Three Kings (1999)
Genre: Action / War
Duration: 114 minuten
Country:
United States / Australia
Directed by: David O. Russell
Stars: George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg and Ice Cube
IMDb score:
7,1 (187.680)
Releasedate: 27 September 1999
Three Kings plot
"It's good to be King."
At the end of the Gulf War, a group of American soldiers search for gold that Saddam stole from Kuwait. When they discover that the locals are about to be executed for helping the Americans, they decide to help them.
Actors and actresses
Archie Gates
Troy Barlow
Chief Elgin
Conrad Vig
Amir Abdullah
Adriana Cruz
Walter Wogaman
Captain Said
Colonel Horn
Captain Van Meter
Reviews & comments
Film Pegasus (moderator films)
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- 31489 messages
- 5626 votes
At first sight an average Hollywood war film, but this has the necessary self-mockery and enough creative zest (by Hollywood standards) to make it better than it should have been. The lead role was written with Clint Eastwood in mind, then rejuvenated and rewritten for Nicolas Cage but still assigned to George Clooney. A film during the Gulf War with soldiers who search for gold, but find rebels.
The humor works at times, but not always. A film with some good moments, but not always cohesive. And even if it dares to stay outside the lines here and there, the story itself runs in the well-known Hollywood way. But Three Kings is a better movie than you might think and has stood the test of time quite well.
Translated from Dutch · View original
Shadowed
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- 12083 messages
- 7064 votes
Still faint.
Set up because of the genre, but of both war and action there is not too much to experience. More like a corny adventure comedy, and even that isn't very well developed. Precisely because the types are so exaggerated that you can't take anything very seriously.
Clooney does act well, just like Wahlberg and Ice Cube, but it wasn't really excellent anywhere. Incidentally, the gentlemen are really outplayed by limited, but neatly performed roles by Curtis and Taghmaoui. Those 2 were really the little stars of the film.
What is immediately noticeable is that it does not represent too much visually. The first part does its best to throw in some nice editing, but this just fails because it doesn't look too good. 1999, and it actually seems to be from 1985.
Nice use of color, but all these things fade considerably in the second part, where more space is made for the message itself. Fortunately, it was well executed by the aforementioned gentlemen. How Clooney and Wahlberg are put in their place by the Curtis and Taghmaoui are very strong moments, especially Wahlberg. But you can't really take it very seriously because of the first half.
That drum roll was also poorly placed, and quickly pulls all sympathy and emotion away from the screen. It doesn't really fit in a war movie anyway, especially if the comedy itself isn't very successful either. That reporter was annoying anyway.
But, to be honest, the film never gets boring and it does have a pretty strong last 10 minutes where you start to empathize with the characters and emotion does come into play. Also for some roles big pluses, those scenes really come in. Satire was also funny in the end. It is for what it is.
Translated from Dutch · View original
kissyfur
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- 345 messages
- 510 votes
Special. The first hour is mainly a kind of half-absurdistic half-comedic indictment of wars, think of M*A*S*H meets Apocalypse Now meets 2nd half of Full Metal Jacket. Unfortunately, the humor doesn't always work, it is sometimes mildly funny, but never hilarious. The second hour starts with emotion and The Human Factor. Effective but at times a bit tacky and moralizing. Bold political stance by American standards, but a bit tacky.
Acting by Clooney solid, by Wahlberg a bit caricatured (he had his moments but also something to learn). Rest actually has supporting roles,
Oh, and the way of filming is very nineties at times, with slowed-down images and such that seem dated now.
Conclusion: fairly daring film that has its moments (the interrogation scene) but is also regularly mediocre. But even with those drawbacks, it is the film I would recommend to anyone who would like to know how people viewed the Iraq war in the 1990s.
Translated from Dutch · View original
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