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The King of Staten Island Movie Review

The King of Staten Island is a 2020 dramedy film directed by Judd Apatow and starring Pete Davidson. It’s a very strong, inspirational movie.

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“What are those numbers on your arm?

That’s the date my dad died“

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It follows a young man who must get his life together after his mom starts dating a new guy, who is also a firefighter like his deceased father. As is the case with all Apatow movies, this one also has a strong dramatic as well as comedic side to it. Unfortunately, its tone is somewhat meandering, which is a problem in some areas of the film, especially the second half.

The humor is pretty good at times with a couple of very funny observations and moments, but for the most part the film is much better off as a drama than as a comedy. I do agree with most critics that its tonal inconsistencies hurt the movie. Also, its excessive runtime probably hurt it too. However, despite being over two hours long, I was engaged from start to finish, which is all thanks to its very involving story and excellent characterization.

Scott Carlin is the main reason why this film works so well. Apparently, Pete Davidson, the actor, plays himself here as this is a semi-biographical picture. He also wrote the script and it shows. He is the one who made the movie so good, not Apatow, though his direction is pretty strong. But Davidson succeeded wildly in both roles that he plays here.

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In the role of an actor, he is so good. I was not acquainted with his work before this movie, but now I am interested to see what he does next as his performance is confident, believable and consistently effective. But even more so, his writing here is fantastic. It’s obvious from the get-go that this story is for the most part based on his own experiences, and that shows in the film’s very engaging, very meticulously crafted, purposeful narrative.

That is why I was engrossed throughout its long runtime despite some apparent flaws. It’s a great cautionary tale of what can happen if you don’t find a job in your twenties and you lead an aimless life. It also tackled loss of a loved one so well and how profoundly it can affect a child to the point that he becomes depressed and even suicidal. The third act here is expected, but its happy conclusion was definitely earned due to the film’s very careful characterization.

Bill Burr and Marisa Tomei are both excellent in their great roles. Although Margie is a bad parent in my opinion and ultimately a bit unfair to Ray, you can still get where she’s coming from. She got a great character arc and the same goes for Ray. I loved their relationship, and in particular the newfound father-son dynamic is very moving.

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The King of Staten Island is again badly paced, but I only did not care for the beginning as the first act did take its time to start properly, but the remainder I thoroughly enjoyed. Technically, the movie is well shot and overall well made, but nothing truly spectacular.

Although clearly tonally inconsistent and bloated in runtime, The King of Staten Island is still quite engrossing most of the time. Judd Apatow directed the film well, but it is Pete Davidson who made it as good as it is. His central acting performance is very strong, but he co-wrote the movie so well as he obviously based it on his own experiences, resulting in a very meticulously crafted, inspirational tale featuring a happy ending that very much felt earned.

My Rating – 4

You can get this great movie on Amazon.