Kingdom of Heaven Reviews

'Kingdom of Heaven' had an immensely talented cast going for it, despite being unsure about seeing Orlando Bloom in an especially substantial lead role. It also looked great from the trailer, and have liked a good deal of Harry Gregson-Williams' work which can be one of the better components of films. Ridley Scott is not the most consistent of directors, his best films like 'Alien' and 'Blade Runner' are brilliant but lesser films such as 'Robin Hood' are really not good (personal opinion of course).

There are also films of his that are much better in the director's cut version. 'Legend' is one such example, but the biggest one for me is 'Kingdom of Heaven'. Found it a very mixed bag as the theatrical/ non-director's cut version and found a lot of issues with it (and this is actually forgetting the historical inaccuracies), such as choppy storytelling, erratic pacing and underwritten characters on top of Orlando Bloom and the dialogue. While it is still not a perfect film still in the director's cut version, it is a big improvement and some of what were major problems in the theatrical version are corrected.

Not all though. Do still find Orlando Bloom charisma-void and out of his depth, have nothing against him but this role was a meaty one, even more so in the director's cut where he is more complex, and needed a lot of authority and a wide range of emotions and to me Bloom didn't have enough of either.

Some of the middle of the film stalls a bit in the pace, the storytelling not always going very far. Although the characters are much more interesting in the director's cut edition, a few of them could still have gotten into more depth such as those with not much screen time still and the same goes with the themes, also did that the messaging at times could have been more subtle.

Improvements are many though. The characters generally are far more interesting and better developed, Eva Green's went from one that one questioned the presence of and was hugely underwritten to a well fleshed out character. They interacted more convincingly and not in as stilted a fashion. Despite some aimlessness in the middle, the pace is less erratic and doesn't jump around as much. The story is uneven still, but there is generally more cohesion and less choppiness, more of a sense of resolution with the vast amount going on and for me the contemporary relevance was a good thing.

Dialogue flows better and is less awkward, quite intelligent here too.

Both editions cannot be faulted visually. It is gorgeously shot with lots of atmosphere and the costumes and sets are stunningly evocative, with the siege especially being quite breath-taking. In fact, the action was very tense and powerful in both versions as well but especially in the director's cut. Harry Gregson Williams' score rouses and also has emotional impact, the director's cut does it more justice and a better job is done complementing everything whereas in the theatrical version it was the case of a great score deserving a much better film. Scott directs everything skillfully which is remarkable considering there was a lot to balance. The messaging and everything regarding tolerance and the historical inaccuracies were much criticised and still are, they weren't as big an issue for me.

With the exception of Bloom, the cast are very good. The standouts being an against type Edward Norton who gives a lot of complexity and intensity to his character and Gasshan Massoud showing how to do cool and menacing wonderfully. Eva Green's performance is deeply felt and Jeremy Irons shows a lot of dignity and restraint here.

Overall, didn't care for the theatrical version, but this review is namely for the director's cut which is an infinitely better, if imperfect, version and is a fairer way to judge the film on. My thoughts though. 7/10

I already saw this movie when it was released but since it was such a long time ago, I was quite eager to see it again. I remember it quite well, before it was released, there was quite some buzz about it, the whole thing seemed to be a really ambitious project and some thought it might be as good as ‘Gladiator’. Eventually, it didn’t get much love when it was released. In fact, I'm maybe in the minority but I actually liked this flick and, as a matter of fact, I thought it was even better than 'Gladiator'. I know, Orlando Bloom is not really an amazing lead actor and he has been mostly blamed for this failure and I have to agree that he was the weakest point in an otherwise stellar cast but this movie had more to offer than the famous sandal epic, at least, in my opinion. Indeed, it was pretty spectacular and rather well grounded in history (at least, it felt so). On top of that, I'm always intrigued by movies dealing with religion and I thought this one was pretty good, even if it was a flop back then. A few years later, Ridley Scott released a director's cut with 40 mins of extra running time and this longer version has been much better received so I might check it out at some point. Anyway, to conclude, even though it has a rather lousy reputation, I have actually a weak spot for this movie and I think it is worth a look, especially if you are interested in Ridley Scott’s work.

"Whoever will die here today, you will certainly be among them."

I was actually going to watch "Moondance Alexander", (believe it or not), which I picked up for, probably a dollar or something, out of the this-must-go bargain bin.... (Like, a zillion months ago).... But all that I actually saw was the previews, which gave me this really bad skiddish-girl's faux-romance vibe.... But I actually don't know, since the last frame that I saw was the one where the FBI investigates DVD piracy. I wonder if they also investigate crappy quality in knockoff-price DVDs. Probs no.

So, yeah, instead I just sorta turned on the TV, and somehow ended up with my old friends Legolas and Lucius Vorenus.

I wonder of this is more or less crappy than *Doctor Who*; I think that it's basically the same....

To kill a dalek is not murder; it is the way to heaven.

God wants you to grind it out-- max out that XP, yo.

"It was not that they had no right to take you; it was the way that they asked."

Yeah.... medieval manners are not baroque; they didn't have Mozart and shit back then.... Lol.

Oh, shit, and Julian Basheer too, right?

Take me to Ten Forward, or something.

And is there literally someone named Odo? Wow, why not just make the one girl Loreena McKennitt.

And Professor Lupin, and someone from the Peter Jackson movies.... And "Alex Revan, Blood Knight".... Wow, that's perfect.

But here's what I want to know-- I can see that they're really pushing "Copper", and I'll grant that it's a clever title, but.... It just does seem a bit gritty, no.... And it just sounds so *British*, so why is it in NYC.... I thought that New York City was in America....

And listening to (the dying) Jeremy Irons--sorry, Liam Neesom-- explain that not only was the Holy Land-- the Land of Promise! (=America), but also *gasp* "a kingdom of conscience, a kingdom of heaven"-- that was okay, but not as cool as listening to Jimmy Fallon do the "50% more cash back" thing, and the Bridgestone football commercial, oh, that's good.... And the NFL commercials, the one in the wheat field, that's the best one, but even.... '*ding dong*' 'Who is it?' 'Football!'

But, yeah, this is more like *Doctor Who*. (And, I mean, #11 is even worse than #10-- sometimes David Tennant irritates me, but Matt Smith irritates me so much that....)

"You have Christians, Jew, Muslims."

Daleks, even.

"What we do not have, is water."

'Tis a touch dry, 'tisn't it.

'But if my *manner* has been at all reprehensible, then I sincerly apologize.'

'I could be lost inside their lies/ without a trace/But every time I close my eyes/I see your face.'

You see that: opposite lines rime, just like in Byron: but Byron was way after Shakespeare, and they didn't even have him back then....

Let me explain the only thing of any value that was discovered during the Middle Ages: 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34....

And that will really only get you so far.... "You could say that I lost my belief in science, and progress.... You could say that I lost my belief in the holy church....You could say that I lost my sense of direction...."

Don't quote *Hamlet*-- don't do it! (The world was poorer then.)

"I never saw no miracle of science
That didn't go from a blessing to a curse
I never saw no military solution
That didn't always end up as something worse--
But let me say this first...."

I heard Arthur say that The Star is the symbol of wisdom-- all I know is, that I like it better than The Tower, and the people of the Tower--aliens are from Hell!-- 'they all seem like, game show hosts to me.'

And if I ever lose my faith....

I just wait, for the moon to turn....

'The thing is capable of a turn....'

'Tout Paris'.

..... I should make the joke about his name.... So long already though-- I prepare each ending so carefully, but then, it rushes on....

*sighs* I don't know. The "Mystic's Dream" song is alright-- maybe Legolas would like it. Peter Jackson's Legolas.... Maybe he's from Canada too....

Did you ever see that episode of "How I Met Your Mother", with Robin's old boyfriend, the guy from Canada-- 'the Great White North'....

And everyone wore Minnesota Vikings jerseys, for some reason.

(7/10)

''I put no stock in religion. By the word religion I have seen the lunacy of fanatics of every denomination be called the will of god. I have seen too much religion in the eyes of too many murderers. Holiness is in right action, and courage on behalf of those who cannot defend themselves, and goodness. What god desires is here
[points to head]
and here
[points to heart]
and what you decide to do every day, you will be a good man - or not.''

Balian of Ibelin travels to Jerusalem during the crusades of the 12th century, and there he finds himself as the defender of the city and its people.

Orlando Bloom: Balian de Ibelin

The first cut of Kingdom Of Heaven presented to the Fox executives was 186 minutes long. This had been taken from a 280 minute assembly edit (in the assembly, the actual siege itself was 45 minutes long). The main thing the executives questioned was the subplot involving Sibylla's son, as they felt this was Balian's story, and his story didn't need that particular plot line. Indeed, even during pre-production itself, executives had ordered writer William Monahan to write a version of the script without the Baldwin V plot, and Ridley Scott shot the film in such a way that the plot could be easily cut.



Several alternative endings were shot for the film. Orlando Bloom's preferred ending was as Balian rides past the pilgrims as they leave Jerusalem, he doesn't see Sibylla (Eva Green), but returns to France alone and resumes his life as a blacksmith. In another, version, he does see her, and they speak and ultimately take one another hand's, and the film ends with them walking away into the desert with the other pilgrims. In another version, he sees her, they talk, and then we cut to him arriving in France alone.

Balian of Ibelin: What is Jerusalem worth?
Saladin: Nothing.
[walks away]
Saladin: Everything!

The movie was not cut on film but was instead cut using a Digital Intermediate (the first time either Ridley Scott or editor Dody Dorn had ever used a DI). Originally, the plan was for only the siege to be cut via DI, but due to the level of complexity in the editing and due to the fact that so many things were changing so often, it was felt prudent to cut the film using a DI rather than the original negative.
After the team arrived in Morocco, an article appeared in the Daily Telegraph on January 20th, 2004 claiming that the film "panders to Osama Bin Laden". However, the writer of the article was quickly exposed as not having seen the screenplay. Subsequently however, a copy of the screenplay was leaked to the world's press, and provoked a strong reaction in terms of its depiction of Muslims. In an article on August 12, 2004 Professor Khaled Abu el-Fadl wrote, "I believe this movie teaches people to hate Muslims. There is a stereotype of the Muslim as constantly stupid, retarded, backward, unable to think in complex forms". This new sway in criticism greatly concerned King Mohammad VI, who came to fear for director Ridley Scott's safety, and as such, Mohammad provided Scott with four bodyguards.

After the pitching of this film, studio marketing executives took it to be an action-adventure hybrid rather than what Ridley Scott and William Monahan intended it to be: an historical epic examining religious conflict. 20th Century Fox promoted the film as an action movie with heavy elements of romance, and in they advertising campaign, they made much of the 'From the Director of Gladiator' slogan. When Scott presented the 194 minute version of the film to the studio, they balked at the length and studio head Tom Rothman ordered the film to be trimmed down to two hours, feeling people wouldn't go to see a three hour movie. Ultimately, Rothman's decision backfired as the film gained mixed reviews and under-performed at the US and UK box office.

The French village at the start and end of the film was constructed in Huesca, a small village in northern Spain. The castle seen in these scenes is a real crusade castle built in 1076, Castillo de Loarre. As he would do in Morocco when building Ibelin, production designer Arthur Max decided to use traditional building techniques and local craftsmen. In Galicia, he found craftsmen who still did slate roofs, thatching and stone dry-walling, and these men were employed to build the village set.
The chainmail for the film was made by the Weta Workshop, who also made the chainmail for The Lord of the Rings trilogy.
Ridley Scott even offered the small role of Richard I to Russell Crowe, but due to scheduling conflicts, Crowe was unable to do it. The part eventually went to Iain Glen.

Both director Ridley Scott and writer William Monahan felt that the unnamed character played by David Thewlis was an embodiment of God, or at the very least, an angel on a mission from God. This is not at all apparent in the theatrical cut, but in the Director's Cut, there are two scenes which strongly hint at it - one where the character seemingly disappears after a conversation with Balian (Orlando Bloom), the other where he seems to 'resurrect' Balian after being attacked by three assassins.

The screenplay originally began with Balian (Orlando Bloom) awakening after the shipwreck. Writer William Monahan had wanted to begin the story with the death of Balian's wife in France, but had feared that that would make the screenplay too long. When Ridley Scott became interested in the project, he told Monahan not to worry about length and to begin the screenplay where he wanted to begin it.

The reason Jeremy Irons' character was renamed Tiberias (as opposed to his 'real' name, Raymond III of Tripoli) was because the studio felt audiences would get confused with two major characters both having names beginning with R (the other being Raynald de Chatillon (Brendan Gleeson), and so they ordered writer William Monahan to change the name of one of them.
After being cast as the Hospitaler in the film, David Thewlis visited the Hospitalers' Museum at St. John's Gate in London, near where he lives. Whilst there, he discovered that his flat was actually built on the remains of the old priory of the Hospitalers' headquarters.
After being cast in the role of Godfrey, actor Liam Neeson realized he knew nothing about the Crusades and began his research with The Complete Idiots Guide to the Crusades by Paul L. Williams, a book Neeson calls "extremely informative".

Two practical trebuchets were built for the film. The arms could pivot 56 feet and fire loads of 100 pounds some 400 meters. During filming, the arms of one of the trebuchet towers snapped due to the extreme temperature changes which dried the wood in the arm. The snapping of the arm can be seen in the behind the scenes footage on the 4-Disc Director's Cut DVD.

As he had done in Huesca, production designer Arthur Max used a real kasbah when constructing Ibelin, and simply built an 'extension' onto the existing structure. The set was built primarily by local craftsmen using traditional building techniques (eg mud bricks were made on-site from local earth and straw, doors and window frames were hand-carved from local palm trees, roofing tiles were hand-thrown and hand-fired).
Most exterior filming took place in Ouarzazate, Morocco, where Ridley Scott had also filmed Gladiator(2000) and Black Hawk Down(2001). A massive replica of Jerusalem was constructed in the desert; the set contained 28,000 square meters of wall and used 6000 tons of plaster. The front of the set was 1,200 feet long, and the walls were 56 feet tall.

Interesting Goofs

Factual errors: When the Muslims are praying near Jerusalem they are praying towards the setting sun, west, not towards Mecca which is to the south south east.
Factual errors: A few times during the movie, the Muslims are shown praying while the prayer call is being delivered. The prayer call precedes the prayer.
Continuity: At 2:08:09 surrender of Jerusalem, the scar to left and below Bloom's eye disappears.
Anachronisms: During the movie, flags from Castilla y Leon kingdom are shown several times. At that time Castilla and Leon were separate kingdoms. They became one in 1230.
Incorrectly regarded as goofs: Guy stabs Saladin's messenger in the throat with a small dagger. When the messenger falls, Guy is holding a bloody sword, rather than his dagger. This is corrected in the Director's cut, where Guy proceeds to behead the messenger with his sword.

Balian of Ibelin: What could a king ask of a man like me?
Godfrey of Ibelin: A better world than has ever been seen. A kingdom of conscience. A kingdom of heaven.

Nothing new here. A recycled formulaic period piece set in Jerusalem. Once again, the story centers around one man's courage to lead his people to freedom, blah, blah, blah...