When the entire British royal family is wiped out in an "awful" accident, the American bar entertainer Ralph Jones (excellent: John Goodman, he makes up for most of the boring parts of the plot) becomes the new King of England. After a few adjustment problems with his new job (clothing, manners etc.) he falls in love with a young woman he meets at a local strip club. Problems emerge when his secretary tries to marry him to the Finnish princess to seal a business deal for a few English companies. All in all, a good movie with some great lines but also some boring parts.
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lance-6224 July 2004I don't know what the harsh critics of this movie were expecting. It's a predictable movie with a familiar theme, as others have mentioned, but I don't know what folks found so disappointing. If you can handle the first 5-10 minutes of silliness, you will enjoy the rest of the movie. If you're looking for a groundbreaking cinematic masterpiece...well, first of all, you might want to stay away from John Goodman movies. ;-)
This movie is good family fun, has some funny lines and nice character interaction, and the conflict/romance plot, while completely predictable like the rest of the movie, does the job it's supposed to do. The bad guy gets stuffed, the good guy gets the girl, the hero is redeemed, etc. Those aren't spoilers, since anyone who watches movies enough to be reading this site can see it all coming by the second commercial break. Still, I wasn't disappointed by that, since unlike others, I didn't think a movie called "King Ralph" was going to reach new peaks of comedic genius.
I gave it a 6/10. Worth watching for some chuckles and classic theme vibes. I also don't think the British greats were wasted in it...I think it made for decent corny fun, and having O'Toole et al be part of it was a big part of that.
They could have picked a better tune than "Good Golly Miss Molly" for King Ralph's big performance though. :-) -
ivko21 June 2017So I don't consider this a classic, as some other reviewers have labeled it. You really have to stretch the imagination to accept the premise that the first 30 people or so in line for the crown are suddenly killed and England, one of the largest and most powerful economies of the world, has to ask some D list lounge singer to be their new king. But I get it; this is a just-for-laughs fish out of water story, not a serious what-if film.
John Goodman, whose career was built on playing the middle-aged working class every man, does a decent job here portraying a beer drinking, football loving regular Joe who just can't stop creating uncomfortable moments around stuffy British people.
The gags are a bit of a mixed bag. When they develop in a way that's organic to the character and moment, they work pretty well. But for every good setup there is the overly forced one, such as when Goodman's character accidentally launches a greasy bird off his plate at a state dinner while trying to cut into it. The ensuing chaos sees every glass along a long, long table fall over like dominoes for nearly 30 seconds. The scene feels so desperate to hit the laugh; you can practically see the little charges going off to keep the glasses falling in comedic fashion past the horrified diners. The problem is, comedy is really hard. Even a whiff of desperation for laughs like that scene has turns funny into sad really quick.
The other part of this movie that's hard to swallow is the romance subplot. Hollywood knows that one of their major target demographics, middle aged guys, will identify with Goodman and so they supply the dream girl for the viewers alter-ego. In this case the movie asks us to believe that an insanely gorgeous 26 year old is just dying to fall in love with her dream guy: an obese man nearly old enough to be her father. When the leading man is Tom Cruise or Brad Pitt, yah OK I can believe that. But Goodman? I don't know, I just think an actress more age appropriate would have been easier to believe. The two here just don't seem like they go together.
My enjoyment of the film may have been effected by the fact that I don't care much for the concept of a monarchy, and I find arguments that keeping families in an artificial state of wealth and privilege is a good thing because they "serve the people" facile and ignorant. Note that the fantasy is always that you get to suddenly become royalty, never that you get to suddenly be a subject who gets sent to prison for not bowing properly or mouthing off. Monarchies are an outdated and brutish form of government best left in the history books, imho.
All in all, I managed to watch the whole movie, even if I wasn't enthralled the whole way thru. Passable entertainment. -
It's not stupid, it's charming. A bit old-fashioned and corny, yes, but entertaining and amusing and well worth the time! I just saw this for the second time on cable TV and liked it just as much as the first time!
Goodman performs bravely and exquisitely as the good-hearted buffoon who overcomes the stuffiness and snobbishness of a group of bluebloods too good for their own bodily functions. -
view_and_review26 March 2020A comedy starring John Goodman with a title like "King Ralph," you know it's probably going to be nonsense, but you hope that it's funny nonsense. "King Ralph" was funny for like the first 10 minutes or so then after that it was just pig snot. Within the first 10 minutes the entire royal family of England was killed by electrocution when they were taking a group photo in the rain: funny. In the country's search for an heir of some sort they came up with Ralph Jones (John Goodman) who was a singer in a dive in Las Vegas: funny. Once he took the job of king of England it was no longer funny.
It was exactly what you would expect: he was a fat clumsy American who knew nothing--I mean not even the least bit--about England or being a monarch. You know what, scratch that. Forget about not even knowing how to be a monarch, because many people would probably not know anything about that, he didn't even know how to be dignified in any sense. He stumbled around like the oaf he was making one stupid blunder after another. And the puns were so painfully bad that I was begging for a tranquilizer. Just to give an example: they dragged on a conversation about fox hunting for about a minute (which was 59 seconds too long), in which Ralph was referring to chasing women while the Englishman was referring to hunting actual foxes. It was walking across a lake of Legos barefoot bad.
He found a girl of interest at a strip club, which you knew was going to be a problem for him being of royalty. Was he going to have to choose her over the crown, was he going to have to defend her honor, or what? Eventually, his antics and his relationship with this girl effectively embarrassed the entire country and he decided to step down. And the last act of let's-give-us-a-happy-ending he rectified some of his errors, abdicated the throne to someone more worthy, and got the girl.
It was really a pathetic movie trying to show how there can be a middle path between the stiff stuffiness of English behavior and customs and the brash, silly, ill mannered, undignified behavior of Americans. The concept itself for this movie was novel and funny in theory, but it was very cliché and irksome in practice. -
TheLittleSongbird12 April 2010I wasn't sure whether King Ralph would be my style, seeing how much the critics panned it. But when I watched it, I was surprised at how much I liked it. It is not perfect, but one of the worst films ever? No, far from it. It is enjoyable, despite the sometimes weak script, uneven direction and one or two parts that felt rather slow and contrived. What redeems it though is the cast. John Goodman amiably bumbles his way through his role and gives some charm into a character that could have been bland and uninteresting, and Peter O'Toole and John Hurt seem to be having a whale of a time as the adviser and scheming courtier. Also, the film does actually look nice, the cinematography is good and the scenery is lovely. The soundtrack and score were enjoyable as well. Overall, it has its problems, but it isn't a bad film by all means. 7/10 Bethany Cox
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mules8211 July 2001The best part about this movie is that we can now all use the movie's title as a clever nickname for fat people. For example, when playing a pick-up softball game back in 1996 Orens stepped to the plate and Baumann yelled from his first base position, "hey, it's King Ralph." This brought great joy to everyone who was lucky enough to hear the comment. That I feel is the greatest contribution of this clearly pathetic movie. I'll admit, I think I rented it when it came out on video, although I was very young so I will assume my mom rented it for me. Anyway, I remember little form the movie, maybe a part where some people get electrocuted during a photo, a potential fox hunt gone sour and a scene with a leader of an African country. I also recall King Ralph being a serious bowler. I do not recommend that you see this movie, however, I do recommend that you call fat people King Ralph for comedic purposes.
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bkoganbing18 February 2006Though this film got trashed in a lot of circles, I rather like it if for no other reasons than it gives Americans some notion of the function of the monarchy in Great Britain.
Sometimes having the head of state and the head of government does have its bad points. Watergate for instance might have not been the gut wrenching experience if in America we were a parliamentary democracy with a royal head of state. Richard Nixon would have been put up for a "no confidence" vote and out he would have been without all the drama.
Drama on the other side of the Atlantic is saved for the Royals. This film might give an American some idea of what the abdication crisis was all about. John Goodman as the American born King has his own Mrs. Simpson.
In fact how he got to the throne is quite the tale. On some grand occasion the extended royal family got together for what looks like a team picture like they take in spring training of the various baseball rosters. Someone left a loose electrical cable dangling on the metal bleachers and the whole lot of them were electrocuted.
Genealogists poured through the Windham family tree and found some member had renounced it all and gone to America. The heir of that forgotten branch is John Goodman, Ralph Jones who does a lounge act in Las Vegas and not in classier joints in Las Vegas.
Of course the free and easy and thoroughly American Goodman doesn't take readily to his new found job. He can't quite comprehend that he has to serve as well as be served. And he has the same problem the Duke of Windsor had when he was briefly Edward VIII. With a lot more excuse since Windsor was brought up in the tradition.
Peter O'Toole as the lord who tries to give him some on the job training and John Hurt who has his own reasons for wanting Goodman to flop both give stand out performances. Best scene the palace ball for Goodman's prospective bride when Goodman does his lounge act.
It's a funny film and in its own way educational. The Duke of Windsor should have seen it. His duty would have been clear. -
paulewharris19 December 2002It would be hard to make a film as witless as King Ralph without really trying. It's a shame, because the set-up (gauche, unclassy American takes over the stuffy British aristocracy) has good comic possibilities and Goodman is generally a fun actor to watch.
Most of the problems are directly due to the feeble script and weak direction. There are no surprises and none of the comedy set-pieces are handled with any wit or skill.
Avoid this film like the plague. -
subego24 November 2008I LOVE this movie! I know that when it came out it was largely ignored...by both the critics and the movie going public...but I found this film to be just simply fun to watch...a wonderful movie to just get caught up into. It has no pre-texts of social or political idealism. It doesn't try to solve the worlds problems with it's message. And it doesn't aim to make us, the viewers, think overly hard about where the movie is leading us. It does, however, present us with totally believable characters who we quickly become emotionally invested in. Sure the opening plot structure is contrived but that is half of the charm of the film's setup. It is a good absurd introduction to the twists of the movie.
I must confess, being half Cherokee Indian and half English, I was drawn to this movie if for no other reason than I had always heard about that half of my family's history and imagined who they were and how they lived. As an American, I have also fallen prey to my own sometimes myopic world view. King Ralph was an enjoyable way to contemplate the place that a monarchy holds in the hearts of their countrymen.
I don't believe that there is anything inherently wrong with having a movie that doesn't try to enlighten or enrage us. I have always felt that too often Hollywood tries to insert a message or moral slant to a project just because they believe that to not include one makes the movie seem shallow or silly. I say whats wrong with having just a fun movie? To me King Ralph was just such a movie. Of course it had smatterings of political overtones and touches of social commentary, but I feel that this was used to propel the story rather than to try and impart some deeper philosophical meaning to us. -
smatysia24 June 2011Yes it was a little bit fun, but highly flawed. I counted three out-loud laughs as I watched this, which should probably get it a better rating from me. There was a lot of professionalism in the cast, particularly Peter O'Toole, who cannot do bad acting. This was clearly designed to be a vehicle for John Goodman, and I suppose it was successful enough at it. He is funny, and he is good. I quite liked Camille Coduri, with whom I was unfamiliar. She apparently has had quite a career in England. Too bad I haven't seen more of her. And please, don't comment on plot holes! This just isn't the sort of movie where that's relevant.
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CinefanR10 February 2012"King Ralph" was surprisingly entertaining and very funny, actually. However outrageous, implausible, ridiculous the plot, that doesn't matter. It was deliciously over the top to see Peter O'Toole and John Goodman, the most unlikely team ever, provide the spectacle of a cultural clash, to say the least. The movie cheerfully mocks both American and British culture and stereotypes, but it does it rather playfully, without being offensive to anybody. The joke is either on the hamburger and baseball loving Americans, or the stiff conservatory high-class Brits. People who describe this movie as "low-brow" comedy obviously have no idea what that means. This is good quality humor, no crude and tasteless jokes here. The actors are all top-rate and the acting is first class.
Who could have played the majestic, royal British type better than Peter O'Toole? Nobody! He's perfect, graceful and dignified as the King's adviser. John Goodman, on the other hand, is perfect as the average joe who doesn't know or care much about protocol, good manners or politics. John Hurt is another excellent choice to play the part of an evil, unscrupulous aristocrat hung up on power. Hurt obviously enjoyed doing this part and he's very funny. The movie tends to drag when Goodman's girlfriend shows up, but Princess Anna enters the stage to compensate. There are also some unnecessary exaggerations, but I didn't mind. The script is good, the jokes are over the top and performances are great all around. Hilarious stuff! -
moviedude19 October 2008I can't help but chuckle every time I see this film, but I know that just the thought of something like this happening makes about 100 people with calculators sit up and start crunching numbers of the possibility of something like this happening.
John Goodman plays a down on his luck performer that, as it turns out, goes from distant family to the throne of England to instant family on the throne. The only problem is that he's had no refinement and leaves a lot to be desired in the courtesy department. If one plus one equals two, then this combination equals a comedy that can't be matched...on ANY level.
I'm not saying this is the best comedy of all time, but what I am saying is that this film, if you rent it, is a nice quiet evening that will not offend many people and leaves the lead actor in a familiar base for him: a place where he's supposed to seem unfamiliar. Everybody remembers him as Dan Connor, but how many of you reading this remember he was the head football coach in Revenge of the Nerds? Goodman was an excellent choice for this part because of his range as an actor and his on-screen chemistry with Camille Coduri was priceless, too, as I felt that they represented the kind of relationship that everybody would like.
So, hats off (or crowns, if you will) to David S Ward for this film. I just got in here to give this comment and my next stop is to see what else this director has done. 7 out of 10 stars. -
jagbloke29 December 2021I expected to see the now familiar "this film contains outdated concepts that some people may find offensive" description on Sky however for some reason, it didn't appear.
This film contains all of the stereotypical American views of Britain and I found it culturally offensive.
What surprised me most is that the cast, some of whom are British icons, were happy to take part in this mess. I only gave it 2 stars because of the cast. The rest is awful.
Also, it isn't funny. -
There isn't anything in this movie that is offensive or rude or mean. The stripper never strips, the bad guy doesn't do anything vile, just *bad*. If you prefer modern American violence & crass language & glossy sexuality, you'll hate this movie. You'll think it's dull & stupid. If you're looking for something you can enjoy with your 5 year old daughter & your 95 year old grandmother, this is the movie. Every body gets what they deserve in the end. Yep, golly gee whilickers - it's a feel good movie!
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i_like_music6 December 2003Okay, I must admit that I just saw the last half of this movie(I didn't make it in time for the start, as it just went on tv here), so I wont complain much about the movie, as there might be answers to my questions in the beginning of it.
I would just like to state that Finland does NOT have an royal family. The names they have used for the Finnish royal family are more typical in Norway/Denmark/Sweden, or at least I think so. (don't kill me if I'm wrong). Another thing is that if they were going to give the Finnish royal family heavy accents on their English, they might have gotten the accents to sound similar to the Finnish language!!! I get to often disappointed by this in American movies. WHY can't anyone just find an accent that is similar to the language they're supposed to talk????!
The main thing about this movie I cannot get is how the hell did an American get to be the 'only' one left to the British throne??? My older sister is really into the royal families in Europe, and she just found a list with around 600 (or was it 400?) people who would get the British throne.
Since I didn't watch the first part of this movie, I will probably sound stupid now, but was there some sort of an accident.... or several accidents all over the globe since all these people 'suddenly' died and left Ralph from America take over????
That would mean that most of the royalties in Europe (not counting the Catholics, as they have no claim for the British throne) were DEAD! Would there then be huge parties in Britain???
There were several things like these that kept me wondering during the movie. When I see something as unrealistic as this, I force myself to look at the whole movie as a big joke. NO ONE CAN BE THAT IGNORANT!
other than that, the movie was fairly ok. The singing/playing/dancing act of King Ralph was great, as I love that kind of music.
if you want to see this movie, watch it for fun, please don't watch it to look into the monarchy of ANY country, especially not Finland, which doesn't even have one! -
phubbs31 May 2015Back in the early 90's we got many family movies that offered lots of cheesy irritating laughs and child actors, the odd thing was many actually did really well. The original movie would somehow manage to become a reasonable hit (a different time), and those movies, in some cases, actually turned into franchises! Those same franchises then managed to knock out a semi-decent sequel or two before eventually disintegrating into utter trash with numerous straight to DVD sequels being churned out. The films I refer to would be 'Beethoven', 'Problem Child', 'Home Alone' and 'Free Willy'...mainly.
'King Ralph' was a slightly different animal though, a stand alone family film that was totally stupid in concept but offered a really solid cast and, by the looks of things, some high production values. Amazingly its yet another novel adaptation albeit a loose one, the story simply revolves around the British Royal Family getting wiped out in a freak accident. Its then down to the upper echelons to dig out a new King by rooting through the vast Royal Family tree, trying to discover a long lost distant relation with true royal blood to take the throne. Once they do it of course turns out to be the most unsuitable person imaginable (well for the early 90's anyway), a fat, loud, uncouth, brash American.
Right so who would be the best fat loud American of the time? why John Goodman of course. The fat, beer-swilling, checkered-shirt wearing slob from the hit TV US show 'Roseanne'. Basically take Goodman's popular character from that show, the stereotypical, overweight, middle aged, lacking of general knowledge, US sports obsessed male Yank, and make him a lounge singer with a knowledge of female club stripping and a penchant for Elvis style shades (not much of a stretch). To counter this you need a stereotypical British gent to guide and teach this gaudy foreigner, enter the stellar Peter O'Toole as the Royal secretary. You can't really get any better than O'Toole for the epitome of a British aristocrat (despite being possibly Irish), and you can't really get anymore of a polar opposite to Goodman. The duo play off each other superbly well considering how daft the film is and the fact its pretty much aimed at children. O'Toole puts in a sterling performance coming across perfectly as someone who would look after royalty, sure we've seen this type of performance from him before but his loyal butler-esque manner is so pleasing to watch and listen to. Indeed his speech to Goodman's character about what it is to be a King of England is quite stirring I must say, as a Brit it did bring a lump to my throat, such a shame these days patriotic talk like that is non-existent and almost frowned upon.
To add even more British star power to the proceedings we have John Hurt in an even more outrageously, hideously over the top, aristocratic, Conservative cad who will stop at nothing to dirty the new Kings image. Hurt's slimy, arrogant, pompous voice and attitude is just as good as his weaselly yet smartly dressed appearance complete with a dastardly thin pencil tash. I love how he's also completely cold, emotionless and kinda racist, calling Goodman's character 'a song and dance man from the colonies', a real Alan B'Stard. What's more his sidekick is played by Leslie Phillips! all the old chivalrous warhorses here.
So the brilliant character acting aside, what's also very impressive about this apparent silly kids flick is the fact it all looks fantastic. The outfits, suits and general attire of dignitaries and royals is spruce, debonair and dapper all round, everyone looks tip- top and pristine. The locations are a mix or real stately homes, clever use of small sections of real posh establishments and more obviously stock footage. Interior sequences are the most impressive with some sets looking exquisite, highly detailed and extremely lavish, it really looks like no expense was spared in creating these elegant royal interiors. I guess its all a bit surprising really, you'd never expect such extravagant detail with a silly little comedy like this, you'd think it would be all about the slapstick and raking in as much moolah as possible, different times.
Being an old movie I did also enjoy the retro blast I got from time to time, anyone of my age will no doubt feel the same way. Its always amusing to see old fashioned British punks in these movies. You the know the types, brightly coloured mohawks, black leather jackets covered in badges, chains and safety pins, lots of makeup etc...Twas also funny to see them all watching old fashioned TV's in the windows of a Rumbelows store, remember that??
Yeah the whole thing is very predictable as a kind of rags to riches, Prince Charming type of affair, you can guess what's gonna go down in scenes and overall its all very sweet and adorable. It might sound clichéd and dumb but watching the hapless Ralph trying to learn the ways of the super rich, whilst attempting to chat with senior dignitaries and royalty, is perfect light entertainment. That said there is a pleasant and fresh tale to be discovered here, being based on a novel it kinda reminded me of 'Brewster's Millions' actually. Goodman (in an early-ish, pre-superstardom movie role) is amazingly likable as the American lounge lizard with a golden heart who is turned into a rich nobleman...with a golden heart. Supporting cast are all brilliant as said adding real quality and a hint of solid drama to the story, the film is fun for kids with plenty of cutesy charm, but it also has the odd snippet of fun for adults too.
7/10 -
galaxy20694 April 2004King Ralph (1991) is undeniably one of the top five worst films of the 1990's. The script was obviously and only written to cash in on the rise of John Goodman hype & hysteria in the early 90's. Goodman needs to stick to "Roseanne" comeback specials, Saturday Night Live appearances, and "Babe Ruth" type characters from now on. King Ralph falls short in every possible way because it lacks proper foresight and planning, and the whole title, plot, and idea is quite "outdated" even for early 90's standards. This is a cheap rental if you're really, really bored, or just love to watch John Goodman parading around as a goofy King with absolutely no direction in life. I'd recommend "Brewster's Millions" with Richard Pryor instead...now there's a comedy that ages gracefully with time...and with a much better cast, plot and vision.
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spenrh12 February 2020This is a highly unrealistic movie, but I also know that it wasn't meant to be taken seriously. Even if the highly unlikely event of every possible heir to the throne was electrocuted and killed in a freak accident, there would still be many other full English possibilities for the throne before chosing an American so disconnected from the knowledge of any Royal history in his family, that he knew absolutely nothing about any possibility of him becoming king until after the freak accident (nevermind that no one who works for photographing the entire Royal family would be thick enough to leave loads of wires and electrical equipment sitting in pools of water). There was Jon Hurt's character from the House of Steward who was officially a possibility for the throne, which in real life would be chozen without hesitation over an American who knew nothing about royalty and never even been to England.
Anyway, I do realize though that this movie wasn't meant to be taken seriously, and was placed in an entirely fictional world, which is also why maybe it's a good idea that none of the real life members of the Royal family (Queen Elizabeth II, Charles, Diana, etc.) were portrayed as the former members before the accident in this movie.
John Goodman does has some funny scenes as a Fish Out Of Water (FOW) role. I feel though that it would've been even better as a comedy to have made his character more of a common regular blue-collar middle-American than a Vegas lounge singer, and it would've been great if they made his character here even more similar to his character Dan on "Roseanne". However, I did find it kind of funny the way he half watched the football game while playing ("and he's in there") piano at the lounge, that was sort of Dan in his character him doing that. And there was alot of Dan in the way Ralph looked and dressed when first introduced to Sir Cedric Willingham (Peter O'Toole) upon arrival at Buckingham Palace. They did get it right by having Ralph disbelieving Royalty messenger (Richard Griffith) when first coming to Vegas to present the news.
There are some funny scenes with Ralph having difficulty adjusting to the noble eloquent ways of imperial sovereignty which is the norm to most members of Royalty. His lack of refinement was quite funny such as the scenes with his mannerisms when being shown how to dress, walk, pour tea, etc., and when meeting the King of Zambezi (after rehearsing with Sir Cedric the proper way to introduce himself, then blurting out "Yo, whaz happinin holmes?"). And then the king of Zambezi enjoying his time with Ralph. Also funny was Ralph playing cricket more like baseball.
I also liked the sweet romantic interest of Ralph and Miranda, they had a nice chemistry, and the scenes of Ralph having trouble dealing with being told how he wasn't supposed to be getting involved with her, when he was used to living a life where he was free to get involved with anyone where he and her would feel the right chemistry together.
John Hurt as Lord Graves trying to sabatoge Ralph (including the scene with him deliberately encouraging Ralph to make an a** of himself at the Royal ball (and Ralph doing it by acting like a common American just because he innocently thought that it was ok to do it because he was told to)). I still, however, found the scene of Ralph playing "Good golly miss Molly" to be too much, and he should've known better at that point in the movie. The conversation about fox hunting made Ralph look dumb for not realizing that they were talking about the animaI, just because the movie became desperate for a cheap double meaning joke. And the glasses of wine domino effect spilling down the table was also kind of ridiculous.
Sort of a funny moment in this movie was Ralph's would-be future Royal wife turning out to have a deep masculine voice after initially looking quite alluring to Ralph and looking quite pretty. And her also revealing to Ralph a sleazy fantasy of hers, in spite of her Royal parents disliking Ralph for HIS gross lack of refinement.
I did understand the scene of Ralph threatening to quit due to being forced to marry a woman he never met, and Sir Cedric making a point on how Ralph has been quitting things his entire life and that it was time to take a stand and stick something out for a change and that showing that in his Royal duties would be the perfect way to redeem himself.
One other thing that made this movie better was the way Ralph redeemed himself in the scenes following the disasterous ball, with noticable improvements in his behavior and refinement while stumbling upon Lord Graves' deception and in his scene addressing Parliament. However, the very last scene of the movie where the credits began rolling was quite cheesy.
Anyway, I was wanting to give this movie a 6, but because it was meant to be a goofy silly movie, I'll give it a 7. -
capone66627 February 2019King Ralph
If the royals are ever assassinated it's safe to assume Meghan Markle's father did it.
And while the governing body in this comedy has ended, a more jovial fat man is taking over.
When Britain's royal family is electrocuted during a soggy photo shoot, Sir Willingham (Peter O'Toole) taps larger than life Las Vegas lounge act Ralph (John Goodman) to bear the crown. While the country eventually warms to their new ruler's blue-collar ways, Lord Percival (John Hurt) schemes to oust him by exposing Ralph's secret affair with a stripper (Camille Coduri).
An improbable idea with high comedic potential backed by two British acting legends and a rudimentary plot prime for riffing is ruined by miscasting the lead. In the right hands, King Ralph could have been more cult film than forgettable lark.
Besides, it's hard to believe that Prince Charles wouldn't rise from the grave to claim the throne. Yellow Light
vidiotreviews.blogspot.ca -
I have to say that John Goodman's performance among a sea of royal British costars like the great Peter O'Toole, Leslie Phillips OBE, Rudolph Walker OBE, John Hurt CBE, Judy Parfitt, Ann Beach, and Richard Griffiths. John Goodman plays Ralph Jones who turns out to be the British royal family's closest living relative after a photo picture that turns into a disaster killing everybody. While the country mourns, they need a new monarch. They found him, Ralph Jones, an American lounge lizard who plays the piano and watches television at the same time. Of course, he's nothing that they expected and he's an American too living in sin city or Las Vegas, Nevada. They bring him the news and bring him back to Buckingham Palace. He seeks to escape the bodyguards and security to see his lady love, Miranda, played well by Camille Corduri. Miranda is a commoner who wants to design dresses but works as a stripper and gets canned because she can't do it. Anyway, the love story appears genuine. She helps him with his British history. But the scene at McDonalds is quite memorable. The girl who takes the King's order was a regular on East Enders. Of course, the crowd gets mobbed. Without John Goodman in the role, I don't think King Ralph would be that enjoyable to watch but that's why I find it irresistible. He wins them over with his charm. I appreciate it now 15 years later. Everybody even the Royals could use a good laugh.
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hitchcockthelegend26 January 2012King Ralph is directed by David S. Ward who loosely adapts the screenplay from the novel Headlong written by Emlyn Williams. It stars John Goodman, Peter O'Toole, John Hurt, Camille Coduri, Richard Griffiths and Leslie Phillips. Music is by James Newton Howard and cinematography by Kenneth MacMillan.
When the entire ruling family of the United Kingdom is killed by a freak accident, the search begins for any surviving heirs to the throne. One is found in Las Vegas, Ralph Jones, an easy going slob like lounge singer. Getting Ralph to take his role seriously is one thing, learning him the graces of the monarchy is another! Standard fish-out-of-water (bull-in-a-china-shop) premise that's boosted by the ebullient John Godman as the hapless title character. The makers try hard to garner laughs from a roll call of by the numbers scenarios, enter Ralph being introduced to cricket, cuisine, tea drinking, walking with a straight back and talking eloquently. Things are further muddied when Ralph meets and forms a relationship with a failed stripper with a heart (Coduri). A big no no for the King of England, who must marry into royal stock. Around Goodman is a ream of quality thespians from Britain and Ireland, all adding some dignity to the weak script whilst simultaneously looking for all they are worth that they are coasting for the money.
It's hardly a stinker of a movie, it does have charming moments, but all involved deserved better and even back on release the formula was looking frayed around the edges. 5/10 -
mattrochman3 September 2006This seems to get a panning from film reviewers here, but it actually is a good comedy. The story line is mildly stupid and a replay of the old fish-out-of-water formula, but the British were able to add a fantastic flavour to the film and the comedy is kept in check and doesn't become too outlandishly stupid.
Thumbs up in my view, but it's a little bit date these days. Superb supporting cast and a friendly film: nothing crude and from recollection, no bad language.
Goes to show that it can still be done if you really apply your mind to it! -
ThunderKing66 August 2021Kind of.
This movie is about a slob being selected to be royalty of England do to being next in line because he is part of the bloodline. He is ultimately clumsy, I guess unfit to be royalty, and he possesses normal American qualities such as drinking, gambling and going to Tatty Bars. He doesn't walk the way his ancestors walk. And they have a problem with him and then want him out. So to get him out they meddled with his motorcycle, and he dies in a motor accident...Okay I made that last part up.
In the end since it's a family movie he grows, matures, no one is murdered by numbers and he decides to live his American life of drinking, gambling and going to tatty bars.
Great simple family movie. Has some laughs and sad moments. Good 90's movie nevertheless. -
BandSAboutMovies21 July 2022Incredibly loosely based on the novel Headlong by Emlyn Williams, King Ralph supposes what would happen if the entire royal family of England was electrocuted and an heir needed to be found, which ends up being Ralph Hampton Gainsworth Jones (John Goodman), a Vegas lounge singer who must be groomed by Sir Cedric Charles Willingham (Peter O'Toole).
Directed and written by David S. Ward, who wrote stuff like The Sting and Sleepless In Seattle and directed other perhaps not so prestige stuff as Major League and Down Periscope, it also has John Hurt as Lord Percival Graves, another upper crust snob who wants the House of Stuart take over for the House of Wyndham after all the controversy of an American king, much less one dating a commoner.
Bill Murray was going to do this -- makes sense with the lounge singer character -- and so was John Candy, who picked Nothing But Trouble instead. As for Goodman, he even said in an interview, "I don't think anybody's ready to pay good money to see me get the girl in the movie. I know I wouldn't go see something like that."
The movie is better than he thinks it is.