The Kingdom
Seen it?1994 | 3 seasons | 68 min | Comedy, Drama, Mystery
Saturday Specialearly ratingWhy it’s a Saturday Special
It earned strong reviews (87% on Rotten Tomatoes), despite a short run with a modest audience. A strong pick for the weekend.
Based on critics, audiences, awards, box office and buzz. Details below.Is it for you?
- Who'll love it
- Made for anyone who likes to be kept guessing and anyone who wants a laugh. If you loved Widow's Bay or Evil, start here.
- The mood
- Darkly funny, tense and unsettling.
- The pace
- 3 seasons: a few weeks of evenings, hour-long episodes, about 15 hours in all.
- What might put you off
- Rated TV-MA: meant for adults.
- It's in Danish, so expect subtitles (or a dub).
The Kingdom is the most technologically advanced hospital in Denmark, a gleaming bastion of medical science. A rash of uncanny occurrences, however, begins to weaken the staff's faith in science – a phantom ambulance pulls in every night, but disappears; voices echo in the elevator shaft; and a pregnant doctor's fetus seems to be developing much faster than is natural.
How it earned its rating
- CriticsStrong
87% on Rotten Tomatoes, 78 on Metacritic
- AudiencesNot counted
Not measured yet: not enough ratings
- AwardsSolid
19 wins and 6 nominations from smaller awards and festivals
- Reach & staying powerBelow par
Ran for 3 seasons and reached a small audience so far; still draws a steady audience long after release
- Buzz & cultural impactSolid
About 125K people sought it out in the past year
Season by season
The show overall is a Saturday Special. Here's how each season stacks up; The Kingdom II is the high point.
The Kingdom I1994 · 4 episodes · 8.7 out of 10Friday- The Kingdom II1997 · 4 episodes · 8.8 out of 10Friday
Exodus2022 · 5 episodes · 7.2 out of 10Sunday
Trailer
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Cast & crew
Created by Lars von Trier
- Søren PilmarkJørgen Krogshøj
- Ghita NørbyRigmor Mortensen
- Birgitte RaabergJudith Petersen
- Peter MygindMorten 'Mogge' Moesgaard
- Solbjørg HøjfeldtCamilla
- Udo KierAge Krüger / Storebror / Lillebror
- Birthe NeumannFru Svendsen
- Henning JensenBob
- Bodil JørgensenKaren Svensson
- Mikael PersbrandtHelmer Jr.