King Knight – Fantasia 2021

The life of the high priest of a coven is thrown into turmoil when his past catches up with him in King Knight. Thorn (Matthew Gray Gubler) is the leader of a coven of witches along with his life partner Willow (Angela Sarafyan). Thorn's non-conformist, pagan lifestyle is thrown into chaos when Willow finds an e-mail inviting Thorn to his 20-year high school reunion and that he was once class president, prom king, and voted most likely to succeed. With the rest of the coven not taking this news too fondly, Thorn ventures on a walkabout, guiding by a vision of the wizard Merlin (Ray Wise).

King Knight is a dark comedy by writer/director Richard Bates Jr. (Suburban Gothic, Trash Fire) about a leader of a coven of witches, who experiences a personal identity crisis. The film stars Matthew Gray Gubler, a regular in Richard Bates Jr.'s films, as Thorn, a man who gives relationship advice to the members of his coven when he is not trying to sell birdbaths online. One day, Thorn's life partner Willow, played by Westworld's Angela Sarafyan, discovers that Thorn was not only popular in high school but that his estranged mother Ruth (Barbara Crampton) is still alive. While Willow begrudgingly accepts Thorn's past, he is banished by the rest of the coven for not being honest to them, leading to a soul-searching journey.

The films of Richard Bates Jr. can be an acquired taste and King Knight is no exception. While there are some elements of the film that stick out, such as a zany appearance by Ray Wise as Merlin the Wizard and a trippy animated sequence, King Knight is an otherwise so-so tale of self-identity. Then again, what other films would you see that features Aubrey Plaza voicing a talking pinecone?

King Knight is streaming as part of the virtual 2021 Fantasia Film Festival

Related Links

• TADFF14: Suburban Gothic
• Fantasia 2016: Trash Fire
• TADFF16: From a House on Willow Street
• TADFF13: Willow Creek

Trailer for King Knight – Fantasia 2021