Kingdom of Heaven
BY KTOWN MOVIE GUY

When your girlfriend tries to satisfy her lust for Orlando Bloom and coax you to watch this film, I say you act as if you're reluctantly giving in.  Why?  Because this actually is a pretty good film, with incredible visuals and good acting. The entire thing is a lot like the Return of the King--giant battles set to thumpingly harsh music, brilliant costumes and banners, and a magnificently recreated siege of Jerusalem.

But it has its bad points too.  The problem with this film is that it tries to do too much: there are too many characters dealing with too many complex things. Bloom's character, for one, has to come to terms with his wife's suicide, his own loss of religious faith, his new-found nobility, his interpretation of what it means to be a perfect knight and his love for the wife of his mortal enemy, all while he defends pilgrims, protects the king, and takes charge of besieged Jerusalem. And Balian is not alone in having to deal with such dilemmas in between the battle scenes--the supporting cast, especially David Thewlis, Martin Csokas and Ghassan Massoud are as prominent as Balian.

Though the film is crammed with more than its share of "serious themes", Scott's heart is clearly in the battles. The dilemmas of the characters, though many and dire, are not as affecting as a small group of knights charging the entire cavalry of Saladin, or the moving and detailed siege of Jerusalem.

Overall Score (from 1 to 5 kimchee bowls):