REVIEW: ‘The Kings Of The World’ – Coming Of Age In A Cruel World

The kids are not alright in The Kings of the World (Los Reyes Del Mundo). This Netflix Original film by director Laura Mora Ortega and writer Maria Camila Arias makes that abundantly clear. In the early 2010s, Colombia passed a law that would allow restitution for victims of land displacement. More than a decade later, Rá (Carlos Andrés Castañeda) finally received the letter from the government declaring his right to the land his grandmother was forced from when he was a kid. He and his friends set off across the country to claim this land at all costs.

In many ways, The Kings of the World is similar to many of your typical teen coming-of-age stories. It features your hot-headed teenagers who think the world owes them something they’ve never been afforded. As a result, they’re completely irreverent, have few prospects about the future beyond what they can see on the road ahead of them, and barely even trust one another half the time. But where another coming-of-age movie might move you with its heart or its lessons learned, The Kings of the World leaves a gaping void as these boys move through tragedy and hopelessness.

There’s little respite in watching this movie. It’s sorrowful, and every time moments of lightness or joy pop up, they’re beaten right back down by the next struggle or setback. It’s rather hard to watch at times, given how quickly most of these boys will endear you, especially Winny (Cristian Campaña), the youngest member of the crew. These are just a bunch of kids with no family but each other trying to make it in the world, chasing after a dream of a new life where they’re safe and far away from the rules and misgivings of their streets. So whenever they’re on the up, you want to be so happy for them, but this movie doesn’t let you. It constantly reminds you of their disposition and the risk their journey and dreams incur.

Mostly, it’s a beautifully shot movie. There are ample luscious scenes displaying the multiplicity of Colombia’s locales. Some well-placed camera angles add a level of perspective to several scenes, whether getting low to the boys’ heights or perching off in the distance looking through a destroyed door frame. Unfortunately, though, one of the most important and difficult scenes is lit so poorly that you can barely see what is happening and may not even know the extent of it until the next scene begins again in the light.

One of the most impactful sequences comes fairly early on in The Kings of the World, where the boys arrive at a house in the middle of nowhere occupied by 5 abuelas who feed them, bathe them, and generally dote on them for a bit. This moment where the boys each slowly dance in one of their arms begins awkwardly, making you wonder about their intentions and why these tough guys are holding onto these older women, especially after a crude comment or two by one of them earlier. But as the scene slowly goes by and wraps the camera throughout the house, one of the older women sheds a tear, and you immediately understand, maybe for the first and most important time, what this movie is all about: the tragedy of how the world has dealt these kids. They wish they could do more, but that simple tear says everything about what can be done to really help them.

The Kings of the World does feel like it drags on for just a bit too long. It could have been done with one fewer stop along their journey or so. The tragedy of it all is quite evident quite quickly, and eventually, I became inured to some of it, like all tragedy does when you’re exposed to it over and over again. Fortunately, the end is quite special and makes the trek worth it. In many ways, the arduous journey to the film’s end is nearly superfluous once it concludes. It’s all color commentary on what was destined to be the end of this story, even if you weren’t completely expecting it. Come along for the journey, but stick with it for the destination.

The Kings of the World is a tragic take on the teenage coming-of-age drama. It will feel familiar in its structure, but emotionally, it resonates for absolutely different reasons. Where it may leave a hole in your heart instead of filling one as its kin might often do, frustration and tragedy are its purpose, and when its final moments strike, experiencing it makes the challenging journey worthwhile.

The Kings of the World is streaming now on Netflix.