'All the King's Men' is just a one-note ego trip
by Eleanor Ringel Gillespie

There's one Penn too many in Sean Penn's remake of "All the King's Men," and it's not Robert Penn Warren. Warren wrote the Pulitzer Prize-winning book that provided the basis for this film and the Oscar-winning 1949 version that won best picture, best supporting actress and, most especially, best actor for Broderick Crawford's towering portrayal of Willie Stark. Willie is a big, juicy, red-meat role, and it's no wonder Penn would want to play it. It's pretty much because of Penn's yen for the part that this remake exists. And it's appalling. Mostly because Penn is appalling. Read the full review

TO SUM UP
An idealistic southern politician, "Boss" Willie Stark, plays to the common man. He also plays dirty politics — and slowly is corrupted by the system. Based on the Robert Penn Warren novel and inspired by the career of Louisiana Gov. Huey Long.

FILM FACTS ...
Sony Pictures
'All the King's Men'

Director: Steven Zaillian
Starring: Sean Penn, Jude Law, Kate Winslet, Mark Ruffalo, Anthony Hopkins, James Gandolfini, Patricia Clarkson
Run time: 120 minutes
Release date: Sept. 22, 2006
Rating: PG-13 for an intense sequence of violence, sexual content and partial nudity.
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READ THE REVIEW

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution: F
"This isn't acting. It's caricature. Instead of Willie Stark, we get Foghorn Leghorn."

Austin American-Statesman: 2 of 5 stars
"... shies away from dramatically promising conflicts and shows them to us secondhand or third-hand."

The Palm Beach Post: C-
"... ends up in pieces that refuse to be put together again."


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