‘The Kingdom’ is more than just an action movie
Director Peter Berg’s “The Kingdom” has certainly caused mixed feelings in critics across the nation. They either love it, or they hate it. Most of the people who hate it blame the movie for being just another action movie, which it most certainly is not. As you can probably tell, I’m in the category of those who loved it, and I’ll tell you why. “The Kingdom” is about a group of FBI agents sent to Saudi Arabia to investigate a suicide bombing that occurred on one of the compounds that house the American oil workers. The agents are lead by Ronald Fleury and Jamie Foxx (“Ray”), with Jason Bateman (“Arrested Development”), Jennifer Garner (“Alias”) and Chris Cooper (“Breach”) lending supporting roles. Immediately the team is hindered in their investigation because of the deep cultural divide between the Saudis and the Americans. They feel worthless and frustrated. Sounds like a pretty generic procedural drama right? Kind of like CSI Saudi Arabia. But, the investigation itself isn’t what the movie is about. First, I applaud this movie for its unflinching attitude toward the violence caused at the beginning of the movie. Not that I like violence, but they didn’t dumb it down to some James Bond type of violence. You really get the feeling that this may be a glimpse of what it would be like if we were caught up in a terrorist situation. Second, this movie is much more about the relationships between people. When the team first gets there, they think they are the only ones that want to catch the criminals. They think, just because they’re Americans, they’re the only ones who care, when in fact the Saudi police want to catch the people responsible just as much as they do. Sometimes we forget there are two sides to everything. Sometimes we don’t want to acknowledge that there is more than one way to achieve the same goals. “The Kingdom” shows us our errors as humans regardless of race or religion. “The Kingdom” gives us the best of what human beings have to offer, and the worst. Pay attention to the last few lines spoken by Foxx and a small Saudi boy. Those words will make you think. In those words lie the real meaning of this movie. Grade: A–aaron.peck@aggiemail.usu.edu