The King of Marvin Gardens
1972·Drama·1h 43m
7.0
★
Jason Staebler lives on the Boardwalk and fronts for the local mob in Atlantic City. He is a dreamer who asks his brother David, a radio personality from Philadelphia, to help him build a paradise on a Pacific Island, which might be just another of his pie-in-the-sky schemes. Inevitably, complications begin to pile up.
Directed by Bob Rafelson
sibling relationship
monopoly
boardwalk
jail
mobster
dreamer
Trailer
IMDB
N/A
Where to Watch
Cast
Jack Nicholson
David Staebler
Bruce Dern
Jason Staebler
Ellen Burstyn
Sally
Scatman Crothers
Lewis
John P. Ryan
Surtees
Sully Boyar
Lebowitz
Josh Mostel
Frank
Garry Goodrow
Nervous Man
Tony King
Messenger #2
Crew
Bob Rafelson
Director
Bob Rafelson
Writer
László Kovács
Director of Photography
Bob Rafelson
Producer
Fred Roos
Casting
Michael Haley
Second Assistant Director
Popular Reviews
26 reviews
Ethan Coffey
8.0★ · 02/18/26
The shot Jack Nicholson, and Bruce Stern on the two horses is stunning
The shot Jack Nicholson, and Bruce Stern on the two horses is stunning
Olvaggar
10.0★ · 12/25/25
Our kingdom has come
Our kingdom has come
Joshua Timpko
6.0★ · 08/12/25
This film certainly has its redeeming qualities for me, but all in all, I found that this had a one-two punch of the cardinal sins of cinema.
1. It was kinda confusing.
2. It was kinda boring.
It's a film that's comprised of a few standout/memorable scenes and a trio of exceptional performances (Ellen Burstyn, Jack Nicholson, and Bruce Dern).
I don't know if it was the script that was lacking or whether the sound on my TV was bugging out, but I felt like i was missing so much exposition as to what the plot of the film was hinging on.
The way I see it, Jason works for Scatman Crothers as a land investor of some kind, but he's running fast and loose with Scatman's money or something. And Ellen Burstyn is getting sick (and going cuckoo) over becoming second fiddle to her and Jason's threesome with Jessica? I think I get it? But then again, I don't know I was confused.
I guess the film does a subpar job at establishing the characters firmly, so when they make certain decisions, I have no frame of reference as to whether that made sense or not, because they all seem to be in such flux throughout the film.
The ending shot and Ellen Burstyn's performance are standouts, but all in all this felt meandering and improvisational in ways that were frustrating and only about 60% entertaining.
6.4/10
1. It was kinda confusing.
2. It was kinda boring.
It's a film that's comprised of a few standout/memorable scenes and a trio of exceptional performances (Ellen Burstyn, Jack Nicholson, and Bruce Dern).
I don't know if it was the script that was lacking or whether the sound on my TV was bugging out, but I felt like i was missing so much exposition as to what the plot of the film was hinging on.
The way I see it, Jason works for Scatman Crothers as a land investor of some kind, but he's running fast and loose with Scatman's money or something. And Ellen Burstyn is getting sick (and going cuckoo) over becoming second fiddle to her and Jason's threesome with Jessica? I think I get it? But then again, I don't know I was confused.
I guess the film does a subpar job at establishing the characters firmly, so when they make certain decisions, I have no frame of reference as to whether that made sense or not, because they all seem to be in such flux throughout the film.
The ending shot and Ellen Burstyn's performance are standouts, but all in all this felt meandering and improvisational in ways that were frustrating and only about 60% entertaining.
6.4/10
This film certainly has its redeeming qualities for me, but all in all, I found that this had a one-two punch of the cardinal sins of cinema.
1. It was kinda confusing.
2. It was kinda boring.
It's a film that's comprised of a few standout/memorable scenes and a trio of exceptional performances (Ellen Burstyn, Jack Nicholson, and Bruce Dern).
I don't know if it was the script that was lacking or whether the sound on my TV was bugging out, but I felt like i was missing so much exposition as to what the plot of the film was hinging on.
The way I see it, Jason works for Scatman Crothers as a land investor of some kind, but he's running fast and loose with Scatman's money or something. And Ellen Burstyn is getting sick (and going cuckoo) over becoming second fiddle to her and Jason's threesome with Jessica? I think I get it? But then again, I don't know I was confused.
I guess the film does a subpar job at establishing the characters firmly, so when they make certain decisions, I have no frame of reference as to whether that made sense or not, because they all seem to be in such flux throughout the film.
The ending shot and Ellen Burstyn's performance are standouts, but all in all this felt meandering and improvisational in ways that were frustrating and only about 60% entertaining.
6.4/10
1. It was kinda confusing.
2. It was kinda boring.
It's a film that's comprised of a few standout/memorable scenes and a trio of exceptional performances (Ellen Burstyn, Jack Nicholson, and Bruce Dern).
I don't know if it was the script that was lacking or whether the sound on my TV was bugging out, but I felt like i was missing so much exposition as to what the plot of the film was hinging on.
The way I see it, Jason works for Scatman Crothers as a land investor of some kind, but he's running fast and loose with Scatman's money or something. And Ellen Burstyn is getting sick (and going cuckoo) over becoming second fiddle to her and Jason's threesome with Jessica? I think I get it? But then again, I don't know I was confused.
I guess the film does a subpar job at establishing the characters firmly, so when they make certain decisions, I have no frame of reference as to whether that made sense or not, because they all seem to be in such flux throughout the film.
The ending shot and Ellen Burstyn's performance are standouts, but all in all this felt meandering and improvisational in ways that were frustrating and only about 60% entertaining.
6.4/10
Micah
9.7★ · 10/23/24
Never noticed how much glasses Change a person. Might steal the frames honestly. SCATMAN?!? First movie together. Kinda funny how Al Pacino turned this down to be in The Godfather and Jack Nicholson turned down The Godfather. I always love watching a new Jack Nicholson movie and it being peak. Like this is such a different character that I’ve seen him play before. New favorite movie. Also my 1,500th movie and 1,100th review!
Never noticed how much glasses Change a person. Might steal the frames honestly. SCATMAN?!? First movie together. Kinda funny how Al Pacino turned this down to be in The Godfather and Jack Nicholson turned down The Godfather. I always love watching a new Jack Nicholson movie and it being peak. Like this is such a different character that I’ve seen him play before. New favorite movie. Also my 1,500th movie and 1,100th review!
Davechild
6.0★ · 09/09/24
Kind of a mess but has its moments.
Kind of a mess but has its moments.