Kingdom Of Heaven: The Directors Cut (2006) - Page 2

I wish I could like Bloom in this, but ultimately(and still my biggest problem) is at no point in time am I convinced this guy could motivate an outnumbered defending force to fight on with that much zeal. Bloom can do Balin as brooding, but he can't do him as a man eventually stirred into action.

 

 

And this movie needed that.

Agreed about Bloom. If this film had a better lead actor bringing the same top level performance as Russell Crowe in Ridley Scott's Gladiator this film would be a true classic.

Yep. I don't hate Bloom as Balian, and I find him enjoyable in the Pirates films. But he can't measure up to the kind of across-the-board talent on display here. The other actors end up carrying him, and you can almost feel their frustration coming through in their performances. He can be regarded only as a huge caveat on any claim made regarding Kingdom of Heaven's quality. I will say, though, that despite being so exclusively suited to period settings that he gives off the vibe of a total living anachronism anywhere else, he is likable in Elizabethtown.

 

Also, does anybody have any idea how Ridley gets his movies to look so good? I'm actually being serious. How?

I think he's great so long as he has someone awesome to hang around with or talk to or be influenced by.  I only really notice that he can't carry it on his own because they all disappear or die by a fairly pivotal point in the film (it shows the nice structure that this is his time to stand on his own).  The evil priest guy doesn't really carry this over, so you've got a bit of a vacuum until he can get to talk to Saladin which is a decent scene (thanks to the Saladin guy being awesome.  He does a hell of a job that bloke in a pretty small role).

Yeah, Bloom's the weak link.  It's still one of those great saturday afternoon movies to chuck on and be carried away though ain't it.

 

So I'm halfway through this bluray and it's stunning.  One of the best looking films ever, can't wait to watch the extras to see how they made this epic.  One thing I've noticed now about Bloom, and the reason why he doesn't ruin the film with his presence, is because he's such a cipher, with minimal dialogue.  He doesn't have much of a personality so is rendered inoffensive and has no chance to grate.

 

Not only is the Italian version the only bluray with all the extras from the DVD, that I'm aware of, but I think it's also the only bluray with the overture and intermission intact too.

Oh sweet!!!

Yeah it's weird, I think this is my first time watching a film with intermission, but it really makes sense for a film that's three hours long.  Never experienced it in an actual cinema though, it's probably very rare to occur in this day and age.  Actually, when was the last time a film from a major studio which was close to three hours was released theatrically anyway?  I'm hoping the extras for this film don't shy away from explaining why Fox chose to rip the film to shreds.

Gettysburg was the last film I saw in theaters with an intermission. The most recent bladderbuster I remember was LOTR:ROTK, clocking at almost 200 min.

The extras for the film are exquisite. They discuss the genesis (I'd still kill to see Tripoli), the evolution, the challenges, the multiple versions of the film...they discuss everything. Totally worth watching.

The Transformers sequels were very close to running 3 hours.  My god.

 

It sounds like The Dark Knight Rises might be doing that too.

Speaking of long I'm halfway through an extra that's over 2 hours long, and oh my God there's a moment where Ed Norton's character is giving a speech and he gets interrupted twice by peacocks, haha.  Ridley Scott probably strangled them later that day.

 

I will have to revisit Scott's filmography to be sure, but at the moment I'm of the opinion this is his greatest film.  My favourite scene is when Balian is in the desert chucking stones at a bush when it catches fire.  When the second bush catches fire by itself and he looks around at an empty desert, and his horse looks startled, I get goosebumps.