The King

After being honourably discharged from the navy, Elvis (Bernal) heads to Texas in search of Davis Sandow (Hurt), the father he has never known, who now has a family, pastors a charismatic Christian church and is not best pleased at this evidence of his pre-conversion immorality walking back into his life. As Elvis slowly gets under the family's skin, Marsh unfolds a story that is fascinating and disturbing, but ultimately frustrating. Central to all these effects is Bernal's performance. His striking looks make him instantly compelling, but also allow him to remain impenetrable throughout, keeping Elvis's interior life an enigma. It's impressive, but results in most of the film's interesting themes remaining buried in a story that leaves so much to audience interpretation as to become effectively meaningless. [Paul Gallagher]