendly, but offers no affirmative guidance. He mostly ignores Joe as he doesn't want the association of Joe's natural uncoolness ruining his attempts to get into the "in" crowd. Joe is taunted by his classmates, and hassled by creditors about his father's mounting bills. To make matters worse, one night Bob goes off the deep end and smashes all of Theresa's records. In response to economic pressure, Joe takes a full-time job after school, leaving him tired and even less able to keep up with class work. Far worse, he becomes a petty thief to raise the money to pay Bob's bills and replace her records. He even does an insider job—robbing the diner where he works illegally.
Failing in school, Joe is assigned a Guidance counselor Leonard Coles (Ethan Hawke), who, though reasonably friendly, is incompetent. (For example, in their first session, when Joe starts to talk about his problems, the counselor unthinkingly shuts him off). Disaster eventually strikes, and Joe faces the rest of his seemingly doomed life in doubt. Ironically, where he winds up next seems more like hope than tragedy. Perhaps a chance to get away from his horrible childhood and family.

Review: by Dane YoussefFrank Whaley's "Joe The King" has been called by the filmmaker himself "semi-autobiographical." And such a story about so much misery just makes to almost want to see it just to see how this guy got where he is today.
Is there a happy ending?" Like lots of actor-helmed vehicles, this one's loaded with big name walk-ons, "Joe The King" is also chock-full of trite and truths to life--the lead that seems to be born into the hard-luck life of an abusive alcoholic father, the weak whimpering mother who doesn't care if her husband pounds on her kids as long as he doesn't pound on her, the guidance counselor who's all thumbs--aren't they all?
The knife is further pushed and twisted when she makes it personal by muttering angrily so he can hear, "Just like your father..."Whaley is clearly dealing with old wounds and knows how to use them so they feel fresh and make you cringe and relate.
It takes place in the 1970's to be sure, but this feels timeless.Noah Fleiss gives the best performances he's probably ever given, although how many movies has he really made?
Kilmer, known for playing dazzling roles and pretty-boy parts, puts on a great deal of weight and shows nastier edges that he has since "The Doors." Since Whaley and Kilmer first worked together in that film, Whaley obviously saw how powerfully Kilmer could play a violent sadist, always under narcotic influence.
Whaley seems to capture the flavor for this kind of working class life and seems to bring out the best in child actors, as well as his more distinguished adult friends and peers.
And the characters are believable without being too fresh.Writer/director Whaley does an effective job of capturing the atmosphere of this Upstate New York working-class life and bring out the best in child actors and big-name celebrity walk-throughs.
"Joe The King" is kind of an acquired taste, like many coming-of-age stories.
Featured at the 1999 Toronto Film Festival, the directorial debut from the talented actor Frank Whaley "Joe The King" was introduced by Frank's long-time friend Ethan Hawke and the film's main actor Noah Fleiss.
Frank couldn't present the film because he was only just getting into Toronto at the airport but happily agreed to a Q&A afterwards.The film portrays with stunning clarity a bleak period in the life of Joe, a fourteen year old boy from a lower class neighbourhood whose father is an alcoholic and works as a janitor in Joe's school.
Joe works in a restaurant after school and in all aspects of his life he's surrounded by people who look down on him, talk down to him and sometimes beat on him.
The world that Joe lives in is so fully constructed and detailed that it's easy to forget you're watching a film and not a documentary.What was revealed in the Q&A afterwards, was that Whaley wrote this film as a conglomerate of his brother and his own experiences growing up.
What Joe goes through on a daily basis is what this story is about, what is likely to stir you, and not the pivotal event in the later part of the film.
And as a young Joe looks into the camera at the end of the film, holding there for a moment.
He couldn't have asked for a better young lead than Noah Fleiss to play so convincingly Joe the King.
Frank Whalley is a man capable of getting a lot out of his cast, having been in that position himself.The film is a disturbing account on a family that appears to be beyond dysfunctional.
As seems to be the case with men in this situation, Bob vents his frustrations with whoever crosses him, as we watch in horror the way he beats his wife.Joe, the sensitive young son, is ridiculed in school by a teacher at a tender age, where compassion for his state in life would have worked better.
The only kindness Joe receives is from the teacher counselor in his school.The best achievement for the director is the acting quality he gets from his cast.
Noah Fleiss, who portrays Joe, is the best thing in the film.
Ethan Hawke plays the kind hearted teacher and Camryn Manheim is the horrible one."Joe the King" deserves a viewing because of the excellent direction of Frank Whalley..
This film is hauntingly realistic of those kids in school who weren't like the rest of us.
So it was that I saw the promise of Noah Fleiss, as shown in Josh and S.A.M., bloom to fruition in his mature performance in this wonderful film.Joe is a youngster living in poverty and deprived of love.
Remarkably Joe is totally unselfish and, having slaved to earn cash just to survive and to improve the lives of those close to him, he is gradually driven more and more into crime.I watched this film with two friends and the three of us were so captivated by this touching story that none of us moved or uttered a word until long after the credits had finished rolling.
Young Noah Fleiss is absolutely heart-breaking as the morally corrupt child of an abusing father, played by Val Kilmer in his most earnest dramatic role.
Whaley's movie, drawn from his own life, is a touching, moving indie that should have gotten better notice..
Joe the King is about a boy, who having been raised in a broken home with an abusive drunken dad and absent mom, heads the wrong path by stealing ever bigger things and eventually having to face the consequences for it.
His only salvation is the crack that has opened between him and his parents, and the humanistic nature to do good in him that has been so overcome by the other things in his daily life.We're shown Joe coming from a broken home, which is pretty standard in these kinds of movies.
Instances like giving away most of the ho-ho's that he just stole to a bunch of hungry kids than gathered around him, to him going out of his way to steal food from the grease spoon joint that he works in so that his brother won't go hungry, along with doing the big heist to pay off his forever in-debt father and replace all his mom's records, which were broken in one of his father's drunken rage.
He still have mountains of hurdle ahead, but the light at the end of the tunnel have gotten a bit brighter.The movie takes its time telling the story without forcing the big event to happen until the characters are fully developed.
This movie is so good it transcends your own personal tastes and glues you to your seat - you remain mesmerized until the end.The only weak link in this movie is the choice of Val Kilmer as Joe's father.
There is no you, only the characters you are watching - their lives flow past you like a melancholy melody leaving you alone as a spectator like the proverbial "fly on the wall." You disappear into the film - there is no higher praise.Young Mr. Peter Tambakis does a stellar performance who is incredibly adept at acting beyond his age.
Now, thirty years on, and I wonder what horror stories the 80's and 90's have bred and who will get the funding to tell us all about it."Joe the King" doesn't quite work, for several reasons, least of which is the fact we can't really feel for him.
Thus was the case for me with "Joe the King," a lethargic, pointless film that offers virtually nothing in the way of revelation or entertainment.
Whenever I watch a film like Frank Whaley's Joe the King, it reminds me how grateful I am to have the family I have, the opportunities I have, the privileges I have, and the love had for me.
Counting these blessings only becomes easier after witnessing a film like Joe the King.The film stars Noah Fleiss as the titular character, a fourteen-year-old who has spent his life victim to physical and emotional abuse by his violent, alcoholic father Bob (Val Kilmer) and his short-tempered mother Theresa (Karen Young), who doesn't make up for the lack of attention brought on by his father.
Joe works to buy his mother all the vinyls his father trashed in a drunken rage, while also trying to keep his criminal profile as subtle as it can be without him getting caught.The idea behind Joe the King is incredibly intriguing, focusing on a young boy who, through all the abuse and neglect, still loves and deeply cares for his parents, which is a rarity in these kinds of films.
However, Joe's desire to help his dad out personally and repay his mother for something he had no involvement in makes Joe the King unique in the department of coming of age films.Fleiss is great as Joe, clearly possessing the traits of an actor who can show no emotion or a lot of it, depending on what the scene calls for.
Even his guidance counselor (Ethan Hawke) bears a frustrating emptiness in Joe's mind, really proving to himself that he can't trust anyone and only has himself to rely on.The only issue with the writing (done by Whaley himself) is that the film spends too much time on Joe, so much so that the supporting characters in his life are subtly developed and only given vague and rather broad stereotypes to work off of.
Whaley treads a fine line between committing contemptible actions as a poor, loathsome character and having sympathy for the offender nicely, making Joe a surprisingly sympathetic soul throughout the entire film.
Consistently we recognize that he is a good soul doing bad things in order to stay moderately afloat, which is what makes the film strong and stable.With three directorial efforts under his belt, and a fourth one on the way, Whaley proves that he enjoys glaringly flawed characters, who consistently try to do good by doing bad, which immediately makes for an intriguing story.
However, Whaley handles the challenge like a true directing veteran.Starring: Noah Fleiss, Val Kilmer, Karen Young, and Ethan Hawke.
Particularly commendable performances by Peter Tambakis and Noah Fleiss as, respectively, Joe at about 9 and Joe at 14.This film captures the cycle of abuse and oppression within a troubled, fragmented family better than any that I've seen.
Maybe try something like, "this movie seemed to have some realism to the story, and yet I haven't lived a life like that young man, I do believe that this could happen."No judgment calls on movies, you liked it or you didn't.
Noah Fleiss carried this movie, doing a beautiful job as the decent, but troubled, Joe.
Noah Fleiss does a generally admirable if largely unspectacular job as Joe Henry, and Val Kilmer plods valiantly through the script as if on the edge of death, which must have been the idea.The film is commendable for trying to tell a real story about real people -- rather than spray us with Hollywood nonsense as so many first-time directors are so willing to do.
I must say that Joe the King was a pretty good movie.
I really liked the way this film displayed the story and the music score didn't give me clues how to feel.
I also liked that Val Kilmer and Ethan Hawke had beer bellys and didn't look like glamour stars.At times I felt sorry for the kid, and at times I despised him, and often I put myself in his position.I work in film production, and when I get lost in a story enough to actually watch it and forget about the technical aspect, I must give it a thumbs up!Good work guys..
This film rang true to a lot of junior high memories and should be required viewing for those in the teaching profession and for women to see what life is like for a young man.
Joe the King is not a great movie, but nor is it as mediocre as the critics described.
Joe the King is a coming of age story based loosely on writer-director Frank Whaley's life that looks like a Dickens story updated.
Noah Fleiss at 14 is a veteran and does an excellent job of bringing to life the doomed but plucky Joe while Val Kilmer portrays an insensitive slob who realizes only at the end that his son loves him despite everything.
"Joe the King" was described as a semi-autobiographical work by Frank Whaley.
I'm often a sucker for movies like "This Boy's Life" and "A Bronx Tale," about young ones growing up with troubled childhoods.
And I also must establish that it's never revealed why the character is given the nickname "Joe the King."  This is not a bad film, and it is compelling to a degree, but if Whaley paid more attention to the mechanics of the narrative, it could've been a lot more powerful, like "This Boy's Life" or "A Bronx Tale."  My score:  6 (out of 10).
When that door clangs shut behind him at the end of the movie, you can sense that he will walk out a strong young man.The plot is tight, the acting is excellent, the camera work is beautiful.
There is an outstanding cast, but the film is carried by young Noah Fliess as Joe.
It is amazing to me that Whaley could direct this picture with such insight without having the experiences of Joe. Great acting, directing, casting, and editing with some innovative ideas that worked.
I did not like the movie because that Val Kilmer is that terrible to Noah Fliss.
What we have here is a rather depressing story of a young boy (Fliess) living with his absentee mother, his older brother, and his drunk and abusive father (Kilmer).
For me, this subject that Whaley has chosen of childhood escapism, seems to fall into a long line of similar movies like 'The 400 Blows,' 'Igby Goes Down,' and 'The Adventures of Sebastian Cole.' I think Whaley did a good job with this movie, 'Joe the King' and it encouraged me to seek out more films, if any, that he has directed.
"Joe the King", was a king above the fools in the world.Adults have such a self centered way of the expectation of kid's motives and actions without considering the very basic situation they are coming from and this film confirms how stupid people really are.
The school admin and teachers all knew very well about Joe's father, "you're just like your father", so the kid was labeled the first day he walked into that school as a loser.
Good movie with excellent young actors.
In turn he uses the money to replace his mother's record collection which his abusive father broke.It's a pretty good movie.
If you judge a movie by the story it sets out to tell, and the acting and writing to tell it, Joe the King rates a 10 out of 10, no question.I say this admitting that I picked up this movie thinking it would likely be one that I would watch for a few minutes and then shut off.
More, we are drawn in each character, large part or small, as "real".I highly recommend Joe the King - both as a great movie, and an excellent example of the work it takes to make a great movie where all parts; writing, acting, filming and more all come together to tell a story that grabs you from the beginning, and does not let you go until the credits are rolling..
He does it either to survive (steal food) or set things right (burglarizing the restaurant he works in to replace the records that his father destroyed in a fit of drunken rage.) That his worst crime is committed out of love for his mother gives the viewer a degree of hope for his character, if he can get the support he needs and avoid anymore pitfalls.
"Joe the King" is a slice-of-miserable-life flick about a boy from a dysfunctional family who steals.
I like Frank Whaley and love Val Kilmer so I was expecting a good film.
Some might say that this reflects the boys life in its bleak outlook, but this is not what I watch movies for.
Almost every adult in the film fails Joe. There are some amusing moments in this too-long, supposedly autobiographical movie, but far too few..
SPOILERS - "Joe The King" is such a bleak story of a young boy's plight that by the time the end came, which offers some redemption, my wife had tuned out to the point that she completely missed the point, until I re=played the last scene for her.
It was never clear in the film how Joe came by the moniker "the King."The film starts when Joe is 9, doesn't mix with other school kids, is seen smoking, and later in class is reluctant to tell that his dad (Val Kilmer, in a good role) is a school janitor.
At the end, his card and note to his mom, which leads her to play the song, is a statement of his love for mom.The film ends, but we are surely to assume the 6 months Joe will spend in reform school will let him start fresh, and maybe things will be different next time.
I'm not sure it's much better now.Joe the King is not entertainment; it is the life story of someone less fortunate that many of us can relate to in some way.
But I have continually seen films like this, and often times in real life, where a kid mouths off, his parent swats him, and it's 'OH MY GOD, THEY BEAT THE POOR CHILD!'.
I've seen this film in Cinematheque - the best Cinema in Hanoi.A little boy who named Joe make me think about my neighbor.