Princess Kaiulani
Roadside Attractions | Release Date: May 14, 2010 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
41
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 17 Critic Reviews
Positive:
2
Mixed:
13
Negative:
2
Watch Now
Buy on
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Expand

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
80
The Hollywood ReporterJustin Lowe
A stirring romantic drama centering on the last royal heir to the native line of traditional monarchs. Read full review
63
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
Princess Kaiulani is much remembered in Hawaii, much forgotten on the mainland, and the subject of this interesting but creaky biopic. Read full review
60
MovielineMichelle Orange
Designed to be both essential history lesson and costume weeper, Princess Kaiulani comes up short on both fronts: Deadly earnest intentions and lack of dramatic gumption ensure that the story of Hawaii’s favored daughter remains under-told. Read full review
50
L.A. WeeklyVadim Rizov
And this may be the only film in history to have someone learn about egalitarianism at a British boarding school (!). Hawaii's dismal onscreen track record continues; bring back James Michener. Read full review
50
Los Angeles TimesGary Goldstein
The film is too reverently drawn and self-consciously played to muster any real momentum. Read full review
50
San Francisco ChronicleAmy Biancolli
As Kaiulani's story, it falls flat, having collapsed under the weight of the genre's mushier conventions. There are too many swooping violins, too many trite generalizations, too few moments that throw a light on history and turn it into art. Read full review
50
The New York TimesMike Hale
Over all, though, Princess Kaiulani plays like an old-fashioned, stiff but plushly upholstered costume drama, swaddled in gauzy cinematography and swelling strings. Read full review
50
Chicago ReaderJ.R. Jones
This historical drama is lovely to look at, with elegant Victorian fashions and verdant tropical scenery, but its story plays like a Hawaiian heritage lesson filtered through the melodramatic artifice of an old Hollywood costume drama. Read full review
50
Philadelphia InquirerSteven Rea
Kilcher is lovely. But sadly, Ka'iulani is a perfunctory biopic of the sort one might encounter on television during Women's History Month. Read full review
42
The A.V. ClubTasha Robinson
While Princess Kaiulani makes do with what story it has, the film feels stretched and straining, full of sleepy scenes and pregnant pauses. Read full review
42
Christian Science MonitorPeter Rainer
As the doomed princess, Q’orianka Kilcher, who costarred as Pocahontas in Terence Malick’s “The New World,” has imperially striking features but limited acting skills. If her performances should ever rise to the level of her looks, she’ll be great. Read full review
40
New York Daily NewsJoe Neumaier
This somber but unexceptional drama is luxurious to look at but never gripping. Read full review
40
Time OutKeith Uhlich
Kilcher makes the slog worthwhile--her face gleams with possibility, even in the character’s darkest moments--though one prays she escapes the typecasting trap ASAP. Read full review
40
Boxoffice MagazineMark Keizer
So it's apropos that Forby's biggest misstep is his thin and careful script that can't carry us away on the same winds of fate that would put a sovereign republic's future in the hands of such a young woman. Read full review
40
Austin ChronicleMarc Savlov
It's certainly one of the most beautiful costume-drama/historical-romance naps you'll ever have, but this effortlessly evocative, endlessly ennui-inducing paean to Hawaii's final princess is, ultimately, a dull, "Upstairs Downstairs" affair. Read full review
38
Boston GlobeTy Burr
It can’t be easy to turn the story of Hawaii’s last royal into a waxworks parade, but writer-director Marc Forby has pulled it off. Read full review
25
New York PostV.A. Musetto
The landscapes are exotic and Kilcher is erotic, but the film plays like a generic made-for-TV biopic. Read full review
More From This Movie

41 Critic Reviews

tbd User Reviews

Details & Credits|Trailers

Current Movie Releases
By MetascoreBy User Score
1 81 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple
2 77 Project Hail Mary
3 75 Send Help
4 73 Hoppers
5 72 The Sheep Detectives
SEE ALL
Essential Links
New on Amazon Prime Video
New on Netflix
Coming Soon to DVD/Blu-ray
SEE ALL