A film about Jerusalem at the time of the Crusades has the potential to be very interesting, with all kinds of resonances possible. However 'Kingdom of Heaven' isn't one like that. It had no feel for the historical period and had no contemporary echoes. Being a Ridley Scott film it did look gorgeous. Too gorgeous. It was beautifully crafted but absolutely airless. The costumes were lovely, the scenery was lovely, the spurts of blood were lovely. Everything perfect and lifeless. Indeed I found it dull.
One of its other main problems was Orlando Bloom as Balian. He seemed to have the same expression and the same tone of voice throughout the film. It might have been deliberate or bad acting but the result was the same. You did not believe in the character for one moment. The declaiming of the speech where he rouses the men for the last stand was laughably lame. Compare that say to Mel Gibson's 'Braveheart' battle speech. No contest. The most interesting character was that played by Liam Neeson but unfortunately he didn't last long.
Near the end is the siege of Jerusalem but if you've seen one computer generated battle you've seen them all. I almost expected Gimli and Aragorn to pop up and have a go at the Saracens. It was the biggest set piece and it too was boring. The music score was unsurprising but had lots of nice tunes. It was the most memorable part of a unmemorable film.
One of its other main problems was Orlando Bloom as Balian. He seemed to have the same expression and the same tone of voice throughout the film. It might have been deliberate or bad acting but the result was the same. You did not believe in the character for one moment. The declaiming of the speech where he rouses the men for the last stand was laughably lame. Compare that say to Mel Gibson's 'Braveheart' battle speech. No contest. The most interesting character was that played by Liam Neeson but unfortunately he didn't last long.
Near the end is the siege of Jerusalem but if you've seen one computer generated battle you've seen them all. I almost expected Gimli and Aragorn to pop up and have a go at the Saracens. It was the biggest set piece and it too was boring. The music score was unsurprising but had lots of nice tunes. It was the most memorable part of a unmemorable film.