150 Word Review: 'Kingdom Of Heaven' (2005)
Personal crusade
Kingdom of Heaven is nothing like Gladiator, director Ridley Scott’s crowd-pleasing Oscar-slaying Roman blockbuster. Instead, Scott’s Kingdom of Heaven is a solemn, violent, implicitly political meditation on the West’s penchant for invading the Holy Lands.
Orlando Bloom stars as the bastard son of Liam Neeson’s errant knight, a Crusader. Bloom’s character is a humble blacksmith who finds himself heir to a legacy in Jerusalem: fate has reborn him as a noble tasked with defending King Baldwin IV, a noble leper king who wears an iron mask. The King wants Jerusalem to remain a safe space for all people and all religions. A new generation of Crusaders, the Templars, wants to slaughter all non-Christians. Meanwhile, the brilliant and honorable Muslim general Saladin is determined to win Jerusalem back for his people.
The movie is nothing but splendid Medieval costumes, bearded character actors, and a magnificent siege in the final battle.
150 Word Review Rewind: ‘Gladiator II’ (2024)
My favorites are Liam Neeson’s posse. Especially David Thewlis, and Kevin McKidd as the apparent Muslim convert “English sergeant.”