The defence The Popcorn Loyalist
“Momentum is a formal choice.”
The velocity sharpens instinct and tension, making every beat land before self-importance can settle in.
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The Kid Who Would Be King
Action · Adventure · Fantasy · 2019
Old-school magic meets the modern world when young Alex stumbles upon the mythical sword Excalibur. He soon unites his friends and enemies, and they become knights who join forces with the legendary wizard Merlin. Together, they must save mankind from the wicked enchantress Morgana and her army of supernatural warriors.
Movie details
The Kid Who Would Be King
“An army to fight. A demon to slay. A world to save. No pressure.”
2019 Action · Adventure · Fantasy 2h 0m
Critical arithmetic
The consensus, allegedly.
Scores change. Arguments endure.
IMDb
6.1 / 10
20.9K votes
Rotten Tomatoes
90 %
Tomatometer
Metacritic
66 / 100
Metascore
TMDB
6.2 / 10
Community rating
External scores via OMDb · CC BY-NC 4.0. Values normalized for display; availability varies by title.
Old-school magic meets the modern world when young Alex stumbles upon the mythical sword Excalibur. He soon unites his friends and enemies, and they become knights who join forces with the legendary wizard Merlin. Together, they must save mankind from the wicked enchantress Morgana and her army of supernatural warriors.
CriticWise case file
What this film says about your taste.
Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.
The archetype split
Who fights over The Kid Who Would Be King?
For the defence
The Popcorn Loyalist
“Big screen, big feelings, no apologies.”
Read their case For the prosecution
The Cool Ironist
“Feeling things is a little embarrassing.”
Read their objectionThe split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.
Where it lives
Watch in your region.
Cinema release signals and current streaming, rental, and purchase options for your region.
Streaming availability data supplied by JustWatch.
Names above the title
The people responsible.
Cast & crew
Directed by
Joe Cornish
Written by
Joe Cornish
Louis Ashbourne Serkis
Alexander "Alex" Elliot
Dean Chaumoo
Bedders
Tom Taylor
Lance
Rhianna Dorris
Kaye
Denise Gough
Mrs. Elliot
Angus Imrie
Merlin
Patrick Stewart
Old Merlin
Court is in session
Put The Kid Who Would Be King on trial.
Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.
The prosecution The Cool Ironist
“Speed as an alibi.”
The film races past its weak spots and hopes acceleration will keep the audience from inspecting the evidence.