Kingdom of Heaven is a 2005 epic historical fiction drama film directed and produced by Ridley Scott and written by William Monahan. It stars Orlando Bloom, Eva Green, Ghassan Massoud, Jeremy Irons, David Thewlis, Brendan Gleeson, Edward Norton, Marton Csokas, Liam Neeson, Michael Sheen, Velibor Topić, and Alexander Siddig.
Filming took place in Ouarzazate, Morocco, where Scott had previously filmed Gladiator (2000) and Black Hawk Down (2001), and in Spain, at the Loarre Castle (Huesca), Segovia, Ávila, Palma del Río, and Seville's Casa de Pilatos and Alcázar.[5][6] The film was released on 6 May 2005, by 20th Century Fox and received mixed reviews upon theatrical release. It grossed $218 million worldwide. On 23 December 2005, Scott released a director's cut, which received critical acclaim, with many reviewers calling it the definitive version of the film.[7][8]
Film Salahuddin Al Ayyubi 15
Download File: https://geags.com/2vKLea
The music differs in style and content from the soundtrack of Scott's earlier 2000 film Gladiator[17] and many other subsequent films depicting historical events.[18] A combination of medieval, Middle Eastern, contemporary classical, and popular influences,[17][18] the soundtrack is largely the work of British film-score composer Harry Gregson-Williams. Jerry Goldsmith's "Valhalla" theme from The 13th Warrior and "Vide Cor Meum" (originally used by Scott in Hannibal and composed by Patrick Cassidy and Hans Zimmer), sung by Danielle de Niese and Bruno Lazzaretti, were used as replacements for original music by Gregson-Williams.
Upon its release it was met with a mixed reception, with many critics being divided on the film. Critics such as Roger Ebert found the film's message to be deeper than that of Scott's Gladiator.[14]
Online, general criticism has been also divided. Review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes gives the film a score of 39% based on reviews from 191 critics, with an average rating of 5.60/10. The site's critical consensus reads: "Although it's an objective and handsomely presented take on the Crusades, Kingdom of Heaven lacks depth."[24] Review aggregator Metacritic gives the film a 63/100 rating based on 40 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews" according to the website's weighted average system.[25]
In the time since the film's release, scholars have offered analysis and criticisms through a lens situating Kingdom of Heaven within the context of contemporary international events and religious conflict, including: broad post-9/11 politics, neocolonialism, Orientalism, the Western perspective of the film, and the detrimental handling of differences between Christianity and Islam.[26]
Academic criticism has focused on the supposed peaceful relationship between Christians and Muslims in Jerusalem and other cities depicted. Historians of the Crusades such as Jonathan Riley-Smith, quoted by The Daily Telegraph, described the film as "dangerous to Arab relations", calling the film "Osama bin Laden's version of history", which would "fuel the Islamic fundamentalists". Riley-Smith further commented against the historical accuracy, stating that "the fanaticism of most of the Christians in the film and their hatred of Islam is what the Islamists want to believe. At a time of inter-faith tension, nonsense like this will only reinforce existing myths", arguing that the film relied on the romanticized view of the Crusades propagated by Sir Walter Scott in his book The Talisman, published in 1825 and now discredited by academics, "which depicts the Muslims as sophisticated and civilized, and the Crusaders are all brutes and barbarians. It has nothing to do with reality".[27][28][29] Paul Halsall defended Ridley Scott, claiming that "historians can't criticize filmmakers for having to make the decisions they have to make ... [Scott is] not writing a history textbook".[23]
The "Director's Cut" of the film is a four-disc set, two of which are dedicated to a feature-length documentary called The Path to Redemption. This feature contains an additional featurette on historical accuracy called "Creative Accuracy: The Scholars Speak", where a number of academics support the film's contemporary relevance and historical accuracy. Among these historians is Dr. Nancy Caciola, who said that despite the various inaccuracies and fictionalised/dramatized details, she considered the film a "responsible depiction of the period."[31]
Caciola agreed with the fictionalisation of characters on the grounds that "crafting a character who is someone the audience can identify with" is necessary in a film.[citation needed] She said that "I, as a professional, have spent much time with medieval people, so to speak, in the texts that I read; and quite honestly there are very few of them that if I met in the flesh I feel that I would be very fond of."[citation needed]
The film was a box office disappointment in the US and Canada, earning $47.4 million against a budget of around $130 million, but did better in Europe and the rest of the world, earning $164.3 million, with the worldwide box office earnings totalling at $211,643,158.[34] It was also a success in Arabic-speaking countries, especially Egypt. Scott insinuated that the US failure of the film was the result of poor advertising, which presented the film as an adventure with a love story rather than as an examination of religious conflict.[citation needed][35] It has also been noted that the film was altered from its original version to be shorter and follow a simpler plot line. This "less sophisticated" version is what hit theatres, although Scott and some of his crew felt it was watered down, explaining that by editing, "You've gone in there and taken little bits from everything".[36]
Unhappy with the theatrical version of Kingdom of Heaven (which he blamed on paying too much attention to the opinions of preview audiences, and acceding to Fox's request to shorten the film by 45 minutes), Ridley Scott supervised a director's cut of the film, which was released on 23 December 2005 at the Laemmle Fairfax Theatre in Los Angeles, California.[37] Unlike the mixed critical reception of the film's theatrical version, the Director's Cut received overwhelmingly positive reviews from film critics, including a four-star review in the British magazine Total Film and a ten out of ten from IGN DVD.[38][39][40] Empire magazine called the reedited film an "epic", adding, "The added 45 minutes in the director's cut are like pieces missing from a beautiful but incomplete puzzle."[7] One reviewer suggested it is the most substantial director's cut of all time[8] and James Berardinelli wrote that it offers a much greater insight into the story and the motivations of individual characters.[41] "This is the one that should have gone out" reflected Scott.[7]
The DVD of the extended director's cut was released on 23 May 2006. It comprises a four-disc box set with a runtime of 194 minutes, and is shown as a roadshow presentation with an overture and intermission in the vein of traditional Hollywood epic films.[37] The first Blu-ray release omitted the roadshow elements, running at 189 minutes, but they were restored for the 2014 'Ultimate Edition' release.[42]
Significant subplots were added as well as enhanced character relationships. The priest Balian kills at the beginning of the film is revealed to be his half-brother, while the lord presiding over Balian's hometown is revealed to be Godfrey's brother. Battle scenes are depicted with more violence than in the theatrical cut. More scenes with the Hospitaller offering guidance to Balian were added back in. The most significant addition was the subplot involving Sibylla's son Baldwin V, who becomes the first to inherit the throne of Jerusalem following the passing of Baldwin IV, but is shown to be afflicted with leprosy just like his uncle before him, so Sibylla peacefully poisons him to prevent him from suffering as his predecessor did. The gravedigger from Balian's hometown is given more attention: he is shown to be philosophical at the beginning of the film, and is shown to follow Balian to Jerusalem to seek salvation like Balian, who acknowledges his presence and personally knights him before the final siege. Finally, a final fight is shown between Balian and Guy, where Balian wins but spares Guy, leaving him dishonoured.
The historical Sibylla was devoted to Guy, but the filmmakers wanted the character to be "stronger and wiser".[46] Some have said that the character of Sibylla was reimagined to fit the trope of exotic Middle Eastern woman, whereas historically Sibylla and Baldwin belonged to a distinctly Western class that sought to set themselves apart from Middle Eastern culture.[47][45] Moreover, while described in contemporary accounts as a young man vigorous in spite of his leprosy, King Baldwin is portrayed in the film as passive, androgynous, and bound to his chamber.[47]
It chronicles the life of the ruler Saladin during the Third Crusade around Jerusalem. Over the course of the film, Saladin seeks to reclaim the holy lands from the hands of Christians who are slaughtering the Muslim population.
The Message was one of the first Hollywood films to show multiple positive representations of Muslims on screen. Perhaps one of the reasons for this was its direction by Syrian-American director Moustapha Al Akkad.
In particular, Washington took the time to study the Quran in depth. He even followed Islamic practices during filming. This included abstaining from pork and alcohol and learning how to pray in Arabic.
Once in exile, he frequently refers back to the Islamic prayers that guide him. He even uses one to teach a Viking how to write. The film depicts a wonderful coming together of cultures in a way that is was rarely seen on film in the 1990s.
Over the course of the film, Will Smith portrays Ali as he captures his heavyweight title, is banned from boxing and returns again in 1971. It also features his conversion to Islam and his refusal to join US forces fighting in the Vietnam War. 2ff7e9595c
Comments