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Kingdom of Heaven (2005)
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Overview
User Rating:
Director:
Writer (WGA):
William Monahan (written by)
Release Date:
6 May 2005 (USA)
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Tagline:
Be without fear in the face of your enemies. Safeguard the helpless, and do no wrong
Plot:
Balian of Ibelin travels to Jerusalem during the crusades of the 12th century, and there he finds himself as the defender of the city and its people. full summary | full synopsis
Awards:
3 wins
&
11 nominations
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NewsDesk:
(48 articles)
'Call of Duty' Movie Talk Highlights Kevin McKidd's Sense of Humor
(From Cinematical. 18 November 2009, 1:45 PM, PST)
Blu-ray Review: Gone With the Wind (70th Anniversary)
(From Rope Of Silicon. 17 November 2009, 2:04 AM, PST)
(From Cinematical. 18 November 2009, 1:45 PM, PST)
Blu-ray Review: Gone With the Wind (70th Anniversary)
(From Rope Of Silicon. 17 November 2009, 2:04 AM, PST)
User Comments:
Credit the director and writer for balancing the guilt and horror among Christians, Jews, and Arabs.
more (860 total)
Cast
(Cast overview, first billed only) more
Additional Details
Also Known As:
El reino de los cielos (Spain)
Königreich der Himmel (Germany)
The Crusades (USA) (working title)
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Königreich der Himmel (Germany)
The Crusades (USA) (working title)
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MPAA:
Rated R for strong violence and epic warfare.
Parents Guide:
Runtime:
144 min | 190 min (director's cut) (Blu-Ray Disc) | 192 min (director's cut)
Color:
Aspect Ratio:
2.35 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Certification:
Taiwan:R-12 |
Canada:14A |
Portugal:M/12 |
Netherlands:16 |
Malaysia:U |
Iceland:16 |
Germany:16 (director's cut) |
New Zealand:R16 |
Argentina:13 |
Australia:M |
Brazil:14 |
Canada:13+ (Quebec) |
Canada:14A (Alberta/British Columbia/Ontario) |
Finland:K-15 |
France:U |
Germany:12 |
Hong Kong:IIB |
Ireland:15A |
Italy:T |
Norway:15 |
Peru:14 |
Philippines:PG-13 |
Singapore:NC-16 |
South Korea:15 |
Spain:13 |
Sweden:15 |
Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) |
Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) |
UK:15 |
USA:R |
Indonesia:Dewasa
Filming Locations:
Fun Stuff
Trivia:
The first cut of the film presented to the Fox executives was 186 minutes long. This had been taken from a 280 minute assembly edit (in the assembly, the actual siege itself was 45 minutes long). The main thing the executives questioned was the subplot involving Sibylla's son, as they felt this was Balian's story, and his story didn't need that particular plot line. Indeed, even during pre-production itself, executives had ordered writer William Monahan to write a version of the script without the Baldwin V plot, and Ridley Scott shot the film in such a way that the plot could be easily cut.
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Goofs:
Continuity: In the beginning of the movie when Balian is pounding on his piece he is shown clearly quenching the end of the piece after pounding on it, clearly showing only the middle of the piece is still hot enough to work, however the next shot shows him once again working on the end which is hot once more while the middle is not.
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Quotes:
Movie Connections:
Featured in Creative Accuracy: The Scholars Speak (2006) (V)
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Soundtrack:
VIDE COR MEUM
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FAQ
A NOTE REGARDING SPOILERSWhat happens to the English Sergeant?
How much sex, violence, and profanity are in this movie?
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more (860 total)
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"There was a Knight, a most distinguished man, Who from the day on which he first began To ride abroad had followed chivalry, Truth, honour, generousness and courtesy. He had done nobly in his sovereign's war And ridden into battle, no man more, As well in Christian as in heathen places, And ever honoured for his noble graces."
Chaucer, "The Canterbury Tales"
In Kingdom of Heaven, Orlando Bloom plays Balian, a former blacksmith turned knight, at the siege of Jerusalem in the late 12th century. Director Ridley Scott takes care to make this knight every bit as ideal as Chaucer made his. In the process Balian becomes too perfect, perhaps because of Bloom's cross gender prettiness and the intonations of his dialogue, each word of which weighs heavily on the leader and the viewer. I probably missed a moment of light-heartedness, if there is one. This film could have used a good study of Chaucer to show how to intersperse gravity with levity.
In other words, Scott has forsaken the gritty toughness of Russell Crowe's Oscar performance in Gladiator for the saintliness of Bloom, which makes Kingdom of Heaven a parable of virtue rather than a hardscrabble tale of violence and intrigue. The violence makes itself known in every other scene, as to be expected in the genre, but with the quick cut, hand-held blurriness and slomo now characteristic of war films that eschew realism for artiness and thereby lose the sense of reality.
Kenneth Branagh's Henry V got battle just right with a camera that stayed in the action at a reasonable length for shots and ended with an Agincourt unforgettable for its camera tracking over the carnage and music something like a funereal choir at a midnight mass. Scott's fidelity to the war technology of the time with catapulting balls of oil and movable breaching towers is offset by a constant choir of angels so pervasive it loses its effect by the end of the final battle.
Credit the director and writer for balancing the guilt and horror among Christians, Jews, and Arabs. Jerusalem's King Baldwin (voice of Edward Norton) is a leper, hidden behind stunning silver masks, weakened but determined to the end to save his people from the overwhelming hordes of Muslims, led by the audience-pleasing Saladin (Ghassan Massoud). The "terms" between Christians and Muslims allow both sides to exit with honor.
It is clear no one owned Jerusalem in the Middle Ages, and no one owns it now, Palestinian protests notwithstanding. For a history lesson with modern relevances, see this epic; for a lighter touch, see Brian Helgeland's A Knight's Tale; to have it all, read Chaucer.