Muzman on 27/9/2007 at 13:07
Saw this one the other night at a preview and, in short, thought it was pretty darn good for what it was. But I'm a bit surprised at the mixed reviews it's getting so far. Many of the critics listed at Rottentomatoes, for instance, seem to complain that the film is too simple and cliched in its rendering of the complex Saudi situation. Well, fair enough I guess, but what if everyone actually went to see Syriana (and Syriana was straightforward enough to get on one viewing)? The film is a bit of a kick-ass and take names procedural where the capably righteous and the righteously capable prevail, but, without ruining it, managed to create a nice dark undercurrent that said "You know all this ra-ra shit is ultimately pointless against the enormity of what's going on here?", to me at least. The film managed to take the emotions that drive an action thriller, use them to entertain and thrill and then undercut them, making them seem a bit self defeating and even horrifying. That's pretty cool, I reckon, and given the context and relevance, is actually kinda daring these days.
If you do check it out, do remember that it is really an action thriller though. Works better that way.
Anyone else caught it yet?
BEAR on 27/9/2007 at 19:35
I've quit concidering seeing any movie where the preview features the words 'Jamie Foxx' and 'elite team', which pretty much means I cant see any of his movies anymore.
Muzman on 28/9/2007 at 01:07
Well it's a lot better than Stealth, so don't worry there
Trappin on 28/9/2007 at 01:28
Waiting for the DVD release - looks like a good popcorn movie. Has anyone been to a sneak preview of (
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0925248/) in the Shadow of the Moon ?
Scots Taffer on 28/9/2007 at 01:32
Is The Kingdom the one where it's JAMIE FOXX as part of an ELITE FBI SQUAD in the middle of SAUDI ARABIA. Because lol.
Muzman on 28/9/2007 at 01:41
In the SEQUEL his ELITE TEAM go to THE MOON and kick MOON MAN ARSE.
monolith lol
BEAR on 28/9/2007 at 02:55
I had a good laugh when I saw the preview one night on TV, it was like I had made a parody preview for my own amusement.
Ko0K on 28/9/2007 at 06:18
I never even knew about this movie until I saw this thread. I watched the trailer earlier tonight, and quite honestly, it just seems kind of generic. I'll keep an open mind, though. So, apparently Aussies get to see some/most/all movies earlier than we do? Hm.
Scots Taffer on 28/9/2007 at 07:05
It wildly varies, actually.
Muzman on 28/9/2007 at 07:21
Sometimes we're a testing ground, sometimes we're not worth bothering about until a year later (and by then we've all dowloaded whatever it was anyway because we're lax in our morals like that, stats tend to show). I don't think The Kingdom offically comes out for about a month.
Anyway, The Topic At Hand: The Kingdom is at least worth seeing for its opening, which you can now see for free.
(
http://movies.yahoo.com/feature/thekingdom.html)
(do look at one of the fancy quicktime versions if poss)
