King of the Hill [Criterion Collection] [Blu-ray/DVD]

Director: Steven Soderbergh Steven Soderbergh

Overview

Steven Soderbergh, after the success of sex, lies, and videotape and the commercial failure of Kafka, pulls a rabbit out of his hat with this quiet and evocative recollection of a childhood lived in the Depression, based on A. E. Hotchner's memoir. Twelve-year-old Aaron Kurlander (Jesse Bradford) is coming of age in a rotting working class section of St. Louis in 1933. As the film begins, Aaron's family is coming apart at the seams due to the increasingly bleak economy. His father (Jeroen Krabbe) ekes out a living with a series of failed sales jobs as the family lives in the dilapidated Empire Hotel in a seamy section of town. When his younger brother (Cameron Boyd) is sent to live with relatives to save expenses, his consumptive mother (Lisa Eichhorn) goes away to a sanitarium and his father abandons him to sell watches in Iowa. At first Aaron retreats into a concocted fantasy world but he gradually becomes drawn into the shattered lives of the tenants of the hotel. Aaron sees the rotting social fabric laid bare and discovers he must temper his childhood dreams with the hard-hitting realities of adult existence.

Product Details

Release Date:	06/29/2021
UPC:	0715515261210
Original Release:	1993
Rating:	NR
Source:	Criterion Collection
Region Code:	A
Sound:	[Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround]
Language:	English
Time:	1:43:00
Sales rank:	13,379

Special Features

New, restored 2K film transfer, supervised by Director Steven Soderbergh and Supersiving Sound Editor and Re-recording mixer Larry Blake, a 5.1 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack; New interviews with Soderbergh and source memoir autho A.E. Hotchner; Against Tyranny, a new visual essay by filmmaker kogonada exploring Soderbergh's unique approach to narrative; The Underneath (1995), Soderbergh's follow-up feature to King of the Hill, with a new interview with the Director; Trailers; Plus: An essay by critic Peter Tonguette, a 1993 interview with Soderbergh, and an excerpt from Hotchner's 1972 memoir

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Jesse Bradford	Aaron
Karen Allen	Miss Mathey
Lisa Eichhorn	Mrs. Kurlander
Spalding Gray	Mungo
Cameron Boyd	Sullivan
Elizabeth McGovern	Lydia
Adrien Brody	Lester
Joseph Chrest	Ben,Ben
Chris Samples	Billy Thompson
Katherine Heigl	Christina Sebastian
Amber Benson	Ella McShane
John "Spud" McConnell	Patrolman Burns
John McConnell	Patrolman Burns
John Durbin	Mr. Sandoz
Ron Vawter	Mr. Desot
Lauryn Hill	Elevator Operator
Jeroen Krabbé	Mr. Kurlander
Remak Ramsay	Principal Stellwater
David Jensen	Front Desk Clerk
Deborah Aquila	Actor
Timothy Bottoms	Actor
Geraldine Fitzgerald	Actor
Don Richard	Mr. Farley
Kristin Griffith	Mrs. McShane
Jesse Zeigler	Jealous Kid
Joseph Patrick Moynihan	Woodbine Waiter
Mak Takano	Mr. Yamo
Craig Hawksley	Golfer in Orange Pants
Cliff Martinez	Composer

Technical Credits

Steven Soderbergh

A.E. Hotchner

Steven Soderbergh	Director,Screenwriter
Albert Berger	Producer
Deborah Aquila	Casting
John Hardy	Executive Producer
Barbara Maltby	Producer
Noon Orsatti	Stunts
Robert Redford	Executive Producer
Ron Yerxa	Producer
A.E. Hotchner	Screenwriter
Ron Bartlett	Sound Effects
Matthew C. Beville	Sound Effects
Mark Coffey	Sound Effects

Editorial Reviews

Director Steven Soderbergh made an austere about-face from the vilified Kafka with this lyrical adaptation of A.E. Hotchner's 1973 memoir, recapturing his (previous) high standing with critics and reinforcing his status as a Hollywood outsider. Those who feared after Kafka that Soderbergh was in danger of becoming a mere stylist will find reason to rejoice here: adroitly juggling seasoned professionals with neophyte youngsters, he fully emerges as an actor's director, never sacrificing character detail for visual pyrotechnics. Though the autobiographical hero, Aaron, could have come off as either depression-era martyr or lovable imp, the young Jesse Bradford imbues him with something more elusive: the genuine curiosity of a young boy. Through it all, Soderbergh never errs in his determination to present events from the boy's point of view, and the audience is rewarded with a host of evocative supporting performances, including Spalding Grey's erudite alcoholic Mr. Mungo, a cast-against-type Elizabeth McGovern, and Karen Allen as Aaron's concerned schoolteacher. For their part, Bradford and two of his young co-stars -- Adrien Brody and Lauryn Hill -- would go on to even greater success in Hollywood into the 21st century.

All Movie Guide - Michael Hastings