Retro Film Review: The Kingdom (2007)
In 2007, a whole series of Hollywood films dedicated to critiquing Bush's war in Iraq and US Middle Eastern policy in general has faced failure at the American box office, and even the traditionally leftist critics have not shown much leniency towards such films. Many have explained that with the American audience seeing too much news from Iraq and the Middle East on small screens to allow themselves the luxury of consuming such depressing themes in theatres. The attempt by Hollywood limousine liberals to clean US conscience has ended poorly. An example can be provided by The Kingdom, the most conventional and commercially viable of all these works.
The "Kingdom" in the title refers to Saudi Arabia, a piece of desert, which, thanks to the discovery of oil, has become one of the most important and influential states in the world, something that is highlighted for viewers through a brief overview of Saudi-American relations in the opening credits. Following this, there is a scene in which American workers and their families in Saudi Arabia are massacred by terrorists, and a resident FBI agent who came to the scene is killed by a secondary bomb. A team of his colleagues, led by Special Agent Fleury (played by Jamie Foxx), despite opposition from their superiors, goes to Saudi Arabia to try to solve the case. There, it turns out that the Saudi authorities have imposed numerous restrictions on them, but Fleury manages to establish some sort of partnership with Saudi State Police Colonel Al Ghazi (played by Ashraf Barhom), who has his own reasons for wanting to catch the villains responsible for the massacre.
One of the executive producers of the film is Michael Mann, a renowned filmmaker known for Heat and the cult TV series Miami Vice. His influence is evident in Peter Berg's direction, which, especially in action scenes, attempts to convey Mann's stylistic flair. However, Berg's attempt to create an intense action film is significantly hampered by Matthew Michael Carnahan's somewhat schizophrenic screenplay that oscillates between a dead-serious political drama and an examination of Saudi-American relations on one hand, and a Rambo-like action flick on the other, further mixed with "buddy buddy" clichés and other tropes of American cop films.
This can perhaps be best seen in the final action scene, which is brilliantly directed and quite impressive but nevertheless appears as if it has been forcibly crammed into the film, not to mention its believability. A similar observation can be made about the character played by Jennifer Garner—whose sole function seems to be fulfilling a quota for female characters and ultimately reviving the feminist myth of super-women action heroines. On the other hand, "Oscar-winner" Chris Cooper has been given the thankless role of providing some sort of comic relief. The worst surprise of the film comes at the end when, after a classic and ultra-clichéd action sequence, there is a "symbolic" conclusion intended to telegraph to viewers that they should seriously reflect on what they have just watched.
On the other hand, it would be too easy to dismiss The Kingdom as cheap Bushist propaganda—as many snobbish and leftist critics do—or as an unsuccessful commercial action flick—as most "ordinary" audiences will. Beneath all this commercialism lies a serious film whose plot is largely inspired by real events that occurred in Saudi Arabia in 1996 and 2003. The film's authenticity is further confirmed by its use of locations in neighbouring United Arab Emirates.
However, the most pleasant surprise of the film is Ashraf Barhom, a Christian Israeli-Arab actor who outshines many of the well-known Hollywood stars with his portrayal of a professional and moral Saudi policeman. It is worth watching this film just for him, which is lost in today's Hollywood's meandering through Middle Eastern realities.
RATING: 5/10 (++)
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