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The Kingdom By: Andrew Moran 3 Stars out of 5 Stars Starring (Alphabetical Order): Ashraf Barhom, Jason Bateman, Chris Cooper, Jamie Foxx, Jennifer Garner, Danny Huston, Richard Jenkins, Jeremy Piven & Ali Suliman Click Here for Trailer
When a terrorist bomb detonates inside a Western housing compound in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, an international incident is ignited. While diplomats slowly debate equations of territorialism, FBI Special Agent Ronald Fleury (Jamie Foxx) quickly assembles an elite team (Chris Cooper, Jennifer Garner, and Jason Bateman) and negotiates a secret five-day trip into Saudi Arabia to locate the madman behind the bombing. Upon landing in the desert kingdom, however, Fleury and his team discover Saudi authorities suspicious and unwelcoming of American interlopers into what they consider a local matter. Hamstrung by protocol-and with the clock ticking on their five days-the FBI agents find their expertise worthless without the trust of their Saudi counterparts, who want to locate the terrorist in their homeland on their own terms. Fleury's crew finds a like-minded partner in Saudi Colonel Al-Ghazi (Ashraf Barhoum), who helps them navigate royal politics and unlock the secrets of the crime scene and the workings of an extremist cell bent on further destruction. With these unlikely allies sharing a propulsive commitment to crack the case, the team is led to the killer's front door in a blistering do-or-die confrontation. Now in a fight for their own lives, strangers united by one mission won't stop until justice is found in The Kingdom Syriana? No. A suspenseful action thriller? Yes. As one of the critics from the film trailer said, “…the last 30 minutes will keep you at the edge of your seat.” I couldn’t agree more. It didn’t keep me at the edge of my seat, however my heart was pulsating because it was very suspenseful. The film doesn’t go into the culture of Islam very much nor does it attack historical issues, although it does give a brief four-minute introduction of the periods between the 1930s until present day. 
Collaboration between Peter Berg (The Rundown & Friday Night Lights) and Michael Mann (Heat & Collateral) is absolutely fantastic for two talented filmmakers. This was Peter Berg’s, in my opinion, first big-budgeted Hollywood picture. So with Michael Mann producing the picture, you can be sure that Peter Berg wouldn’t have made a mistake. You’ll also see a lot of Michael Mann traits in the picture (I.E. An aerial shot of lights in Saudi Arabia at night & night scenes shot in HD). Originally, I’m not a fan of Jamie Foxx (Ray & Collateral), however I think he did a tremendous job in this film. The first film that I thought he did well was ‘Jarhead’. Also the supporting actors of Chris Cooper (Adaptation & The Bourne Identity), Jennifer Garner (13 going on 30 & Elektra) and Jason Bateman (Smokin’ Aces & The Break-Up) all did good jobs. However, I’m not sure what Jason Bateman’s character was doing in Saudi Arabia mainly because I had no idea what he was doing. Throughout the course of the picture he was just standing around making “jokes”. 
The soundtrack to the film could’ve been a bit better, however during the final moments of the film were good because during the shootout scene there was no music at all. This is something that’s good to see because in a lot of action films there are always some kind of a jagged edge song in the background. Overall, I’d recommend this picture. Again don’t be expecting Syriana, just expect a thriller dealing with Islamic Terrorists. |
