Life > October 11, 2007

By Max Griffith | Contributing writer

Far too often, Hollywood tries to shove too many big names into one movie, and they’ve done it once again. While The Kingdom is definitely a movie worth seeing, the best acting is not done by the big name actors featured in the movie’s numerous commercials.

Rather, the best performance of the movie comes from Ashraf Barhom and his portrayal of Saudi policeman, Colonel Faris Al Ghazi.

It seems as if Al Ghazi has to deal with everything – a Saudi prince trying to look good for the press, an inept general who brutally interrogates one of his men, the stereotypical brash, cocky American FBI team and the loss of over 100 of his own men.

Frankly, his performance makes the movie worth seeing.

The previously mentioned FBI team is made up of Special Agents Ron Fleury (Jamie Foxx) as the group’s leader, Janet Mayes (Jennifer Garner) as a forensic scientist, Adam Leavitt (Jason Bateman) as the smart ass, wisecracking “intelligence analyst” and Grant Sykes (Chris Cooper) as the seasoned veteran demolitions expert.

While none of the actors do a bad job, no one really rises to the true heights of their potential. Unfortunately, the film doesn’t do enough to connect the viewer with the characters and frankly, while I get that Leavitt is the comic relief guy, he really serves no purpose to the investigation.

The movie begins with a history lesson of sorts, informing the viewers of the happenings in Saudi Arabia since the 1930s.

The movie really heats up with the initial attack, which sets everything in motion.

On a seemingly beautiful and tranquil day at the compound, terror is set into motion when two men dressed in Saudi police uniforms drive around in a truck shooting any people they see.

The real chaos begins when the bomb goes off, killing many in the vicinity.

The terror does not stop there.

About an hour into the rescue and recovery response, a second and larger bomb goes off killing even more – including paramedics, policemen and two FBI agents, one of whom was a friend of Fleury.

Fleury then has to deal with the typical Washington pencil-pushers who don’t want to anger the Saudis.

Fleury doesn’t care what they think, however, and engineers the clever scheme to get his team of four over to Saudi Arabia.

Once in Saudi Arabia, the team has to deal with the secretive and slightly hostile, not to mention stereotypical atmosphere that the Saudi Arabians give off.

While the investigation seems to pass all too quickly and easily, some of most intense and emotionally-stirring moments are seen when a heartbroken father rages at the Saudi police and recounts his son trying to patch up his dead mother with Band-Aids.

Again, some of the best moments and lines are delivered by the supporting cast when a former comrade of Bin Laden gives information on Abu Hamza, the mastermind behind it all, and how he knows that Hamza is someone who can still sleep at night after killing men, women and children, and how until he can’t sleep he won’t stop.

When asked if that’s why he stopped, the man replies that seventeen days without sleep made him quit. He also points out an identifying mark of a bomber, missing fingers, because at some point the bomb maker’s own bomb with hurt him.

Overall, The Kingdom is worth seeing because it maintains an intense atmosphere and makes the viewer want to see justice done. Also, it has a habit of surprising the viewer by tricking them into thinking the action is over and starting it up again.

Most importantly, the ending isn’t too cliché. Still, what made this movie so powerful was the last line, a line that seems to sum up the feelings of both the Americans and the terrorists all too well, “We going to kill them all.”