I am reviewing the movie “Kingdom of Heaven.” This movie is about a blacksmith in 1184, who
is sought out by his estranged father a knight. Played by Liam Neeson. He is
heading to the holy land in order to defend it. Along the way he becomes a
knight himself, and a defender of Jerusalem. Played by Orlando Bloom.
At
first glance this movie appears to fit well in regard to the middle ages, and
the time period. The knight's wore proper mail from head to toe. Their weapons were from the right time period. The scenery is nice and sparse in his village with a castle in
the backdrop. The houses were round with pitched roofs. Throughout the entire
movie it shows that there is always someone else above you in rank and stature.
The movies central theme is about religion and loyalty.
One
way I am not in agreement with the movie is how they show Christians and
Muslims seeming to get along with one another, even cordial. All of the
character names were real people from that time period. The Muslim King Saladin
was a real person in the 1100’s and was not as friendly as the movie makes him
out to be. The end of the movie shows Saladin allowing the people of Jerusalem
to go freely to the coast. In actuality he charged all the people by rank and
age a set price in order to leave. If you could not pay, then you were
executed. The capture of Jerusalem by Saladin is what started the second
Crusade (Bennett, 138)
In
the beginning of the movie they show a black man whom looks to be dressed like
a Muslim warrior riding along side the other knights. I don’t believe this
would have happened in real life. The
hero in the beginning of this film killed a monk because he chopped his wife’s
head off because she committed suicide. This way she could not enter heaven. I
don’t believe the monks would have acted this way either.
This movie is full of heroism, duty, and honor. They
were very chivalrous. This movie was accurate in showing arranged marriages.
Not all people married for love. Some married for position. They showed the
king of Jerusalem playing chess. I thought this was cool since we just studied
about games in our history class.
This
movie skews the public idea that an ordinary man can somehow become a knight
and then have the opportunity to become king. This of course is not true. I
think a person could play this movie for a class and still have some teachable
moments come out of it.
Bennett, Judith M. Medieval Europe: A Short History 11th Edition. New York: McGraw-Hill. 2011. Print.
Bloom, Orlando,
actor. Kingdom of Heaven. 2005.
History of
Jerusalem: The Capture of Jerusalem by Saladin, edited by Joseph Stevenson, 1875, www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/the-capture-of-jerusalem-by-saladin.
"Kingdom of
Jerusalem." New World Encyclopedia, . 23 Apr 2018, 22:56
UTC. 30 Sep 2019, 23:02 <//www.newworldencyclopedia.org/p/index.php?title=Kingdom_of_Jerusalem&oldid=1011016>.
I have never seen this film, so I enjoyed getting the background on the movie from your review. I like how you pointed out that knight's armor and weapons were correct for the time, which is a crucial historical aspect. I wonder if any Christians and Muslims did get along in this time period, like the movie depicts? The heroism and chivalry in the movie is something cool that I think I would like to watch myself. I wonder if you could have history students critique this movie for historical accuracy in a history class?
ReplyDeleteYes, they did. Remember in class I mentioned that no all Muslims were on the same side; there was a lot of regionality in the area, and we need not fit all Muslims and Christians in the same slot.
ReplyDeleteIn addition, Moors were shown in the film; in the Middle Ages, they could be seen as a source of honor. Several shields of medieval cities incorporated a Moor because of legends that they helped save Christians. Of course this is a motif that incorporates Muslims into the Christian tradition.
We know that Saladin met with Christians; they are shown in art as equals (think SoRoland).
That said, the modern world, and this movie, enjoys highlighting this as a way to promote future possible relations and condemn "fanaticism." Worthy goal! Just be aware of how films can promote agendas just like art or literature from the Middle Ages.
I think with the way that Saladin was portrayed was meant to try and show that things aren't always cut and dry, like an attempt to show the grey area of the crusades. I am glad you pointed out the accuracies and inaccuracies, though, since when I watched it I wasn't paying attention to that sort of thing. It makes me appreciate the movie more to know it had those accuracies.
ReplyDeleteOdd how they portrayed such a terrible human being (King Saladin) in such a kind and downplayed way. The only thing that it would benefit is entertainment value, everyone wants a happy ending, not one where the King executes you if you can't pay.
ReplyDeleteIt is interesting that the movie portrayed Christians and Muslims in such a civil manner. I am not an expert on medieval relationships between the two, but after reading the Song of Roland, that is a surprising aspect of the film.
ReplyDelete