On the Big Board |
| Position |
Staff |
In Brief |
| 14/214 |
Max Braden |
The story is smaller than the title suggests, but this is a tighter, action-packed version of Syriana. |
| 22/50 |
Michael Bentley |
Sort of a poor man's Syriana. |
While Peter Berg may have started his career as an actor in stuff like Fire in the Sky and Chicago Hope, recently he's been best known for his groundbreaking work as a director and producer. He made one of the best buddy films of recent years in The Rundown, which featured The Rock and Seann William Scott, and followed that up with the powerful adaptation of Buzz Bissinger's book about West Texas football, Friday Night Lights. That film was so well-received that Berg converted the concept to a television drama by the same name. It's the best show on TV today, and shame on you if you're missing it.
Now Berg turns his attention to a thriller about the conflict that can occur when Middle East meets West. The Kingdom features Academy Award winner Jamie Foxx as a super intelligent FBI agent named Ronald Fleury. He has been assigned to put together an elite team of agents to hunt down and capture a terrorist mastermind who has been responsible for a deadly attack on Americans who were working in Saudi Arabia. This group will have only one week to infiltrate the terrorist cell and put it out of order. The people in Fleury's group look a lot like Jennifer Garner, Chris Cooper and Jason Bateman (!).
When the team arrives in the Middle East, they are totally out of their element. The culture shock has them facing a complex system of politicians, storefront terrorists, and businessmen who work both sides. The team's handler's also aren't particularly thrilled about working with the U.S., and become as much of a hassle as they are a help. Soon, Fleury and his people begin to grow uncertain of anyone's allegiance.
An unexpected collaborator emerges when a Saudi police captain works to help them understand the politics of the region and the reasons behind the attack. As they attempt to solve the case with his assistance, the search leads them to the front door of the killer. The U.S. team must fight the terrorists for their very lives as they attempt to wreak vengeance for their fallen countrymen.
The Kingdom has had trailers running for some time now, and it's a flashy, exciting looking thriller. As release date approaches, it should receive some heavy marketing support as it is one of the studio's key releases in 2007. (Kim Hollis/BOP)
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