- Joined
- Feb 8, 1999
- Messages
- 18,312
- Real Name
- Robert Harris
“We few, we happy few, we band of brothers;”
Kingdom of Heaven is a gusty film to release in this heavily politicized era, with a war raging in the Middle East. And while there is a great deal to be learned from history in a general sense, as told in Kingdom, it comes up lacking in accuracy.
But Kingdom of Heaven was not written as a history lesson. It was designed to be filmed as superb entertainment, with as its set piece, the siege of Jerusalem in 1187. As such, it never takes sides in the battle, nor should it.
I’m pleased that I gave this film another try after having to shut it down while attempting to view it through huge letters on a demo disc giving me the information that it was owned by Fox. I actually already knew that.
Now, without the bright legend, which made the many dark scenes unviewable, the DVD comes off as a well-rendered, detailed release, with adequate blacks and reasonable shadow detail. Bright scenes are beautiful, crisp and colorful.
I can't help but think that at least some early DVD reviews for this disc may have been based upon something similar to my initial viewing experience.
The great pleasure of this film, however, is much the same as Mr. Scott’s other work, in that he is one of the few filmmakers who can capture the look and feel of a another world, be it alien territory or a part of our own historical past, and make it seem totally believable. Here he succeeds once again.
His recreation of Jerusalem and the impending siege multiplies Sir Laurence Olivier’s brilliant King Henry the Fifth a million fold, displaying precisely how far filmmaking has come in the sixty years since animators inked the flying arrows for the Battle of Agincourt, which would occur 225 years after the film that we discuss.
While Kingdom of Heaven is not apt to regarded as one of the great films of the decade, it stands as a quality release from 20th Century-Fox, and a stunning motion picture.
Recommended.
RAH
Kingdom of Heaven is a gusty film to release in this heavily politicized era, with a war raging in the Middle East. And while there is a great deal to be learned from history in a general sense, as told in Kingdom, it comes up lacking in accuracy.
But Kingdom of Heaven was not written as a history lesson. It was designed to be filmed as superb entertainment, with as its set piece, the siege of Jerusalem in 1187. As such, it never takes sides in the battle, nor should it.
I’m pleased that I gave this film another try after having to shut it down while attempting to view it through huge letters on a demo disc giving me the information that it was owned by Fox. I actually already knew that.
Now, without the bright legend, which made the many dark scenes unviewable, the DVD comes off as a well-rendered, detailed release, with adequate blacks and reasonable shadow detail. Bright scenes are beautiful, crisp and colorful.
I can't help but think that at least some early DVD reviews for this disc may have been based upon something similar to my initial viewing experience.
The great pleasure of this film, however, is much the same as Mr. Scott’s other work, in that he is one of the few filmmakers who can capture the look and feel of a another world, be it alien territory or a part of our own historical past, and make it seem totally believable. Here he succeeds once again.
His recreation of Jerusalem and the impending siege multiplies Sir Laurence Olivier’s brilliant King Henry the Fifth a million fold, displaying precisely how far filmmaking has come in the sixty years since animators inked the flying arrows for the Battle of Agincourt, which would occur 225 years after the film that we discuss.
While Kingdom of Heaven is not apt to regarded as one of the great films of the decade, it stands as a quality release from 20th Century-Fox, and a stunning motion picture.
Recommended.
RAH