Product Description
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A film set in Europe and the Middle East, 'Kingdom Of Heaven'
follows one man's struggle to better himself and the world around
him. Orlando Bloom stars as Balian, a French blacksmith who is
mourning the deaths of his wife and baby when his estranged
nobleman her (Liam Neeson) arrives and asks him to join the
Crusades in Jerusalem. Mindful that conducting the Lord's work
will help him atone for his sins, Balian agrees and embarks on
the perilous journey. Along the way, he reveals his gifts of
inherent goodness and fair of all human beings.
Upon reaching Jerusalem, a city where his meagre beginnings no
longer matter, Balian earns respect and fealty while secretly
courting the capricious wife of the ruthless Guy de Lusignan
(Marton Csokas) who seeks a way to destabilise the uneasy
Christian-Muslim truce brokered by King Baldwin (Edward Norton)
and wage war against his religious enemy...
Director Ridley Scott bring the scale of his previous epic
'Gladiator' to this film while confronting hundreds of years of
religious conflict. At times controversial in both its content
and production difficulties, populated by an all-star cast and
held together by a sterling central performance from Orlando
Bloom, 'Kindgom Of Heaven' is a multi-faceted classic of a humble
man who chooses his e, instead of accepting the e given to
him at birth.
.co.uk Review
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It's hard to believe Ridley Scott's handsome epic won't become
the cinematic touchstone of the Crusades for years to come.
Kingdom of Heaven is greater than the sum of its parts,
delivering a vital, mostly engrossing tale following Balian
(Orlando Bloom), a lonely French blacksmith who discovers he's a
noble heir and takes his her's (Liam Neeson) place in the
center of the universe circa 1184: Jerusalem. Here, grand battles
and backdoor politics are key as Scott and first-time
screenwriter William Monahan fashion an excellent storyline to
tackle the centuries-long conflict. Two forward-thinking kings,
Baldwin (Edward Norton in an uncredited yet substantial role) and
Saladin (Ghassan Massoud), hold an uneasy truce between
Christians (who hold the city) and Muslims while factions champ
at the bit for blood. There are good and evildoers on both sides,
with the Knights Templar taking the brunt of the blame; Balian
plans to find his soul while protecting Baldwin and the people.
The look of the film, as nearly everything is from Scott, is
impressive: his CGI-infused battle scenes rival the LOTR series
and, with cinematographer John Mathieson, create postcard beauty
with snowy French forests and the vast desert (filmed in Morocco
and Spain). An excellent supporting cast, including Jeremy Irons,
Brendan Gleeson, and David Thewlis, also help make the head and
heart of the film work. Many critics pointed out that Bloom
doesn't have the gravitas of Russell Crowe in the lead (then
again, who does?), but it's the underdeveloped character and not
the actor that hurts the film and impacts its power. Balian isn't
given much more to do than be sullen and give an occasional big
speech, alongside his perplexing abilities for warfare tactics
and his wandering moral compass (whose sole purpose seems to be
to put a love scene in the movie). Note: all the major characters
except Neeson's are based on fact, but many are heavily
fictionalized. --Doug Thomas, .com