The King | 2019 | R | – 4.7.5

Why is “The King” rated R? The MPAA rating has been assigned for “some strong violence, and language.” The Kids-In-Mind.com evaluation includes a couple of implied sex scenes with partial nudity, an arranged marriage between warring monarchies, and several scenes of shirtless men; several battle scenes with men wearing heavy armor and leaving many men and horses dead, two children killed, a beheading with a lot of blood and an implied beheading, and a couple of stabbings; and about 3 F-words and other strong language. Read our parents’ guide below for details on sexual content, violence & strong language.”

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Fictionalized account of the rise of the English King Henry V (Timothée Chalamet) in the early 15th century and the decisive Battle of Agincourt. Initially reluctant, and determined to avoid war, he assumes the throne when his father dies and he is eventually swayed by palace intrigue and declares war on France. Also with Joel Edgerton, Tom Glynn-Carney, Gábor Czap, Tom Fisher, Edward Ashley, Steven Elder, Stephen Fewell, Sean Harris, Ivan Kaye, Tom Lawrence and Ben Mendelsohn. Directed by David Michôd. Several lines of dialogue are spoken in French with English subtitles. A prayer in Latin is recited without translation. [Running Time: 2:20]

The King SEX/NUDITY 4

 – A man and a woman kiss in bed, the woman straddles the shirtless man and thrusts briefly (see her nipples through her sheer dress and his bare chest and abdomen). A shirtless man (we see his bare chest and abdomen) lies in bed with a woman and the woman is awakened by another man and sent away; she wears a gauze nightdress and the second man helps her put on her dress (her partial bare legs are seen and sex is implied).
► Two kings meet and negotiate surrender; one offers the other his daughter’s hand in marriage. A man teases another man about the size of his genitals, trying to goad him. A man tells a woman that he asks nothing of her after they are married.
► A man is shown in a large bathtub as a boy rubs his feet (we see the man’s bare shoulders, chest, foot and ankle). A shirtless man dances in a pub and we see his bare chest, abdomen and back (he appears inebriated). A shirtless man is shown sleeping in bed (we see his bare back). A shirtless man is shown lying in bed covered to the mid-chest by sheets (we see his chest; please see the Violence/Gore category for more details). A shirtless man is shown as he is sworn in to be king (his chest, abdomen and back are shown).

The King VIOLENCE/GORE 7

 – Three young boys walk through a forest collecting wood and a man approaches one boy and stabs him in the back (we see the blade poke the front of his shirt), another boy is shot in the back with an arrow (he falls to the ground motionless) and the third boy is forced to walk back to the camp carrying the head of one of the other boys (we see the severed head with blood at the neck and blood on the carrying boy’s hands and clothing). A man orders another man to death and we see one standing on a platform while the other kneels with his head on a block as a man with a large blade raises it over his neck and brings it down hard, cutting off his head (we see the blade land and the head separate at the neck with blood pouring as the head falls away). Two men clad in heavy armor fight each other with swords; they are each knocked to the ground, they roll around and try to slash each other with swords until one stabs the other in the neck with a dagger (we hear squishing, gagging and see blood on the blade and on the dead man’s face and trailing from his mouth). Two men face each other to fight and one is clad in heavy armor, he slips in mud as he moves toward the other, he is unable to regain his footing and the other man orders several of his men to finish him off; we see men tackle the man and stab him repeatedly. Two men yell at each other, one man crawls toward the other man, who is seated, and the seated man stabs the other man in the back of the head (we hear a crunch) and the dead man falls to the floor gasping.
► Many men wearing heavy armor and carrying swords march through a field and many more men on horseback move toward them: the horsemen charge, longbow archers from the flanks loose arrows that strike the horsemen and many fall, the men on the ground fight with clanging swords, yelling and horses neighing, the fighting continues for an extended period and we see the horses mired in mud and falling to the ground throwing off their riders; men stab each other through helmets slits, under helmets and under the armpits of their armor, and armored men crush together in a giant mass, and some fall to the ground and are trampled by others; we see the aftermath with many men and horses lying dead in the mud. Many dead and wounded bodies (human and horse) are shown on a battlefield and we hear moaning (we see some blood and dirt on men’s faces and blood on swords); one injured man drags himself through the dirt and another man thrusts his sword into him killing him below the frame (we hear two crunches).
► Many sailing ships arrive at a shore and unload armed men; they walk through a village and toward a castle where they set up camp and begin catapulting many flaming projectiles with trebuchets at the castle (they continue for days until the people in the castle surrender).
► A man is shown with a bloody wound on his side and we see the bloody gash when he lifts his shirt for another man to treat; a man pours wine on the wound and another man cauterizes the wound with a hot fireplace poker (we hear a sizzles as the wounded man yells and laughs). A sick man is shown lying in bed wheezing deeply; we see that he has boils on his skin and he shivers with fever and another man pulls the covers off him and the man soon dies. A man helps another man that has passed out in an alley (presumably from drunkenness).
► A man threatens another man stating that he will, “Drain your body of its blood and bury it under a tree.” A man threatens to hang another man for defying his orders. A man tells another man, “The screams of your women and children will lull me to sleep.” A man says to another man, “I will disembowel you with my own hand.” A man confesses to another man that he was sent to assassinate him. A man orders that prisoner’s heads should be placed on pikes as a warning to others. A man arrives at the site of an impending battle and offers to fight (man-to-man) the leader of the opposing army instead of an all-out battle between armies. Men argue about going to battle when many of their men are sick or starving. Men talk about people’s eyes being gouged and tongues cut out. Two kings meet and negotiate surrender; one offers the other his daughter’s hand in marriage. Two men argue over continuing a war in several scenes. Men argue over the French king’s right to the throne. Men discuss the expense of war and that 300 men were lost in a battle with the Scots. We hear that a man’s brother was killed in battle. We hear that a man is being held for ransom and that the king will not pay. A reference is made to someone “awaiting mutilation.” We hear that a king is very ill. A man says, “Killing stains the soul.” A man stands over a sleeping man and tells him that his father is dying. A woman tells a man that he is not welcome in her pub and that he must pay his debt.
► We hear a man retching and coughing off-screen. A reference is made to a man “upchucking.” A comment is made about a man’s “sick bucket.” A woman talks about a man’s “puke.” A man has a stream of saliva on his lip after having been sick (we do not see or hear him vomit). A man spits on the ground (we see saliva).

The King LANGUAGE 5

 – About 3 F-words, 3 anatomical terms, 1 mild obscenity, name-calling (traitor, crazy, old demon, old man, Welsh witches, venomous boy, soft, little dog, big dog, whoring fool, wayward son, pitiful, idiots, retch, evil, terrible hag, stinking rat hole, weasel, cowardly, low repute, imbecile, drivel, madness, simple, ugly, lunacy, drunken boor, rats, drunk, madman, usurper, vain, foolish, beguiled, boy, detestable, stupid), religious exclamations (a man prays over a meal, a prayer in Latin is recited without translation). | profanity glossary |

The King SUBSTANCE USE

 – A man pours a glass of wine with a meal, many people in a pub drink from mugs and they appear inebriated, a man drinks wine from a goblet, and a man drinks a lot of wine and seems to be unstable when he walks.

The King DISCUSSION TOPICS

 – King Henry IV, King Henry V, 15th Century England, civil unrest, the expense of war, betrayal, trust, Monarchy, succession, strife, reform, reconciliation, loneliness, shame, fear, vanity, loyalty, family, peace.

The King MESSAGE

 – Even when the initial intentions are decent, power and intrigue will corrupt.