This isn't the kind of movie that I usually watch, and I think that I'm pretty far out of its target demographic. However, I figured that I'd take a chance, given that I was bored and feeling open-minded. At times, I was worried that King of California would descend into insipid and clichéd family-friendly themes, but it kept surprising me with a bit of subversiveness or social commentary. Michael Douglas's character serves as the classic "wise fool", an ostensibly foolish character who nonetheless imparts great wisdom, due in no small part to his inability to properly socialize in polite society. His daughter, more inhibited and straight-laced, learns to think outside the box, trust her instincts, question authority, follow her dreams, etc. By the end of the movie, I was half-expecting her to join some New Age cult and/or dye her hair purple.
The pacing really slows down to a crawl sometimes, but, overall, it's a fairly good movie with a message that should resonate with nonconformists, hippies, and madmen.
The pacing really slows down to a crawl sometimes, but, overall, it's a fairly good movie with a message that should resonate with nonconformists, hippies, and madmen.