This is the terrible truth about selling a film to the general public: a film studio's marketing department has to make a film seem familiar and likeable to the masses, so they will come see the movie.
When a new movie is scheduled to be released, that studio's think tank of marketing wizards goes into overdrive; no matter what the film is about, they have to figure out which scenes go into a trailer, how long that trailer should be, how much should/should not be revealed. Who's the film intended for--is it relatable to the general public, or should key demographics such as suburban(white) or urban(black and other minorities) be targeted? Will the majority of its money be made in limited release or will it actually be able to survive in wide? Screenplays in Hollywood are even sold on these principles; there hasn't been one single script sold in Hollywood within the last two decades based solely on the concept of it being a good story...every factor listed above(and more) have inevitably come into play, because studios are terrified of losing money on a project, no matter who's attached. This is one of the sad reasons we have had to endure so many remakes recently; any new film with new concepts, unknown characters and new ideas to explore dosen't have built-in audiences who'll trot off to the multiplex; remakes do.
Sometimes the marketing machine goes into such overdrive that a new film is marketed as something it isn't, in order to get viewers into the seats. Such is the case of The Kingdom, which is being marketed primarily as an action film. It isn't. What The Kingdom is, most defin-itely is a solid movie with a great deal of ideas to explore, with rock-solid storytelling and a good amount of intense action thrown in.
Let me say this clearly, so there's no mistake: If you're looking for a straight-up military/action film, look elsewhere. Chances are, you may not like this movie. However, if you're looking for believable characters in realistic relationships and a plotline which makes sense, and which includes some damn good and intense(I mean intense) action, then welcome to The Kingdom.
The Kingdom begins with a very clever and unique detailing of the history of Saudi Arabia and U.S. involvement there. It's a rapid series of graphics and voiceovers--sort of a Saudi History For Dummies, but it ultimately works to help the everyman understand why we're so dependent on Saudi oil, why Osama bin Laden hates us, and most important, why we have any presence there at all. We then witness a terrorist attack on an American housing complex in Saudi Arabia. One of the main U.S. investigators on the scene, Francis Manner(Kyle Chandler) is a man who's seen it all and doesn't want to see any more. He's on the verge of losing it when a fellow investigator helps him center himself once more. Francis is one of those who dies in the terrorists' hideous followup, a second and more powerful blast which annihilates all the emergency medical and rescue teams which have shown up. It is this incident, but mainly Francis' death, which serves as impetus for FBI agent Ronald Fleury(Jamie Foxx) and his crack team of CSI investigators to head to Saudi Arabia. Francis was a friend of most of the team members and was a type of mentor for forensics officer Janet Mayes (Jennifer Garner).
There are problems getting to Arabia, however; for political rea-sons the Saudis don't want American help in their investigation. It's up to Fleury to basically blackmail a Saudi ambassador in order to gain clearance to enter...and then Fleury's team is only given five days to investigate and find the person responsible, an Osama wannabe with a loyal and fanatical following. To make matters worse, their Saudi liaison Colonel Faris Al Ghazi(Ashraf Barhom) only wants to do his job within strict limits, which means he wants to play tour guide and no more; as far as he and his immediate superiors are concerned, the American investigative team are just visitors.
The Kingdom was actually filmed partly in Saudi Arabia, in the city Abu Dhabi--supposedly the richest city on the planet. So of course, the Saudis can be made to look only so uncooperative in the investi-gation, when of course we all know the political reality is much differ-ent. To be fair though, The Kingdom is a very fair and balanced movie: not all the Saudis are terrorist-supporting radicals who want to eliminate us decadent Americans. There are families who sit down to dinner together, care for their elderly parents, and love one another just as we do. Many in the film are good people who want to see justice done, and the bad guys punished. In one scene where Fleury and his people go into what Faris refers to as "a bad part of town", a veiled Muslim woman shakes her head in warning to Fleury as if to silently signal, "You're in the wrong place, get out while you can". Some of them even feel good ol' righteous anger at the complex bombing--or, as Faris tells Fleury at one point, "When we catch these men responsible for the bombing, I don't want to ask them one ques-tion." There's not an American alive who hasn't felt that sentiment at least once, after what happened on 9/11.
The film is populated by real characters throughout, in every walk of life, both Saudi and American. The culture clash between the "new" Western ideals of t-shirts and Playstation games with Muslim beliefs and cultural traditions thousands of years old is shown. When Garner's character begins an autopsy on a Saudi male, one of the guards assigned to protect her brandishes his gun--women are strict-ly forbidden to touch Muslim males. A brief word on Garner's perfor-mance; like the rest of the American characters--the always-likeable Chris Cooper(American Beauty, Bourne Supremacy) as bomb specialist Sykes and Jason Bateman(the upcoming Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium) as tech savvy Leavitt--her Janet Mayes isn't given massive amounts to do or any real expansion on what her personal backstory is. After all, it is Jamie Foxx's movie, ensembles be damned...but Garner finally manages to shake off the shackles of Elektra's stench. At the last, Mayes comes into her own and manag-es to get a deed done in a truly brutal fight scene which includes nothing less than a knife to a bad guy's playsack.
As for the action scenes...while there are not many, the ones which are in the movie work with a fierceness. DIrector Peter Berg(Friday Night Lights, Chicago Hope) makes the audience feel as if they are in the heart of combat. The Saudi atmosphere is no small accomplice in carrying the illusion that anything can happen at any moment, and the FBI agents have left the real world behind and entered hell. This serves in part to give a new appreciation for the troops stationed in Iraq or any such area...how any human being could exist in conditions like those depicted on a day-to-day basis and retain their sanity is beyond my understanding.
I won't reveal whether the bad guy is caught, or who makes it out alive(or doesn't). Just let it be known that the ending delivers a type of message without politically bashing the audience over the head, as so many movies have of late. It is a bittersweet ending, because even for a Hollywood film such as this, there are no easy answers. Which is just fine by me, because while there are a few moments in the movie which do tend to stretch credibility a bit, this last part should not. The answers to all of life's problems, despite some contrary pronouncements by t-shirts, cannot be found in the movies. But like the best films of its ilk, The Kingdom puts the questions out there...it's up to us to take the dialogue into the real world and figure out the answers.
Official Archives of LanceReviews...
Heavenly "Kingdom"
Far more than it seems, new movie rocks, rolls--and delivers!
The Kingdom: A movie which Universal has no idea how to market, because it is so much more than what can be told in a 30 second tv spot.
Colonel Faris(Barhom) and Fleury(Foxx) initially butt heads, but develop a believable friendship.
Fleury tries to convince Prince Thamer(Rawi, on right) to allow his unit to investigate the bombing.
Return to glory: Jennifer Garner shines as a forensics officer sent into enemy territory.
Following a roadside ambush, Leavitt(Bateman) is kid-napped; a chilling scene which mirrors real-world events.
Bullet the blue sky: When the action does come, it is fast, furious and stop-your-heart intense.
