The Kingdom opens with a Coles Notes version of Mideast-American
relations over the past century, from the discovery of oil in Saudi
Arabia to Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait to the terrorist attacks of
September 11, 2001. It feels a bit heavy-handed, but then again so does
much of what follows, full of action but lacking the thought-provoking
gravitas of a Black Hawk Down or a Syriana.
Actor-director Peter Berg’s film opens with a seemingly innocuous game of softball at an American housing compound in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The detonation of a terrorist bomb inside the facility kills hundreds and makes headlines around the globe. An FBI agent also perishes, and back in the United States his fellow agents, including Ronald Fleury (Jamie Foxx) and Janet Mayes (Jennifer Garner), want to go over to help track down the people responsible. After some political wrangling they get their way and bring two more agents with them (Chris Cooper, Jason Bateman) to help investigate.
But they quickly find that their politicking is far from over – when they land in ‘the Kingdom’ they’re met with local authorities who are less than keen to see them get in the way of what they consider a Saudi investigation. The foursome is taken to a school gymnasium that will be their home for the duration of their week-long stay, locked in so they don’t get any ideas about visiting the crime scene on their own. Their chaperone is Col. Faris Al Ghazi (Ashraf Barhom, in the film’s finest performance), whose disgust with his superiors’ oft-brutal methods transforms into an unlikely alliance with the American team to find the bombers.
As they delve deeper into their inquiry, however, they themselves become targets of hostile Saudis, setting up a tense showdown in The Kingdom’s final half-hour. It’s without a doubt the most engaging part of the film, beginning with a devastating attack on the Americans’ convoy and ending with a shootout involving guns, grenades and RPGs in an extremely dangerous neighbourhood.
Ashraf Barhom and Jamie Foxx in a scene from The Kingdom
Jamie Foxx is effective as the head of the FBI elite team, able to express a wide range of emotions without speaking. His frustration with the limitations placed on his colleagues is palpable, as is his grief when those close to him are killed in the line of duty. As the group’s forensic expert Jennifer Garner is weaker, although she recovers somewhat in the finale. The always talented Chris Cooper is largely wasted in a smaller and uninteresting role, and Jason Bateman delivers the film’s few laughs as the wisecracking wuss.
But Ashraf Barhom is unequivocally the star as the conflicted, frustrated Colonel. Initially irritated with the Americans’ presence, feeling he and his men should be conducting the probe, he eventually develops a kinship with Fleury and realizes that they want the same thing – to find the killers.
As a straight-ahead action film The Kingdom isn’t half bad – it’s when Berg and writer Matthew Michael Carnahan stray into “message movie” territory that it starts to lose steam and feel almost maudlin. And next time, the filmmakers should leave the Grade 10 history lesson out – we moviegoers deserve more credit than that.
Posted by Cate Jones
Agree? Disagree? Email Cate at criticizecate@gmail.com
The Kingdom (** out of 5)
Rated: R
Starring: Jamie Foxx, Jennifer Garner, Chris Cooper, Jason Bateman, Ashraf Barhom
Directed by: Peter Berg
Written by: Matthew Michael Carnahan
Related links: Official site, IMDB page, Apple trailer
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