In the 12th century an orphaned blacksmith, Balian, finally meets his father, a Lord, who promptly bestows upon him knighthood and a challenge to defend King and country. Traveling to Jerusalem, Balian steps up to defend the city against Islamic crusaders while falling in love with a princess.
Orlando Bloom (Balian), Eriq Ebouaney (Firuz), Marton Csokas (Guy), Eva Green (Sibylla), Brendan Gleeson (Reynald de Chatillon), Jeremy Irons (Tiberias), Edward Norton (King Baldwin), Ghassan Massoud (Saladin), Liam Neeson (Godfrey).
Kingdom of Heaven started off a bit slow but quickly picked up pace when Balian meets his father. From there the film is a whirlwind of action, adventure, politics, and romance all woven together into a well flowing story that captivates the longer it continues. The religious and other events taking place in the film were fairly well portrayed with just enough detail to be interesting without so much as to challenge history or reality. Suspense was a bit light but other aspects of the film made up for it nicely.
Acting was very good from most everyone involved. Bloom did a pretty good job and has matured well as an actor. Gleeson, Irons, Norton and Neeson all delivered well as should be expected. Massoud was another shining light, presenting his role very well. Green and Coskas added good depth to the film.
Camera work, sets, and backgrounds were very good bordering on incredible. The sheer size of some scenes is staggering and the variety is very good. Action scenes were nicely done without overwhelming the film. CGI blended into the film well. Dialogue was good if challenging at times, while sound and soundtrack were very good.
Overall Kingdom of Heaven is an enjoyable film that flows well with very few slow spots. Action Adventure fans with a taste for religion or period pieces will enjoy this the most while younger viewers may find it lacking energy due to the period presented.
With plenty of violence this should be fine for older teens and above.
Kingdom of Heaven is no longer showing in any Littleton Colorado movie theatres.
Released: 2005
Reviewed: 8.1.11
Star rating: 4 out of 5
copyright ©2011 Dave Riedel
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