There's no Heaven in this Kingdom!
Written: Sep 30 '07 (Updated Sep 30 '07)
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Product Rating:
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| Bang For The Buck |
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Pros: Mostly accurate, exciting third act/ending, great performances
Cons: Unsteady camera-work
The Bottom Line: The Kingdom delivered a very unbiased point-of-view into the matters between the USA and Saudi Arabia, alongside exciting Hollywood'ized action.
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| xmovieloverx's Full Review: The Kingdom |
Upon watching the trailer for The Kingdom, I immediately knew that it'd be the kind of film that would spark a completely positive reaction from its audiences, or the total opposite. You'll either thoroughly enjoy it, or hate it. In my opinion, The Kingdom very accurately depicted Saudi Arabian history, as well as its current conflicts.
After a fatal terrorist bombing in a Saudi Arabian American Compound, the F.B.I are on the case. The only problem: They aren't willing to travel and investigate in the country itself. The reason: They refuse to further complicate political matters between the USA and Saudi Arabia. The "solution": Ronald Fleury (Jamie Foxx) and Grant Sykes (Chris Cooper) decide to launch a five day trip into Saudi Arabia with an intention of finding the madman behind the bombing. Following their landing, the crew quickly discover that their help is unwanted...Until they meet Al-Ghazi, (Ashraf Barhoum) a like-minded man bent on capturing the unknown target under his own terms.
Although it works, The Kingdom possesses an extremely erratic pace. The first twenty minutes of the film are fast and provide non-stop action. It then suddenly dies down for the following hour, and then delivers one of the most exciting third acts I have ever witnessed. That's not to say the second act is boring. The Kingdom succeeds in capturing the emotions from a typical Saudi Arabian citizen, and manages to develop the story at a easily followable rate. Finally, unlike previous war flicks, The Kingdom lacks a biased point of view. This is most noticeable in the movie's final words.
The performances were extravagant. Jamie Foxx acts superbly as a man who's willing to ditch the rules, and focus strongly on his objective. I strongly enjoyed Jamie in Jarhead, and I even think that he stepped up his game for The Kingdom. Chris Cooper never disappoints me, and he proved that once again in this flick. Amazing chemistry honestly encumbers both Foxx and Cooper.
With all this being said, the true highlight in The Kingdom stemmed from Ashraf Barhoum. I have never even heard of this individual, and I seriously believe that he holds the potential of making an impact in the film industry. The Kingdom's Director, Peter Berg, did a fantastic job of developing Al-Ghazi's character, and Barhoum undoubtedly deserves a gigantic amount of praise.
My one issue with The Kingdom resulted from the unsteady camera-work. I understand how the constant shakiness portrays a "real-life" feeling, however, I cannot tolerate a flick where the unstoppable split-second shots begin to make me motion sick.
One aspect I loved about The Kingdom, was its sequences during the opening credits. It really allowed the audience to comprehend the historical disputes and conflicts between America and Saudi Arabia, obviously centralizing around the oil-industry.
Overall, The Kingdom provided enough accuracy alongside exciting action for me to recommend it.
GRADE: B
Recommended:
Yes
Movie Mood: Serious Movie
Viewing Method: Other
Film Completeness: Looked complete to me.
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Epinions.com ID:
xmovieloverx
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Member: Alex
Location: Bellevue, WA, USA
Reviews written: 47
Trusted by: 14 members
About Me:
I am the one true movie buff.
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