Subtlety is not Mr Murphy's strong point, but on the, whole his spiky charm saves both him and the movie.

| Jul 22, 2021

John Landis directs the slim affair at a riskily leisured pace; but with some enjoyment from supporting characters such as James Earl Jones as the King and Eriq LaSalle as the Prince's rival for spunky Shari Headley.

| Jul 22, 2021

This comedy is generally tame and sappy... what we get is homogenized Eddie Murphy, drained of his kinetic comic charm and smiling sass.

| Jan 29, 2019

Murphy has dealt audiences the movie equivalent of a royal flush and he is now clearly Hollywood's reigning king of comedy.

| Original Score: 3/4 | Jul 7, 2015

The director is ... rather distracted; John Landis seems to be browsing through the scenes rather than gobbling them down.

| Jun 6, 2009

Starts on a bathroom joke, quickly followed by a gag about private parts, then wanders in search of something equally original for Eddie Murphy to do for another couple of hours.

| Oct 18, 2008

Superb comic timing, a satirical edge, and Murphy's extraordinary gift for mimicry lift it right out of the trough of mediocrity to which it is all but consigned by its utterly predictable storyline.

| Jun 24, 2006

A screenplay that seems to have escaped its doctors before it was entirely well.

Full Review | May 20, 2003

The main pleasure in America comes in the romancing of prince and pauper. But the comedy is a mere handmaiden.

| Jan 1, 2000

In Landis' hands, the film doesn't live up to even the meagerest of expectations.

| Jan 1, 2000