Wuchak Released in 1978, "King of the Gypsies" chronicles the life of an American gypsy (Eric Roberts in his debut) who resists being made the king of his clan by his grandfather (Sterling Hayden). Meanwhile his villainous father (Judd Hirsch) resents that he was passed up and hostilities mount. Susan Sarandon plays the mother, Shelley Winters the grandmother, Brooke Shields the young sister and Annette O'Toole & Annie Potts the potential girlfriends. The movie plays like a less-epic and lower-budgeted version of 1972's "The Godfather," albeit about Gypsies rather than a Mafia family. The cast and acting are superlative and the tone is gritty realistic. The screenplay was based on Peter Maas' true-life book. The story covers three generations of a Gypsy family from the 40s into the 70s and is narrated by Robert's character, which provides an interesting continuity. It's not great, but it's good enough and provides a window into this unconventional culture, their traveling lifestyle, interactions, work (including "fortune telling"), schemes, music, dancing and misadventures. The film runs 112 minutes and was shot in New York/New Jersey area. GRADE: B

Kaya Ozkaracalar Life of a young man who wants to escape his "gypsy destiny." He wants to adopt to the American way of life, he has a blonde non-gypsy lover, his dream is to move to California and spend his time surfing (really). He hates and looks down on everything about his gypsy heritage, which is epitomized in the character of his monstrous father. Alas, his responsibility towards his sister means there is no easy escape from his "gypsy destiny." Above summary is the gist of the movie. If such a deplorable premise is not bad enough, the lead actor, Eric Roberts in his screen debut, aggravates this mess with his awful acting, esp. when he is in fits of anger. The guy who plays the bad father does not put up a very bad performance though. Susan Sarandon, who plays the mother, is very good-looking, but she can't help looking fake in all this stereotyping.For Brooke Shields fans like me who may go for this movie just for her: She doesn't appear at all in the first 40 minutes or so and has got three scenes later on. She is largely a bystander in the first two, but has a major presence towards the end. For fairness, the only merit of the movie is the music.

mcdoodad49 I first saw this film at a theatre in 1978 and have only seen it on television once. I can't remember what attracted me to seeing it, but it was a surprisingly good movie. Eric Roberts showed the industry that he can act and be very convincing. The central actors must have studied gypsy life because they pulled it off very well. The film is mostly about the tension of the next successor to the throne (Judd Hirsch) and his son (Eric Roberts) whom the present King (Sterling Hayden) favors as his actual successor. Hirsch plays a cold, scheming character who finally does one of the most despicable acts a person can do, and shows no remorse for it. This, in turn, sparks retaliation from his son. If I ever find it on DVD, it will become part of my collection. I give this film an 8 out of 10.

TL27 What a mess of a movie! If it wasnt for Eric Roberts and Susan Sarandon's performances ,this movie would be a total waste! A very muddled plot and phony dialogue.Eric Roberts debut....where did his career go from this movie on?Nowhere but down!