Kingdom of Heaven
Originally Written: May 2005
In 1184, a young blacksmith named Balian (Orlando Bloom) is confronted by a knight by the name of Godfrey (Liam Neeson has a towering, memorable prescence in his early scenes), who not only proclaims that he is Balian’s father (“Star Wars” die hards- don’t be shocked if you’re first impulse is to mentally yell, “Nooooooo!” a la Luke in “Empire”), but also invites him to join him on the road to Jerusalem, the Holy City that the lepracy-ridden King Baldwin (Edward Norton, bringing his usual gravitas despite being hidden under a silver mask) has taken from the Muslims during the Crusades to establish as- what Godfrey hopes- a “kingdom of heaven,” where all faiths can live in peace. The faithless Bailan- whose wife just commited suicide after their child dies (the priest who buried her took the cross from her neck and ordered her decapitated, something that doesn’t sit well with Balian)- at first refuses, but is told the way by Godfrey should he change his mind- “Take the path through the place where people speak Italian, then continue until they speak something else.” I won’t insult your intelligence by pretending it’s a tough choice for Balian to go (it’s made easier when the priest confesses what he had done to his wife).
Nor will director Ridley Scott- working off of an uncommonly intelligent script by novelist William Monahan- insult your intelligence with “Kingdom of Heaven.” This is the type of intelligent, provocative epic myself and others were hoping Oliver Stone’s “Alexander” was, as Scott- the director of other visionary epics such as “Alien,” “Blade Runner,” “Gladiator,” and “Black Hawk Down”- does what he does best- deliver visual spectacle (cheers to cinematographer John Mathieson’s thrilling scope) with realism and resonance of the mind and heart. Not to diminish the entertainment value of some of his smaller films- “Matchstick Men” was an underrated character study, “Hannibal” was a devious guilty pleasure, and “Black Rain” was a slickly enjoyable dramatic thriller- but Scott is at his best when he’s given a grand visual and intellectual landscape to explore. “Heaven” isn’t without its’ flaws- the battles (though well-mounted) never feel as urgent as they should, some of the performances (more on that later) are too thin for such rich material, Harry Gregson-Williams’ music (though better than that of “Troy” or “Alexander” as a whole) never leaps off the screen as Hans Zimmer’s did for Scott’s “Gladiator” (the use of cues from other films- though well used- doesn’t help), and the pacing isn’t as tight as we’re accustomed from Scott (not that Dody Dorn- who cut “Matchstick Men” and “Memento”- isn’t a good editor, but what happened to Scott’s regular editor, Oscar-winner Pietro Scalia?). But as Balian is told in the movie, “What God desires is here (the brain) and here (the heart).” That’s what moviegoers want- or should want- in their films, and “Kingdom of Heaven” delivers both in suitable quantities.
What “Kingdom of Heaven” doesn’t offer is a justification of war by way of religious fanaticism, and that could insult more than a few moviegoers. I said in my “Summer Movie Preview” writeup of “Kingdom of Heaven”- which was 3rd on my “Must-See” list after “War of the Worlds” and “Star Wars”- the following: “I can imagine that this film might be popular with the same part of the population that would eventually see ‘The Passion of the Christ’ in droves. Just an observation, a little social commentary about America now, and I could be wrong. What such audiences may not like though- and what has become something of a controversy about the film- is Scott’s insistance on giving equal weight to the Muslims in the film, the depictions of whom in the script lead to denouncements of the film by scholars and even threats of terrorist attacks on the set.” So, don’t say I didn’t warn you.
Actually, it’s not as bad as all that. As I continued, I acknowledged, “Here’s the thing, though- Scott- one of the greatest of all epic filmmakers- has a knack for objectivity in his films, looking at both sides of his themes with honesty and intelligence, even- and especially- if his characters come out decidedly with a firm viewpoint by the end. That clear-eyed form of storytelling is what made his best film- 2001’s ‘Black Hawk Down’- one of the best war films ever made, and the best one about modern warfare.” For those who are worried about a slanted look at this still-relevant (and more relevant than ever) period in world history, fear not- Scott delivers storytelling as clear-headed and objective about this hot-button topic (to say it parallels our government’s “Crusade” to bring Democracy to the Middle East is redundant, though Scott and Monahan thankfully avoid bludgeoning us over the head with the easy comparison) as he has done throughout his career (save for the overrated “Thelma & Louise,” which was too one-sided to make anything but a negative impact with this viewer). When the year- even the summer- comes to a close, my hope is that viewers will discover this film on DVD (’cause they sure avoided it in theaters, making it the lowest-grossing summer season starter in years), and realize they missed one of the year’s most rewarding offerings when they should have seen it- on the big screen.
Scott has been underrated as an actor’s director, despite Oscar nods for Susan Sarandon (deservedly) and Geena Davis (undeservedly) for “Thelma,” and Joaquin Phoenix and Russell Crowe (who won) for “Gladiator,” as well as stand-out work by Oliver Reed and Richard Harris (both “Gladiator”), Nicolas Cage, Allison Lohman, and Sam Rockwell (all “Matchstick Men”), Sigourney Weaver (“Alien”), Julianne Moore and Anthony Hopkins (“Hannibal”), Michael Douglas (“Black Rain”), Jeff Bridges (“White Squall”), and others. “Kingdom of Heaven,” on the other hand, is a mixed bag of performances. As mentioned before, Neeson and Norton shine, as do David Thewis (“Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban”) as a priest who fights with Godfrey and is a mentor of sorts to Balian when it comes to religion, and Jeremy Irons as Tiberius, the right-hand of Baldwin and someone who will later want Balian to take the crown when Baldwin dies. Less impressive is Eva Green (“The Dreamers”) as Baldwin’s sister Sybilla, who’s supposed to radiate heat with Balian but just comes off as a walking statue thanks to the lack of depth of conscience the script gives her. Even less impressive are the film’s main “villains,” Guy de Lusignan (Martin Scokas’ turn is a collection of French characature cliches)- who’s Sybilla’s husband and becomes King after Baldwin dies- and Rainert (Brendon Gleeson, who after “Troy” and “Braveheart” apparently can’t appear in anything but epics), the fanatical leaders of the Knights Templars, who are out for blood while the King would rather reach an understanding with the Muslim army, led by the legendary leader Saladin, played by Ghassan Massoud in a nuanced and thoughtful performance that stays with you after the movie’s long over. As for Bloom- who costarred in “Black Hawk Down” for Scott- as Balian, while he lacks the world-weary soul and conviction of Russell Crowe in “Gladiator” and other main characters in Scott’s films, Bloom does himself proud, showing Balian’s progression from faithless lost soul to spiritual and battle-ready leader- without losing his core morality (he refuses an offer to have Guy killed so he can marry Sybilla and carry on Baldwin’s ideals as King)- in a way that is believable and engaging, even if he doesn’t leap off the screen with the full-blooded heroism of some of his predecessors in Scott’s films (namely, Crowe’s Maximus).
In discussing “Kingdom of Heaven” for Entertainment Weekly‘s Summer Movie Guide, Ridley Scott said, “We keep replaying history. We don’t seem to learn shit, do we?” No arguments here. My feelings on our current political situation are known to friends and family. On that level, “Kingdom of Heaven” was an engrossing and thoughtful entertainment. However, when one looks at the disappointing performance at the box-office of “Heaven” in light of recent big-budget failures (“King Arthur” and “Alexander” also underperformed, and “Troy” barely breaking even), it looks as though moviegoers are learning from recent history. The problem is, they were right about those earlier films. “Kingdom of Heaven” deserved better.
