King Jack (2015)

“King Jack” isn’t exactly a happy movie. It’s rather depressing. And at the same time you’ll witness in this social drama how unwritten laws are maintained between raging young people who are living in slums and at the same time are eager to kick eachothers butt. For those who have been a victim of bullying and experienced an embarrassing moment (posting a not so kosher photo on social media for example) will certainly sympathize with Jack’s (Charlie Plummer) situation. An unhinged teenager who undergoes daily harassments of an older boy named Shane (Danny Flaherty). Shane himself once was the same kind of misfit who suffered from the harassment of Jack’s brother Tom (Christian Madsen). So, you could say it’s sort of a delayed revenge. 

“King Jack” is a typical coming-of-age film mixed with a tale about the growing-pains of teenagers in an aggressive and poor neigbourhood. Expect some timid attempts from Jack trying to deal with peers of the opposite sex. But especially Shane’s blatant bullying and Jack’s rebellious answer to that (including painting a dirty word on the garage at Shane’s home) is the central topic in this film. It doesn’t really have an impressive plot but it’s supported by a strong and capable cast. On the one hand Plummer as Jack who’s both selfish and combative at the same time. And he does that brilliantly. A superb achievement with Plummer applying both toughness and vulnerability perfectly. But especially Flaherty impressed me. From the first moment he came in the picture, a feeling of dislike for this individual arose inside me. Shane is a first class asshole and a sadistic coward. He’s really such a creep I would love to kick in the crotch with a heavy boot. And the moment he’s defeated by someone of the same caliber, and he’s begging like a scared, pathetic loser, I couldn’t avoid to gloat. “King Jack” is a dark and touching melodrama. Worth a look anyway.