Kingdom of the Idiots

Advantages: Plenty of bang for your buck.
Disadvantages: It's appalling portrayal of Arabs.

...After an American enclave in Saudi Arabia is bombed in a terrorist attack, Special Agent Ronald Fleury negotiates a secret trip to Riyadh to find those responsible. He is accompanied by a team of experts including forensics examiner Janet Mayes, explosives expert Grant Sykes and intelligence analyst Adam Leavitt. But once in the desert kingdom, Fleury and his team encounter cultural and political opposition to their presence. As they unlock the secrets of the bomb site they uncover evidence of an extremist cell determined to cause further destruction. Actor-turned-director Peter Berg takes what could be a potentially insightful movie on American foreign policy and turns it into a brainless, balls-to-the-wall action fest. It is a celebration of gung-ho US ?might is right? propaganda aimed squarely at Republican whipping boys; The Middle...

afy9mab 05.11.2009 · Read review
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Review of The Kingdom (DVD)

A Foxx Among The Sheep

Advantages: A Rollercoaster Ride
Disadvantages: Shakey Camera

...'re part of the action but it's overuse here made me feel literally dizzy. There are also far too many close ups. On the whole I would recommend this film, it kept my attention for its entire length, and despite an over sentimental ending it was satisfying. I wouldn't say it's a classic, it's perhaps trying to be a bit too clever for it's own good. Recommended. Main Cast Jamie Foxx - Ronald Fleury Chris Cooper - Grant Sykes Jennifer Garner - Janet Mayes Jason Bateman - Adam Leavitt Directed By : Peter Berg Running Time : 110 Mins Certificate : 15...

lilmsnaughty1979 20.02.2008 · Read review
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Review of The Kingdom (DVD)

A lot of wine and a little magic

Advantages: Very easy to read
Disadvantages: Sometime a little slow going

...After reading the first few pages for the book I was hooked. The story is 'told' by a bottle of Fleurie 1962 wine, which was bought on the year of Jay's birth. It is a tale of mystery and a little magic about Jay Mackintosh. Jay is a young boy in 1975 whoses parents are divorced and more preoccupied with their own lifes to pay much attention to his. He spends the summer of 1975 at his grandmother's house in the Northern Town of Kirby Monckton, where he stumbles across Joe Cox, an eccentric old man who teaches Jay a little magic about life. The next few summers with Joe influence Jay's life so much that he wrote a best selling novel about 'Jackapple Joe' and becomes a celebrated writer. After Jay's initial success he is no longer able to write anything other than the kind of trashy sci-fi fiction he read as a child. Jay has...

tracythomson 28.10.2001 · Read review
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Review of Blackberry Wine - Joanne Harris

Truly Intoxicating

Advantages: Warm and enchanting,with a touch of magic
Disadvantages: None,in my opinion

...Jay Mackintosh is a writer who is blocked. Frustrated by his stalled career, unhappy with his shallow, meaningless life and his pushy journalist girlfriend, Kerry, Jay seeks solace in the pleasures of the grape: more especially, the bottles of pungent home-made wines in his cellar, which seem to have magical properties. Wine talks, and in this novel much of the story is relayed by “Fleurie…a pert, garrulous wine, cheery and a little brash…”The wines seem to transport him back to a past where he was happy…. The child of a broken home, Jay spent much of his childhood in the company of a local eccentric, Joseph Cox, who lived in a ramshackle cottage by the side of the railway and cultivated his allotment. Joe regaled the impressionable young Jay with tales of his travels to far-flung, exotic lands...

Suzan 29.01.2001 · Read review
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Review of Blackberry Wine - Joanne Harris

The Kingdom - Jack Bauer Could Have Sorted This One Out In 24 HRS

Advantages: Very good action scenes
Disadvantages: Would have like more characterisation

...The Kingdom (2007) I have had this film sat on my shelf now for a while and had not got around to watching it. As the pickings on the tv were a bit slim, I decided to give it a go. Basic Plot The story is centred around a terrible terrorist attack that takes place at the beginning of the film, in an American compound which is located in The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia - (hence the title). With the presence of American investigators being likely to further inflame an already volatile situation, America is told not to send any personnel; that Saudi Arabian police are quite capable of finding the people behind the attack. Not happy with this response, FBI agent Ronald Fleury (Jamie Foxx) blackmails an official representing Saudi Arabia in America and gains permission to have five days on Saudi soil to be satisfied that a proper...

LAURALILIA 11.10.2009 · Read review
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Review of The Kingdom (DVD)

Under fire. Under pressure. Out of time

Advantages: A decent story and an interesting take on the Middle East Situation
Disadvantages: Not a film for an easy nights viewing

...has. With Jamie Foxx in the lead role they had already filled one of the main criteria. I've felt for a while that Foxx is an impressive lead and his performance as Ronald Fleury, the head of the American investigation team is particularly impressive. He leads the film well and his performance is assured throughout. Likewise the rest of the team, made up of Jennifer Garner, Jason Bateman and the impressive Chris Cooper. All three play very important roles in support of Foxx's character and the team dynamic seems to work very well between them. Overall the whole cast really bring the plot to live and while it doesn't quite scream out that it is an amazing film, the efforts of the cast and an impressive script makes it a film that works really well. It is certainly a film that will hold your interest for the entire 110 minute run time...

Andy.mack 25.03.2008 · Read review
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Review of The Kingdom (DVD)

Good quaffing wine!

Advantages: Good value easy drinking wine.
Disadvantages: Label a bit boring.

...This bottle cost £3.79 from my local Sainsbury?s. The label is unpretentious but not very interesting; it is clear that we are looking at a basic rather than a premium wine. I used to be under the mistaken impression that all Beaujolais wine was of the ?Nouveau? type, the wine that is vinified and put on sale within a couple of months of the harvest. Sometimes it?s OK, sometimes it?s vile. So it was quite a revelation to me to find that there was a great deal more to Beaujolais wines than this. The one thing that connects all the wines of Beaujolais is the Gamay grape, which gives the wine its characteristic light, fresh and fruity character. There are five categories of wines in Beaujolais: Cru Beaujolais, Brouilly, Côte de Brouilly, Morgon, Chénas, Chiroubles, Fleurie, Juliénas, Moulin à Vent, Régnié and Saint Amour...

Pihuan 01.05.2004 · Read review
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Review of Sainsbury's Beaujolais

A sip of Calvados

Advantages: Green and pleasant, interesting, accessible
Disadvantages: Overdeveloped coast, not particularly welcoming

...of the favour in 1944. 3. Some green and pleasant, if mostly unspectacular, countryside. 4. Numerous places to stay, of all standards and costs, together with the customary French benefit of excellent cuisine. 5. Easy accessibility, especially by car but also by rail or air if preferred. Let's take each of these in turn. The Coast The Calvados Coast falls into two main stretches, divided by the mouth of the river Orne - see map below. Physically they are similar, with long beaches broken up by occasional cliffs; the difference lies in the human habitation. East of the Orne, La Côte Fleurie has long been holiday country, with Deauville at its centre, both geographically and culturally. Easily accessible from the capital, Deauville was for many years 'the' chic retreat where fashionable Parisians would wile away the summer...

torr 04.09.2004 (18.11.2008) · Read review
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Review of Normandy (France)

All Roads Lead To The Kingdom

Advantages: Intense, Fierce, Good Performances, Great Visuals
Disadvantages: A Little (well a lot) One Sided and Frantic

.... The performances are largely spot on. Jamie Foxx puts in a compelling lead performance, managing to inject some emotion into his character, portraying Agent Fleury with intelligence and a strong screen presence. He has a good chemistry with the rest of the cast and adopts a sense of authority that makes his leadership of the agents very believable, natural and powerful. He digs for emotional impact in the last few reels and builds a strong relationship with Ali Suliman that swings from touching to scary in a couple of seconds. He seems more than capable of the action sequences and proves to be a gripping force within the film. Jennifer Garner isn't given a lot to do, but she puts in a likeable and intelligent performance, showing the softer side of the militant group and bringing a fresh, maternal dynamic to the film. She more than holds her own...

JayHall1991 06.03.2008 · Read review
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Review of The Kingdom (DVD)

The Siege of Krishnapur

Advantages: Superb writing, vivid story
Disadvantages: Hard to get into at first

...to the workings of Colonial Victorian life, the obsession with home, the heat, the boredom, the class system. This is set in the wake of the Great Exhibition, and everyone is eager to be thought himself a man of the time - practical, gruff and scientific. As the book opens we meet the Collector and his mysterious chapatis, Fleury - fresh off the boat to find a wife, The Dunstaple family, and a bevy of other characters who will come to play a part in the story. To be honest I found the book a little difficult to get into. The narrative is penned with a heavy dose of tongue-in-cheek, and it takes a while to get used to that, and the monologues of Victorian men with which is is peppered. Farrell's language is so clever though, so very well structured and punctuated, that you soon can't fail to be delighted with the very strange...

melee 10.04.2006 · Read review
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Review of The Siege of Krishnapur - J. G. Farrell