Barnes & Noble

Director Ridley Scott (Gladiator) has really outdone himself with this spellbinding film, an elaborately mounted epic that takes occasional liberties with the historical record but recreates the period so evocatively that viewers will be held in thrall to its sweeping narrative. The movie opens in the 12th century, between the Second and Third Crusades, with Jerusalem in Christian hands and the Leper King, Baldwin (Edward Norton), maintaining an uneasy peace with the Muslim warrior prince Saladin (Ghassan Massoud). With a truce in place, Sir Godfrey of Ibelin (Liam Neeson) returns to France in hopes of persuading his illegitimate son, Balian (Orlando Bloom), to join him in the Holy Land and defend Baldwin’s “kingdom of heaven.” Unbeknownst to either of them, unscrupulous, plundering Templar knights are undermining the peace -- inflaming the Muslim hordes and risking Jerusalem’s safety. Scott exhibits remarkable skill in telling the larger story and depicting historical events while maintaining an emphasis on more intimate, character-driven aspects of the story, such as Baldwin’s tender relationship with his sister, Sibylla (Eva Green), and adviser, Tiberias (Jeremy Irons), as well as Sibylla’s on-and-off romance with Balian. Scott lays blame for the siege of Jerusalem plainly and unambiguously at the feet of the villainous knights, and he goes to considerable lengths to make Saladin the chivalrous warrior of legend, but the film isn’t a cut-and-dried exercise in political correctness. The Europeans aren’t all bad, nor the Arab Muslims all good. In fact, the director is to be commended for approaching this very complex phase of history in a reasonably evenhanded way. Were this not the case, however, it wouldn’t change the fact that Kingdom of Heaven is extraordinarily entertaining. Everything about it is first-rate, with Scott’s realistic, expansively staged battle sequences meriting special commendation. Ed Hulse

All Movie Guide

Ridley Scott directed this epic-scale historical drama inspired by the events of the Crusades of the 12th century. Balian (Orlando Bloom) is a humble French blacksmith who is searching for a reason to go on after the death of his wife and children. Balian is approached by Godfrey of Ibelin (Liam Neeson), a fabled knight who has briefly returned home after serving in the East. Godfrey informs Balian that he is his true father, and urges the blacksmith to join him as he and his forces journey to Jerusalem to help defend the holy city. Balian accepts, and he and Godfrey arrive during the lull between the Second and Third Crusades, in which the city is enjoying a fragile peace. Both Christian and Muslim forces are temporarily in retreat, thanks to the wisdom of the Christian monarch King Baldwin IV (Edward Norton), his second-in-command Tiberias (Jeremy Irons), and Muslim potentate Saladin (Ghassan Massoud). Violent agitators on both sides are foolishly eager to end the peace in a bid for greater power, and Saladin bows to pressures from Muslim factions; Godfrey is one of a handful of brave knights who has thrown his allegiance behind Baldwin IV and his community of diversity, and Balian joins him as they use their skills as warriors in a bid to build a lasting peace. Kingdom of Heaven also stars Eva Green as the princess Sibylla, David Thewlis as Hospitaler the priest, and Brendan Gleeson as Reynald. Mark Deming

Product Details

• UPC: 024543206408
• Source: 20TH CENTURY FOX
• Region Code: 1
• Presentation: Wide Screen
• Sound: DTS 5.1-Channel Surround Sound, Dolby AC-3 Surround Sound
• Language: English
• Editions: Subtitled, Dubbed
• Time: 2:24:00
• Sales Rank: 3,669

This DVD is also available as part of a box set:

• Kingdom of Heaven/Anna and the King
• Kingdom of Heaven / Crusaders (2001)

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