Synopsis
Ka'iulani, a 19th-century Hawaiian princess, is raised in England but determined to maintain her people's independence from aggressive American businessmen. After being sent to England as a child by her Scottish father, Ka'iulani returns to Hawaii and becomes a political activist who fights to retain her throne, even though she must leave her English paramour.
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Cast
- Q'orianka KilcherPrincess Ka'iulani
- Barry PepperThurston
- Will PattonSanford B. Dole
- Jimmy YuillArchie Cleghorn
- Shaun EvansClive Davies
- Arlene NewmanWoman in New York
Recommendations
- 80
The Hollywood Reporter
A stirring romantic drama centering on the last royal heir to the native line of traditional monarchs. - 60
Movieline
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. - 50
L.A. Weekly
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. - 50
Los Angeles Times
The film is too reverently drawn and self-consciously played to muster any real momentum. - 50
San Francisco Chronicle
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. - 50
The New York Times
Over all, though, Princess Kaiulani plays like an old-fashioned, stiff but plushly upholstered costume drama, swaddled in gauzy cinematography and swelling strings. - 42
The A.V. Club
While Princess Kaiulani makes do with what story it has, the film feels stretched and straining, full of sleepy scenes and pregnant pauses. - 40
New York Daily News
This somber but unexceptional drama is luxurious to look at but never gripping.
