As well as creating one of the greatest sci-fi horror franchises of all time, Ridley Scott has become well known for loving a big-budget historical epic. Soon, fans will be able to relive Scott’s 20-year-old divisive war drama, Kingdom of Heaven, when it joins free streaming platform Tubi on December 1. Like many of Scott’s historical epics, his 2005 movie is often criticized for putting style over substance when it comes to its take on the Crusades, which – another worrying Scott trend – underperformed at the box office under the weight of a massive budget.
Kingdom of Heaven presents Ridley Scott’s take on the events leading up to the third crusade with Orlando Bloom playing the lead role of Balian of Ibelin as he fights to defend the crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem against the armies of the Ayyubid Sultan Saladin. As you would expect, Scott enlists an ensemble cast, which, alongside Bloom, includes Eva Green, Jeremy Irons, David Thewlis, Brendan Gleeson, Marton Csokas, and Liam Neeson.
The movie’s release in 2005 resulted in a $218 million box office, but being numbered with a $130 million budget meant that the movie still ended up being a box office flop in financial terms. It did not fare much better when it came to critical reviews, with many stating that Scott’s eye for beautiful visual landscapes and epic war battles did not make up for the failings of the movie, including its dull characters, meandering plot and “fatal miscasting” that put Orlando Bloom front and centre of an unsatisfying epic.
The film currently holds a 39% Tomatometer score on Rotten Tomatoes, and even some of the good reviews noted how the veteran director sacrifices storytelling for spectacle which results in swimming that looks visually epic on screen but is instantly forgettable in the grand scheme of things. Many reviews were quick to, unfairly, compare the movie with Scott’s far superior 2000 Oscar-winner Gladiator, which was never going to end well. Although some celebrated the vast amounts of gory battles scattered throughout the movie, others, such as Film Journal International’s Lewis Beale, found them being used to distract audiences from the film’s failings. He wrote:
“One of the more violent films in recent memory. But maybe the violence serves a purpose – it keeps your mind off the inanities of the plot.”
‘Kingdom of Heaven’ Is Redeemed Through the Eyes of Audiences
There is often been a great divide between the opinions of critics and audiences when it comes to any movie and Ridley Scott movies have frequently been among some of the most divisive. In contrast to the lacking critical appraisal of Kingdom of Heaven, the audience score of 72% is a much greater indication that, despite its flaws, the movie satisfies the audience it is aimed to please.
Anyone looking for historically accurate depictions of historical events should already know not to look to a Hollywood movie for this kind of detail. This is perhaps why many audience reviews call the film “simply incredible,” “truly epic,” and “breathtaking” among the many positive reviews. Many have agreed that the film was badly treated by critics at the time of its release. However, Scott’s Director’s Cut managed to improve the film, but whichever version you watch, if you go along for the ride and try to ignore Bloom’s miscasting – which even some of the best reviews cannot quite forgive – then there is probably something here to like for fans of historical war epics.
- Release Date
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May 6, 2005
- Runtime
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144 Minutes
