Review: The King of Staten Island

The King of Staten Island, the newest film from Judd Apatow is . . . confusing. Here’s the deal if you are charmed by Pete Davidson, who in a rat-boy like way is charming, (as long as you’re cool with him being 25 and dating a 17 year-old. You cool with that? Cool.) you will be charmed, because it is a charming movie. 

While this film is clearly a dramedy by genre, it never reaches any of the comedic heights of Apatow’s former work such as Knocked Up, or Trainwreck. This movie attempts Apatow’s directorial signature of grounded situations with heart and killer one liners, but in The King of Staten Island, no jokes really hit and the drama isn’t exactly there.  

The King of Staten Island is a semi-autobiographical tale of comedian Pete Davidson’s coming of age story. In real life, Davidson’s father is a firefighter who is killed in 9/11. In this story, Davidson’s dad is a firefighter who is killed in a hotel fire. Already this choice asks the question, “why not adapt the more dramatic storyline?” And therein lies the issue with this movie- why? It’s clear that Apatow and the characters in the film have a strong affection for Davidson, but, like, why? Davidson’s character never proves himself anything other than self serving other than eventually getting along with Bill Burr’s character. 

Now, before you think this review is overwhelmingly negative, Bill Burr in this movie is a prince who deserves all the nominations. He delivers the kind of Apatow directed performance that is so joyful to watch. Other notable performances were Marissa Tomei and all the firefighter characters. The Firehall scenes are where the gentle laughs lie. Unfortunately, to get to that, you have to sit through Pete Davidson hanging out with his friends, and that may be asking too much.

The King of Staten Island at its core is a well made movie with an important point of view. This cannot be stated enough: a movie about a boy who doesn’t understand his emotions but then learns how to express his emotions, is indeed an important story. Men need to be told that it is okay to feel like shit sometimes, and that does not make them a bad person- it makes them human. And obviously stories about troubled men will continue to be told; because, troubled men run the studios and are the directors. 

So for the foreseeable future, these movies will keep getting made and at least watching them learn emotional stability is somewhat exciting.

The King of Staten Island was released June 12.
Watch it here.