Ridley Scott's Crusades epic "Kingdom of Heaven" is not anti-Muslim or anti-Christian. Yes, it fictionalizes history, but not enough to stop one highly respected scholar-author from alleging that the filmmakers filched the storyline from his acclaimed book.
And "The Lord of the Rings" pinup Orlando Bloom is convincing as a brave warrior and leader of men -- or at least as convincing as Russell Crowe as an enslaved warrior who was forced to become a gladiator.
Now, does anyone care about the movie itself?
If so, then you can also know that "Kingdom of Heaven," while no "Lawrence of Arabia," is an exceedingly well-made, reasonably involving and impressively intelligent movie about political and religious turmoil in 1186. It also has no small amount of relevance today, which is why contemporary crusaders and cultural warriors have chosen it as a battleground.
If there is a major kink in this "Kingdom," it is not its distortion of history, though it does take the usual liberties and shortcuts. It is in the film's noble, if ultimately, ill-fated quest to be fair, to treat religion and faith respectfully and to carry a flag of tolerance and forgiveness. The villains in this film do not work for God or Allah, they use Him to justify their own power grabs and prejudices. And that, too, makes "Kingdom of Heaven" pertinent. I can't recall when a film that has so much to say about the current reality has tried so hard to deny it.
There have been many movies about the Crusades in which Christian warriors, assured their most heinous sins would be forgiven for killing in the name of God, fought to claim Jerusalem from the Muslims. An action epic that would have starred Arnold Schwarzenegger as a Crusader was putted around for a decade.
But 9/11 changed everything. Only Scott, who revived the swords-and-sandals genre with the 2000 blockbuster "Gladiator," was brave (or foolhardy) and bankable enough to solider on with his proposed film. That is even more impressive when you consider that its script, by William Monahan, dares to respect the ability of viewers to sort out complicated scenarios and conclusions for themselves.
"Kingdom of Heaven" may finally be too smart for its own good, but it is also involving entertainment for those who can keep up. Bloom is Balian, a blacksmith in France mourning a wife who committed suicide and who, according to the rules of his church, cannot enter heaven. A condolence call by the knight Sir Godfrey of Ibelin (Liam Neeson) yields a revelation: Balian is Godfrey's illegitimate son and heir to his title.
Should Balian choose to follow Godfrey to Jerusalem to aid King Baldwin in his efforts to broker a lasting peace between Christians and Muslims, and to help neutralize religious fanatics on both sides, God will look kindly on his sacrifice.
Balian initially balks, but is eventually on his way. An unexpected encounter -- and the battle skills his father taught him -- result in his winning the respect of another unlikely patron whose opinion of him will someday have enormous consequences.
When he finally arrives in the Holy City, Balian makes a friend in the leprous, masked king (Edward Norton); an ally in the king's lieutenant, the diplomatic realist Tiberias (Jeremy Irons); an admirer in the king's independent sister, Princess Sibylla (exotic beauty Eva Green of "The Dreamers") and more than a few enemies.
