The Kingdom
Shot with that Michael Mann-ish (serving as co-producer here) handheld style, the Go-America story follows the repercussions of a terrorist attack on a group of Western families at an American Oil Company in Saudi Arabia.
The local investigation, led by Col. Faris Al Ghazi (Barhom), is fated for a barrelful of frustrations. Back in Washington, FBI investigators - Foxx, Cooper and Garner - are itching to fly into the Saudi capital, and track down those responsible, but the officials, ceding to the sensitive Saudi royals, forbids it. But the maverick Americans go in anyway.
"Shouldn't terrorism be treated as crime - that is, as a civil rather than military matter? It's a question that's at the heart of the Iraq War debate, and it's one raised loudly and clearly by 'The Kingdom'." [Variety]
2007Rating: R16, contains graphic violence & offensive language112 minsUSA
ActionThriller
- Director:
- Peter Berg ('Welcome to the Jungle')
- Writer:
- Matthew Michael Carnahan
- Cast:
- Jamie FoxxJennifer GarnerJason BatemanAshraf BarhomChris CooperJeremy Piven
The Kingdom / Reviews
Hollywood Reporter
Berg's movie is no more than an action movie with an exotic backdrop. That would be fine, if only the movie were more exciting. It succeeds neither as a pointed political commentary nor as a taut thriller...
Full reviewRolling Stone
Matthew Michael Carnahan's caffeinated script isn't much concerned with balance, but it gets some anyway, from the resonant images of culture clash that Berg catches on the fly and a remarkable performance from Ashraf Barhom...
Full review
New Zealand Herald
Needless to say, the politics are muddled, subjective and without much insight. If you're after a thought-provoking look into the complex relationship America has with the Middle East over oil, then you're better off renting Syriana. If you are after a gripping action film with an exotic backdrop, then The Kingdom will definitely keep you happy...
Full review
Newshub
Might be fine enough if all you're after is a bit of action, but don't go expecting much more than that...
Full review
Dominion Post
Will definitely do the business for the friday night crowd at the multiplex, but tries commendably hard not to insult your intelligence amidst the middle-East locales bullets and bombs...
Full review
Christchurch Press
While there's some effort to try explain where terrorism comes from, the movie is full of American arrogance and scrambled politics. It's CSI Syriana muddled with Rambo...
Full review
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