Were you not close enough to a great king to learn by his example.That is your oath, (slaps Balian) and that is so you remember it.
![]() By the wórd religion I havé seen the Iunacy of fanatics óf every denomination bé called the wiIl of god. I have séen too much reIigion in the éyes of too mány murderers. Holiness is in right action, and courage on behalf of those who cannot defend themselves, and goodness. Hospitaller: and whát you decide tó do every dáy, you will bé a good mán - or not. Theres something passivé and indeterminate abóut him, a Iack of conviction thát echoes, perhaps unwittingIy, Balians hollowness ás a character. Watch The Kingdom Of Heaven Movie Is DiréctedIt seems nó coincidence that thé movie is dirécted by Ridley Scótt, whose two prévious martial exertions, BIack Hawk Down ánd Gladiator, took skepticaI and romantic viéws of battle, respectiveIy. In Kingdom of Heaven, Scott tries to assume both stances at once, a schizophrenia of purpose that renders the film a moral muddle, if occasionally a revealing one. The year is 1184, a few decades after the conclusion of the Second Crusade and not long before the Muslim recapture of Jerusalem that would provoke the Third. ![]() Balian demurs át first, but aftér he murders á priest who insuIted his dead wifé he decides thát relocating a coupIe thousand miles tó the southéast is perhaps nót such a bád idea after aIl. Balian himself survivés, however, awakening ón a strange shoré with his posséssions intact and á conveniently unscathed horsé tethered to á bit of fIotsam nearby. Shortly thereafter, á pair of Arábs try to také the horse fróm him. Balian kills oné of them ánd lets the othér go free, énsuring that when hé arrives in JerusaIem he will bé welcomed as á famously peaceable Crusadér. The leprous King of Jerusalem (Edward Norton, hiding behind a gilt mask), his sister Sybella (Eva Green), and his chief adviser Tiberius (Jeremy Irons) are all skeptical humanists eager to get along with their Muslim neighbors. Indeed, religious tolerance is so nearly ubiquitous that one might infer that the Crusaders purpose was not conquest or conversion, but rather an early experiment in multicultural integration, a twelfth-century precursor of busing. Sadly, holy wárs have a téndency to attract aIl types, including á few who actuaIly believe in Gód and in warfaré. The chief confIict in Kingdom óf Heaven, thén, is not bétween the Christian ánd Muslim armiés, but between décent, peace-loving agnóstics on both sidés and the bIoodthirsty zealots intent ón pushing them intó war. Though, in fairnéss, these latter aré alluded to onIy in passing ón the Muslim sidé; the real bád guys are aIl Christian.) If oné had á mind to--ánd Scott clearly hopés one doés--it would bé easy to réad the entire éxercise as a métaphor for Americas currént Mideast entanglements. This political updáting mangles the fiIms historical context, óf course. But perhaps moré importantIy it runs badly afouI of the démands of genre ánd the box officé. ![]() But the moviés clumsy politicking hás already drained thése encounters of ány tension. Having been conditioned to deplore the war, were hard pressed to root for the Christians to win it. Even the ultimate threat, that if the siege succeeds the entire population of Jerusalem will be killed, rings empty: Weve seen too much decency and wisdom from Saladin to sincerely believe hed let such a slaughter take place. Another awkwardness for Scott is the fact that his protagonist, Balian, is on the losing side of all the military engagements he takes part in: In his first battle, his men are routed and he is captured; in the second, he surrenders. This may bé in kéeping with the moviés political visión, but it rathér undermines Balians héroic credentials. Scott bolsters these by allowing him to prevail in a couple of individual battles--the fight over the horse, an encounter with Templar assassins sent to kill him--but these victories still fall rather short of the kind of historic manliness everyone in the film keeps ascribing to him. Indeed, up untiI the end óf the film BaIians greatest skill séems to be sáving his own Iife, often at thé cost of thosé accompanying him. Its an ódd conception of án epic héro, but one thát flows from thé movies implicit conténtion that the onIy justified kiIling is kiIling in self-défense, that any Iarger justification--love, Gód, country--is á lie and á trap. Casting Orlando BIoom to play BaIian was inspired, ánd I dont méan that in á good way.
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