Kingdom of Heaven (2005)

Pretty Good

It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.

The cinematography and production design are the best thing about this film. It brings you into that world and compells you to stay there. Eva Greene and Jeremy Irons stands out among the actors giving more than those characters offer. But there is a whole lot that seems to be missing something to be making it really good. The director's cut is supposed to be the best version but the mise-en-scene is so off at times and the music felt mudplaced. Bloom was kind if disappointing yet overall it was ok.

Ridley Scott made an obvious mistake here. I watched this film long time ago. What I got from seeing this drool, was a sour feeling of being bored. I have tried the Director's Cut. My. Three excruciating hours of utter doom. Everything is wrong in this movie -the cast, with Orlando Bloom being the worst offender, and Eva Green little more than an average bore. The setting, with its awful false tonality, epic mediocrity and inescapable feeling of clichés. We saw this all before time and again. Why suffer this horrid boredom-fest, which never rises above dull or gray. My, even such awesome stars as Liam Neeson or Jeremy Irons could be so miserable and so flat as here. Battle scenes? Only if you didn't watch much better Lord Of The Rings fights. Love story. Come on, boring trite banality. On top of that all, terrible plot holes, jumps and a cream of the crop - ;laughable accents that make you cringe. Truly, a crime of a film

I had high hopes for this movie, but political correctness runs all through. Christians are shown as bloodthirsty savages, while the Muslim conquerors are fair and just. It is just so painful to watch this in light of current events and wonder if Saudi Arabia was actually the backer for this stinker.Orlando Bloom you should be ashamed,. Unless of course you have converted to Islam.

Ridley Scott's latest historical epic is a real disappointment for those of us who considered GLADIATOR to be a modern classic. KINGDOM OF HEAVEN is everything that film wasn't; it's over-long, poorly acted, and often sloppy when it comes to the editing and scripting. A two and a half hour adventure film that barely contains any decent action is truly disgraceful, and this slow-paced effort often takes the biscuit. The trailers cram in just about every battle the film contains, making it look exciting throughout, but after the first half hour the interest wanes and the viewers are left squirming in their seats, facing one irrelevant sequence after another.The highlight of the film for me is a stunning siege sequence in which the Arabs lay waste to Jerusalem, utilising Greek fire and siege engines to storm and breach the walls. The pyrotechnic effects are wonderful and the sheer spectacle of this moment equals that of RETURN OF THE KING. However, this occupies only fifteen minutes of the movie, and, like ROTK, there are multiple layered endings which really test the patience. The film incorporates a useless love interest with no acting talent whatsoever, and for some reason keeps cutting back to her face during the battle, really ruining the excitement. Scott seems like an amateur here with little real talent.As for the hero, Bloom is adequate in the role but a little too mock-serious, a little boring. His speech sequences are the worst in the movie and should have been cut. However, he has a stellar supporting cast, including heavyweight support from Liam Neeson and Jeremy Irons; Brendan Gleeson pops up again, and this time goes way over the top. Edward Norton is unrecognisable as the sympathetic leper king whilst Marton Csokas is a slimy templar bad guy who just disappears towards the end of the movie.The action sequences are like those in most modern Hollywood offerings, sharply edited so you can't make out much what's going on, and aside from a couple of sequences the violence is limited to blood spraying in the air. The sound effects are actually decent though, complemented by an effective score, so expect lots of sweeping music and clashing steel as the film plays out. The visuals are also spectacular with fabulous, huge sets and beautiful scenery. However, the problem is that Scott goes out of his way to make this film seem 'epic', and it's clearly not, just a tiresome moralising story about religion with some half-hearted action added in.