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The King Tide

Name: The King Tide
Director: Christian Sparkes
Released: 2024
Duration: 103 min

Representation Score

8.1/10

Excellent

2024

Director

Christian Sparkes

Runtime

103 minutes

Average Rating

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New Showbiz Analysis

The King Tide functions as a psychological thriller that prioritizes the deconstruction of social institutions over traditional hero narratives. It offers a sophisticated critique of how collective obsession and faith can lead to moral decay and civil war within an isolated community. While the film lacks overt LGBTQ+ or high-density racial representation, it achieves progressive value through its thematic interrogation of power and authority. It presents the community not as a bastion of virtue, but as a volatile system prone to tribalism. Ultimately, the film's strength lies in its intellectual rigor, challenging the stability of established social norms and the dark side of communal exceptionalism.

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Category Breakdown

Does The King Tide have LGBTQ+ representation?

Fair

The story focuses on a nuclear family and a communal hierarchy. There is no clear indication of queer identities or challenges to the assumption that everyone is straight or cisgender.

How does The King Tide portray gender?

Good

Women play a central role through characters like Grace and Faye. The narrative shifts from masculine leadership to matriarchal influence and intellectual authority.

How racially and ethnically diverse is The King Tide?

Fair

Set in Newfoundland and Labrador, the cast includes Michael Greyeyes. This provides a more nuanced depiction of a Canadian maritime setting beyond Anglo-centric stereotypes.

How does The King Tide represent religion and culture?

Good

The film critiques institutionalized beliefs and the corruption of communal identity. It explores how ritualized visits and faith can be used to justify social fragmentation.

Does The King Tide include disability representation?

Fair

Faye’s recovery from dementia highlights the fragility of memory. However, the focus on supernatural healing risks using the 'miraculous cure' cliché.

Present on Screen

Strong critique of how organized groups weaponize faith and identity.
Centering women's roles through characters navigating trauma and social authority.
Nuanced depiction of a Canadian maritime setting through diverse casting.

Limited or Absent

Lack of visible non-assuming gender matches what was assigned at birth or queer representation.
Reliance on the 'miraculous cure' cliché regarding disability and healing.
Limited racial diversity within the primary social conflict.

Official Synopsis

After the mayor of an idyllic island village discovers a child with mysterious powers awash on their shores, the once peaceful community devolves into civil war, torn over the belief that the child is the next saviour.

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