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The Kingdom
4 Stars
Universal Pictures, 150mins, R
Directed by
Peter Berg
 The only reason anyone in the West has any interest in Saudi Arabia
is oil. Aside from Mecca, which is holly to Muslims (and off limits
to us infidels), there's nothing actually there, but desert. Not
everyone really knows this, so the film starts with what happens to
be the best compact history of the kingdom in the 20th century ever
put on film. By the time the credits are over, you actually know
what's going on.
The structure of the film is that of an action sandwich. After the
history lesson, we are treated to a really nasty and exciting
terrorist attack of a bunch of western women and children in a
walled “ghetto” by jihadist murderers.
The FBI has no jurisdiction, but a number of their friends are
killed, and despite the legal niceties, Special Agent Ronald
Fleury (Jamie Foxx) wants to do something about it. So he blackmails
the Saudi ambassador, and thus wangles himself and a select team
consisting of Grant Sykes (Chris Cooper), Janet Mayes (Jennifer
Garner) and Adam Leavitt (Jason Bateman) to go to Saudi to
investigate, something both governments in question do not like one
bit.
Their minder is Col. Faris Al Ghazi (Ashraf Barhom), who becomes an
ally in what's the middle act of the film: CSI Saudi Arabia. The
Saudis are either incompentent or don't care about the deaths of
mere infidels, so our heroes cajol their way to more and more
cooperation and pretty much take over the investigation.
Then comes the other part of the action sandwich. This is pretty
much full-scale war, and this is a really cool battle scene, and a
needed antidote to all that pacifist crap like “Rendition.”
Worth the bucks for sure.
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