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| distributor = [[Trimark Pictures]]
| distributor = [[Trimark Pictures]]
| released = {{Start date and age|1999|01|22}}
| released = {{Film date|1999|01|22}}
| runtime = 100 minutes
| runtime = 100 minutes
| country = United States
| country = United States
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'''''Joe the King''''' is a 1999 [[drama film]], written and directed by [[Frank Whaley]], based largely on his own childhood and the childhood of his brother. It stars [[Noah Fleiss]], [[Val Kilmer]], [[Karen Young (actress)|Karen Young]], [[Ethan Hawke]], [[John Leguizamo]], [[Austin Pendleton]], [[Camryn Manheim]], Max Ligosh, and James Costa.<ref>[https://www.tvguide.com/movies/joe-the-king/2030286347/ TV Guide]</ref> The film premiered at the 1999 [[Sundance Film Festival]], where it won the [[List of Sundance Film Festival award winners#1999|Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award]] (shared with ''[[Guinevere (1999 film)|Guinevere]]'').
'''''Joe the King''''' is a 1999 [[drama film]], written and directed by [[Frank Whaley]], based largely on his own childhood and the childhood of his brother. It stars [[Noah Fleiss]], [[Val Kilmer]], [[Karen Young (actress)|Karen Young]], [[Ethan Hawke]], [[John Leguizamo]], [[Austin Pendleton]], [[Camryn Manheim]], Max Ligosh, and James Costa.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Joe the King (1999) |url=https://www.tvguide.com/movies/joe-the-king/2030286347/ |website=TVGuide.com}}</ref> The film premiered at the 1999 [[Sundance Film Festival]], where it won Whaley the [[List of Sundance Film Festival award winners#1999|Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award]] (tied with ''[[Guinevere (1999 film)|Guinevere]]'') and a nomination for the Grand Jury Prize. It also got a nomination for the Open Palm Award from the [[Gotham Awards]]. Noah Fleiss also received a [[Young Artist Award]] nomination for Best Leading Actor in a Feature Film.


==Plot==
==Plot==
{{Long plot|date=October 2022}}
The story takes place in [[Upstate New York]] during the 1970s.<ref>[https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/joe-the-king-1999 Roger Ebert]</ref> 14-year-old Joe Henry has spent his life in an abusive household. His father, Bob, is a raging, violent alcoholic, while his mother, Theresa, 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 does not want the association of Joe's natural uncoolness (as well as the rest of his family) ruining his attempts to get into the "in" crowd. Joe is taunted by his classmates, and hassled by people his father owes money to. To make matters worse, one night Bob goes off the deep end and smashes all of Theresa's records. When Joe comes home from work to discover this, Henry tells him Bob was triggered by finding condoms in Theresa's purse, implying she secretly works as a prostitute to bring in whatever additional income she can for the family, which would also explain her absence from the house the majority of the day.
The story takes place in [[Upstate New York]] during the 1970s.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ebert |first=Roger |date=October 22, 1999 |title=Joe The King movie review & film summary (1999) |url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/joe-the-king-1999 |access-date=2022-10-09 |website=RogerEbert.com |language=en}}</ref> Fourteen-year-old Joe Henry has spent his life in an abusive household. His father, Bob, is a raging, violent [[alcoholic]], while his mother, Theresa, 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, Mike, about a year older, is normal and friendly, but offers no affirmative guidance. He mostly ignores Joe as he does not want the association of Joe's natural uncoolness (as well as the rest of his family) ruining his attempts to get into the "in" crowd. Joe is taunted by his classmates, and hassled by people his father owes money to. To make matters worse, one night Bob goes off the deep end and smashes all of Theresa's records. When Joe comes home from work to discover this, Henry tells him Bob was triggered by finding [[condoms]] in Theresa's purse, implying she secretly works as a [[prostitute]] to bring in whatever additional income she can for the family, which would also explain her absence from the house the majority of the day.


In response to economic pressure, Joe takes a full-time job after school working at a local diner, leaving him tired and even less able to keep up with class work. Because he is underage, Joe works there illegally, resulting in the owners exploiting him for cheap, underpaid labor and treating him rather poorly. His co-worker, Jorge, is the only person there who treats him with any kindness and frequently sticks up for him. Failing in school, Joe is assigned a [[guidance counselor]] named Leonard Coles, 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.
In response to economic pressure, Joe takes a full-time job after school working at a local diner, leaving him tired and even less able to keep up with class work. Because he is [[underage]], Joe works there illegally, resulting in the owners [[Exploitation of labour|exploiting]] him for cheap, underpaid labor and treating him rather poorly. His co-worker, Jorge, is the only person there who treats him with any kindness and frequently sticks up for him. Failing in school, Joe is assigned a [[guidance counselor]] named Leonard Coles, 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.


Throughout the movie, Joe is seen engaging in petty theft (shoplifting from stores, breaking into cars to lift items inside, and stealing from mailboxes) to raise money to pay off Bob's debts and replace Theresa's records. Also, due to his family's poverty and, as a result, likely having to go hungry most days, he is often seen stealing food from the diner to feed himself and his brother. This reaches its climax when, one night, nearing the end of his shift, Joe learns from Jorge, who decides to leave early, that two of his bosses (a couple: Jerry and Mary) living in the apartment directly above the diner have already left and are gone for the weekend. This presents Joe an opportunity to rob the diner and acquire the money he needs.
Throughout the movie, Joe is seen engaging in [[petty theft]] (shoplifting from stores, breaking into cars to lift items inside, and stealing from mailboxes) to raise money to pay off Bob's [[debts]] and replace Theresa's records. Also, due to his family's poverty and, as a result, likely having to go hungry most days, he is often seen stealing food from the diner to feed himself and his brother. This reaches its [[climax (narrative)|climax]] when, one night, nearing the end of his shift, Joe learns from Jorge, who decides to leave early, that two of his bosses (a couple: Jerry and Mary) living in the apartment directly above the diner have already left and are gone for the weekend. This presents Joe an opportunity to rob the diner and acquire the money he needs.


After his shift, he sneaks in through an upstairs window and ransacks the apartment, looking for a locked metal box that was previously revealed to contain a large quantity of cash. Joe finds the box, but then catches a glimpse of himself in a doorway mirror. Horrified at what he has become, he kicks the mirror in and badly cuts his leg. Though injured, he manages to escape before another one of his bosses, an older man named Roy, who is drunkenly making his way back to the apartment to retrieve his house keys, is able to catch him.
After his shift, he sneaks in through an upstairs window and ransacks the apartment, looking for a locked metal box that was previously revealed to contain a large quantity of cash. Joe finds the box, but then catches a glimpse of himself in a doorway mirror. Horrified at what he has become, he kicks the mirror in and badly cuts his leg. Though injured, he manages to escape before another one of his bosses, an older man named Roy, who is drunkenly making his way back to the apartment to retrieve his house keys, is able to catch him.


The next day, as Joe arrives to the diner to start his shift, Jorge is outside having a smoke. He stares at Joe suspiciously, then proceeds to angrily inform Joe that he knows he was the one who broke into the place and stole the money. Sticking up for Joe as usual, however, he states he will not tell anyone that Joe was responsible. Jorge then tells him to not worry about getting caught, as Jerry and Mary believe Mary's ex-husband was responsible, and Roy, having been so inebriated that night, thought Joe was a giant rat running past him and knocked him down the stairs. Jorge then tells Joe to leave and never return to avoid suspicion.
The next day, as Joe arrives to the diner to start his shift, Jorge is outside having a smoke. He stares at Joe suspiciously, then proceeds to angrily inform Joe that he knows he was the one who broke into the place and stole the money. Sticking up for Joe as usual, however, he states he will not tell anyone that Joe was responsible. Jorge then tells him to not worry about getting caught, as Jerry and Mary believe Mary's ex-husband was responsible and Roy, having been so [[inebriated]] that night, thought Joe was a giant rat running past him and knocked him down the stairs. Jorge then tells Joe to leave and never return to avoid suspicion.


Using the stolen money, Joe buys brand new copies of Theresa's records that were destroyed by Bob and stores them in a space beneath his house with an enveloped note for his mother. Joe's plan ultimately goes south when he reveals his deed to his friend Ray, who, in turn, reveals to Coles that Joe works at the diner, prompting a concerned Coles to place a call to the diner and speaks to Jerry. Coles threatens to report Jerry and the others to the authorities for illegally employing Joe, should they not cease doing so immediately. Jerry complies, but then after Coles unwittingly reveals to him that Joe injured himself while working there by cutting his leg, Jerry correctly deduces that it was Joe who committed the robbery and calls the police.
Using the stolen money, Joe buys brand new copies of Theresa's records that were destroyed by Bob and stores them in a space beneath his house with an enveloped note for his mother. Joe's plan ultimately goes south when he reveals his deed to his friend Ray, who, in turn, reveals to Coles that Joe works at the diner, prompting a concerned Coles to place a call to the diner and speaks to Jerry. Coles threatens to report Jerry and the others to the authorities for illegally employing Joe, should they not cease doing so immediately. Jerry complies, but then after Coles unwittingly reveals to him that Joe injured himself while working there by cutting his leg, Jerry correctly deduces that it was Joe who committed the robbery and calls the police.


Joe is subsequently arrested and is sentenced to a juvenile detention center for six months. Later on, as Bob drives Joe to the bus that will take Joe away, he uncharacteristically offers Joe his condolences and some words of advice about not making poor decisions in life and ending up a loser like Bob himself did. Joe then exits Bob's car and boards the bus. The film ends with Joe walking down the hallway of the detention center with a look of grave uncertainty on his face.<ref>[https://variety.com/1999/film/reviews/joe-the-king-1200456388/#! Variety]</ref>
Joe is subsequently arrested and is sentenced to a juvenile detention center for six months. Later on, as Bob drives Joe to the bus that will take Joe away, Bob uncharacteristically offers Joe his [[condolences]] and some words of advice about not making poor decisions in life and ending up a loser like Bob himself did. Joe then exits Bob's car and boards the bus. The film ends with Joe walking down the hallway of the [[Prison|detention center]] with a look of grave uncertainty on his face.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Harvey |first=Dennis |date=January 26, 1999 |title=Joe the King |work=Variety |url=https://variety.com/1999/film/reviews/joe-the-king-1200456388/#! |access-date=October 9, 2022}}</ref>


==Production==
==Production==
Whaley used [[French New Wave]] films as main models, especially ''[[The 400 Blows]]''.<ref>[https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1999-10-22-9910220065-story.html 'JOE THE KING' A GROWING-UP STORY WITH DEPTH - Chicago Tribune]</ref>
Whaley used [[French New Wave]] films as main models, especially ''[[The 400 Blows]]''.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Wilmington |first=Michael |date=October 22, 1999 |title='Joe the King' a Growing-up Story with Depth |work=Chicago Tribune |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1999-10-22-9910220065-story.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20221009051153/https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1999-10-22-9910220065-story.html |archive-date=October 9, 2022}}</ref>


Leguizamo, who was also the executive producer, filmed his scenes for three days between Staten Island and the Broadway theater where his one-man show ''Freak''.<ref>[https://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/fl-xpm-1999-11-20-9911190643-story.html GROWING UP THE SON OF AN ABUSIVE ALCOHOLIC FATHER MADE JOE THE KING DIRECTOR FRANK WHALEY A YOUNG . . . - Sun Sentinel]</ref>
Leguizamo, who was also the executive producer, filmed his scenes for three days between Staten Island and the Broadway theater where his one-man show ''Freak'' was being staged.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Durbin |first=Karen |date=November 20, 1999 |title=Growing up the son of an abusive alcoholic father made Joe the King director Frank Whaley a young . . . |work=The Sun-Sentinel |url=https://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/fl-xpm-1999-11-20-9911190643-story.html |url-status=dead |access-date=October 9, 2022 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20221009051543/https://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/fl-xpm-1999-11-20-9911190643-story.html |archive-date=October 9, 2022}}</ref> He was slated to direct, but he was so busy that he stepped down as director.


== Cast ==
== Cast ==
* [[Noah Fleiss]] as Joe Henry
* [[Noah Fleiss]] as Joe Henry
* Max Ligosh as Mike Henry, Joe's Older Brother
* Max Ligosh as Mike Henry, Joe's older brother
* [[Val Kilmer]] as Bob Henry, Joe's Father
* [[Val Kilmer]] as Bob Henry, Joe's father
* [[Karen Young (actress)|Karen Young]] as Theresa Henry, Joe's Mother
* [[Karen Young (actress)|Karen Young]] as Theresa Henry, Joe's mother
* James Costa as Ray
* James Costa as Ray
* [[John Leguizamo]] as Jorge
* [[John Leguizamo]] as Jorge
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* Robert Whaley as Jerry
* Robert Whaley as Jerry
* Amy Wright as Mary
* Amy Wright as Mary
* [[Camryn Manheim]] as Mrs. Basil


==References==
==References==
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==External links==
==External links==
*{{IMDb title|id=0160672}}
*{{IMDb title|id=0160672}}
*{{amg movie|176045|Joe the King}}
*{{allMovie title|176045|Joe the King}}
* {{Rotten Tomatoes|joe_the_king}}
* {{Rotten Tomatoes|joe_the_king}}
*[https://vimeo.com/288268190 The entire film officially posted by Frank Whaley on Vimeo]
*[https://vimeo.com/288268190 The entire film officially posted by Frank Whaley on Vimeo]
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[[Category:1999 films]]
[[Category:1999 films]]
[[Category:English-language films]]
[[Category:American films]]
[[Category:1999 drama films]]
[[Category:1999 drama films]]
[[Category:Sundance Film Festival award winners]]
[[Category:Sundance Film Festival award–winning films]]
[[Category:Films directed by Frank Whaley]]
[[Category:Films directed by Frank Whaley]]
[[Category:1999 independent films]]
[[Category:Films about domestic violence]]
[[Category:Films about domestic violence]]
[[Category:Films about dysfunctional families]]
[[Category:Films about dysfunctional families]]
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[[Category:Films about child abuse]]
[[Category:Films about child abuse]]
[[Category:Films set in the 1970s]]
[[Category:Films set in the 1970s]]
[[Category:1990s English-language films]]
[[Category:American crime drama films]]
[[Category:1990s American films]]
[[Category:English-language independent films]]

Latest revision as of 23:00, 22 November 2024

Joe the King
Directed byFrank Whaley
Written byFrank Whaley
Produced byJennifer Dewis
Scott Macaulay
Lindsay Marx
Robin O'Hara
Starring
Distributed byTrimark Pictures
Release date
  • January 22, 1999 (1999-01-22)
Running time
100 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Joe the King is a 1999 drama film, written and directed by Frank Whaley, based largely on his own childhood and the childhood of his brother. It stars Noah Fleiss, Val Kilmer, Karen Young, Ethan Hawke, John Leguizamo, Austin Pendleton, Camryn Manheim, Max Ligosh, and James Costa.[1] The film premiered at the 1999 Sundance Film Festival, where it won Whaley the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award (tied with Guinevere) and a nomination for the Grand Jury Prize. It also got a nomination for the Open Palm Award from the Gotham Awards. Noah Fleiss also received a Young Artist Award nomination for Best Leading Actor in a Feature Film.

Plot

[edit]

The story takes place in Upstate New York during the 1970s.[2] Fourteen-year-old Joe Henry has spent his life in an abusive household. His father, Bob, is a raging, violent alcoholic, while his mother, Theresa, 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, Mike, about a year older, is normal and friendly, but offers no affirmative guidance. He mostly ignores Joe as he does not want the association of Joe's natural uncoolness (as well as the rest of his family) ruining his attempts to get into the "in" crowd. Joe is taunted by his classmates, and hassled by people his father owes money to. To make matters worse, one night Bob goes off the deep end and smashes all of Theresa's records. When Joe comes home from work to discover this, Henry tells him Bob was triggered by finding condoms in Theresa's purse, implying she secretly works as a prostitute to bring in whatever additional income she can for the family, which would also explain her absence from the house the majority of the day.

In response to economic pressure, Joe takes a full-time job after school working at a local diner, leaving him tired and even less able to keep up with class work. Because he is underage, Joe works there illegally, resulting in the owners exploiting him for cheap, underpaid labor and treating him rather poorly. His co-worker, Jorge, is the only person there who treats him with any kindness and frequently sticks up for him. Failing in school, Joe is assigned a guidance counselor named Leonard Coles, 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.

Throughout the movie, Joe is seen engaging in petty theft (shoplifting from stores, breaking into cars to lift items inside, and stealing from mailboxes) to raise money to pay off Bob's debts and replace Theresa's records. Also, due to his family's poverty and, as a result, likely having to go hungry most days, he is often seen stealing food from the diner to feed himself and his brother. This reaches its climax when, one night, nearing the end of his shift, Joe learns from Jorge, who decides to leave early, that two of his bosses (a couple: Jerry and Mary) living in the apartment directly above the diner have already left and are gone for the weekend. This presents Joe an opportunity to rob the diner and acquire the money he needs.

After his shift, he sneaks in through an upstairs window and ransacks the apartment, looking for a locked metal box that was previously revealed to contain a large quantity of cash. Joe finds the box, but then catches a glimpse of himself in a doorway mirror. Horrified at what he has become, he kicks the mirror in and badly cuts his leg. Though injured, he manages to escape before another one of his bosses, an older man named Roy, who is drunkenly making his way back to the apartment to retrieve his house keys, is able to catch him.

The next day, as Joe arrives to the diner to start his shift, Jorge is outside having a smoke. He stares at Joe suspiciously, then proceeds to angrily inform Joe that he knows he was the one who broke into the place and stole the money. Sticking up for Joe as usual, however, he states he will not tell anyone that Joe was responsible. Jorge then tells him to not worry about getting caught, as Jerry and Mary believe Mary's ex-husband was responsible and Roy, having been so inebriated that night, thought Joe was a giant rat running past him and knocked him down the stairs. Jorge then tells Joe to leave and never return to avoid suspicion.

Using the stolen money, Joe buys brand new copies of Theresa's records that were destroyed by Bob and stores them in a space beneath his house with an enveloped note for his mother. Joe's plan ultimately goes south when he reveals his deed to his friend Ray, who, in turn, reveals to Coles that Joe works at the diner, prompting a concerned Coles to place a call to the diner and speaks to Jerry. Coles threatens to report Jerry and the others to the authorities for illegally employing Joe, should they not cease doing so immediately. Jerry complies, but then after Coles unwittingly reveals to him that Joe injured himself while working there by cutting his leg, Jerry correctly deduces that it was Joe who committed the robbery and calls the police.

Joe is subsequently arrested and is sentenced to a juvenile detention center for six months. Later on, as Bob drives Joe to the bus that will take Joe away, Bob uncharacteristically offers Joe his condolences and some words of advice about not making poor decisions in life and ending up a loser like Bob himself did. Joe then exits Bob's car and boards the bus. The film ends with Joe walking down the hallway of the detention center with a look of grave uncertainty on his face.[3]

Production

[edit]

Whaley used French New Wave films as main models, especially The 400 Blows.[4]

Leguizamo, who was also the executive producer, filmed his scenes for three days between Staten Island and the Broadway theater where his one-man show Freak was being staged.[5] He was slated to direct, but he was so busy that he stepped down as director.

Cast

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Joe the King (1999)". TVGuide.com.
  2. ^ Ebert, Roger (October 22, 1999). "Joe The King movie review & film summary (1999)". RogerEbert.com. Retrieved 2022-10-09.
  3. ^ Harvey, Dennis (January 26, 1999). "Joe the King". Variety. Retrieved October 9, 2022.
  4. ^ Wilmington, Michael (October 22, 1999). "'Joe the King' a Growing-up Story with Depth". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on October 9, 2022.
  5. ^ Durbin, Karen (November 20, 1999). "Growing up the son of an abusive alcoholic father made Joe the King director Frank Whaley a young . . ". The Sun-Sentinel. Archived from the original on October 9, 2022. Retrieved October 9, 2022.
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