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THREE KINGS |
| Saw this in Showcase Cinemas Boston and no, I don’t know when the UK
release will be. The word on the street is that US theatres have been
nervous about how well this will go down as it is highly critical of the
American involvement in the Gulf War.
<rambling intro> As a young lizard at Junior School it was an occasional treat for teachers to take the entire class of reptilian youngsters to the cinema to see supposedly morally uplifting films. This was broadly interpreted as any old tat so long as it featured Baby Jesus and/or Adult Jesus. Bonus points were added if gruesome crucifixions were also present. A good example of this was "Ben Hur". It was convenient to ignore the fact that well-oiled scantily-clad men in homo-erotic situations were the mainstay of these films or that gyrating scantily-clad women of ill virtue filled the screen for long lingering minutes whilst we were supposed to reflect on what a bad lot they were. A good crucifixion always cancelled out other ultra-violence such as body mangling in chariot racing or mauling by stuffed lions. How can we ever calculate the damage done to impressionable minds by these mad educational policies? Anyway, I propose that Three Kings be given the same treatment i.e. all American children between the ages of 5 and 11 should be compelled to go to a movie theatre and see this film. Why? Because hidden in this load of old tat is both an adventure film that they would enjoy and a couple of morally important messages (Viz. i) America doesn’t give a toss about democracy and acts only out of self interest and ii) violence is actually pretty horrible and has bloody consequences which are graphically portrayed here). No one will ever notice that these messages get hopelessly tangled up in a nutty screenplay that definitely wants to have its cake and eat it too. </rambling intro> George Clooney (for it is he) leads a team of Americans in an attempt to steal gold belonging to Saddam Hussein. This is all for personal profit. But the team gradually realise the consequences on the locals who are being oppressed by Saddam’s soldiers and suffering even though the war is over and they expect the Americans to pick up the pieces. It all ends with the gold being shared out with the locals and the lot of them being escorted over the Iraqi border against express US wishes. Although it seems to me that the film conveys a clear anti-American sentiment I’m not convinced people will get that unless they want to get it. For one thing the oldish guy behind me in the theatre kept muttering loudly "kill ‘em, shoot ‘em!" whenever ANY non-American appeared on screen. Obviously it was too subtle for him. Anyway, Clooney is good (surprise!). In "The Peacemaker" I was convinced that Nicole Kidman should have been cast as the tough guy and Clooney as the one who hangs back and looks decorative. But he’s been working on his designer stubble and gruff voice and this time I could believe he was a Special Forces vet. The Wild Bunch shenanigans are well orchestrated and the twists in the tale well executed. What’s weird is the odd mixture of techniques and ideas that get thrown in. At one point slo-mo is used to track flying bullets. Elsewhere fantasy flashbacks occur, interior damage caused by bullets is animated, cows explode, heads roll, jokes come thick and fast. This film has everything. I’m just not entirely convinced that it should have everything. Despite the usual ultra-violence (I’d predict a 15 rating in the UK) Clooney still manages to have the kind of sex with a woman where she doesn’t take off either her knickers or her bra and he doesn’t even bother with a stunt butt. They just do it in their clothes and presumably no bodily fluids are ever secreted, let alone exchanged. Seconds later limbs fly, blood gouts, killing occurs. You have to admit it’s a funny old world, don’t you? No genitals allowed for pleasure; might consider it if they are briefly shown whilst being shot off in military action. No wonder the world’s screwed up. So in summary this is a completely deranged film with a worthwhile message that many will miss. It uses many interesting and innovative techniques. The adventure is adventurous. Clooney is cool. It’s absurdly funny in places. It’s a mess. It didn’t ought to work but it does. |