Back to trending
King and Country

King and Country

War · Drama · 1964

During World War I, Army Private Arthur James Hamp is accused of desertion during battle. The officer assigned to defend him at his court-martial, Captain Hargreaves, finds out there is more to the case than meets the eye.

Movie details

King and Country

“Go ahead... kill him - you're the only friend he has!”

1964 War · Drama 1h 25m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

7.1 / 10

Community rating

During World War I, Army Private Arthur James Hamp is accused of desertion during battle. The officer assigned to defend him at his court-martial, Captain Hargreaves, finds out there is more to the case than meets the eye.

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over King and Country?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

The Caine Mutiny

The Caine Mutiny

Drama · 1954

When a US Naval captain shows signs of mental instability that jeopardize his ship, the first officer relieves him of command and faces court martial for mutiny.

Johnny Got His Gun

Johnny Got His Gun

War · 1971

A young American soldier, rendered in pseudocoma from an artillery shell from WWI, recalls his life leading up to that point.

The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial

The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial

Drama · 2023

Barney Greenwald, a skeptical lawyer, reluctantly defends an officer of the navy who took control of the Caine from its captain, Lt. Philip Francis Queeg, while caught in a violent sea storm. As the court-martial proceeds, however, Greenwald increasingly questions if it was truly a mutiny or rather the courageous acts of a group of sailors who could not trust their unstable leader.

All Quiet on the Western Front

All Quiet on the Western Front

War · 1979

At the start of World War I, Paul Baumer is a young German patriot, eager to fight. Indoctrinated with propaganda at school, he and his friends eagerly sign up for the army soon after graduation. But when the horrors of war soon become too much to bear, and as his friends die or become gravely wounded, Paul questions the sanity of fighting over a few hundreds yards of war-torn countryside.

Fort Bliss

Fort Bliss

War · 2014

After returning home from an extended tour in Afghanistan, a decorated U.S. Army medic and single mother struggles to rebuild her relationship with her young son.

Devotion

Devotion

War · 2022

The harrowing true story of two elite US Navy fighter pilots during the Korean War. Their heroic sacrifices would ultimately make them the Navy's most celebrated wingmen.

Gettysburg

Gettysburg

Drama · 1993

In the summer of 1863, General Robert E. Lee leads the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia into Gettysburg, Pennsylvania with the goal of marching through to Washington, D.C. The Union Army of the Potomac, under the command of General George G. Meade, forms a defensive position to confront the rebel forces in what will prove to be the decisive battle of the American Civil War.

Henry V

Henry V

War · 1989

In 1415, in the midst of the Hundred Years' War, the young King Henry V of England embarks on the conquest of France.

The Boy in the Woods

The Boy in the Woods

Drama · 2023

The remarkable true-life survival story of a Jewish boy hiding and being hunted in the forests of Nazi-occupied Eastern Europe, based on Maxwell Smart's memoir.

Breaker Morant

Breaker Morant

Drama · 1980

During the Boer War, three Australian lieutenants are on trial for shooting Boer prisoners. Though they acted under orders, they are being used as scapegoats by the General Staff, who hopes to distance themselves from the irregular practices of the war. The trial does not progress as smoothly as expected by the General Staff, as the defence puts up a strong fight in the courtroom.

Where it lives

Watch in your region.

Cinema release signals and current streaming, rental, and purchase options for your region.

Streaming availability data supplied by JustWatch.

Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Joseph Losey

Written by

J.L. Hodson · A.E. Housman · Dirk Bogarde · Evan Jones

Dirk Bogarde

Dirk Bogarde

Capt. Hargreaves

Tom Courtenay

Tom Courtenay

Pvt. Arthur Hamp

Leo McKern

Leo McKern

Capt. O'Sullivan

Peter Copley

Peter Copley

Colonel

Barry Foster

Barry Foster

Lt. Webb

B

Barry Justice

Lt. Prescott

James Villiers

James Villiers

Capt. Midgley

Court is in session

Put King and Country on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Prestige Tourist

“Ambition earns the room.”

The film reaches for consequence and scale, accepting the risk of seriousness instead of shrinking from it.

The prosecution The Popcorn Loyalist

“Importance has entered the chat.”

The production keeps announcing its significance, as though awards-season posture were proof of insight.