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‘The Kingdom’ Review: The Daughter of a Corsican Big Shot Practices Her Aim in Cannes Standout
In 'The Kingdom,' helmer Julien Colonna uses a doomed father-daughter dynamic to critique the explosive cycle of retribution that erupted in the ’90s.
In his sure-handed and chilling first narrative feature, director Julien Colonna examines the personal cost of the gangster lifestyle — not just the drastically shortened life expectancy, but also the diminished quality of fugitives’ remaining time, so much of which must be spent covering their tracks and looking over their shoulders. But this is a coming-of-age film, and Colonna privileges young Lesia’s initially naive but increasingly self-aware perspective, relying on a terrific performance from sun-baked newcomer Ghjuvanna Benedetti, whose piercing gaze and sharp profile suggest a potentially lethal precocity. Lesia adores her dad, accompanying him on fishing trips and hunting wild boar together, but when it comes time to hook the trout or pull the trigger, she makes a point of sparing the animals.
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