rating:
(out of
4 stars)United States, Australia; 1999
Directed by David O. Russell; produced by Paul Junger Witt, Charles Roven; screenplay by David O. Russell
Starring George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg, Ice Cube, Spike Jonze, Cliff Curtis, Nora Dunn, Jamie Kennedy, Mykelti Williamson
Below you will find a temporary review for this film. The real (better, more complete) review will be online very soon.
'Three Kings' is a lot of different films in one terrific package. It shifts
from genre and tone so many times without becoming too weird or un-serious
that it is kind of brilliant. It shows the horror of the Gulf War, it can be
very brutal, but it is also very funny, visually stunning and original. The
plot shows a lot of different aspects of that war and therefore it becomes
quite believable.
We follow four soldiers including Major Archie Gates (George Clooney), Troy
Barlow (Mark Wahlberg), Chief (Ice Cube) and Conrad Vig (Spike Jonze) who
are going to steal the gold that Iraq has stolen from Kuwait. On their way
they face the horror of the war and they change their plan. First they have
to help some Iraqi civilians. We also follow a reporter named Adriana Cruz
(Nora Dunn) who knows about gold. She must be kept far away from the four by
another soldier named Walter (Jamie Kennedy).
In short this is the story but there is so much more I can not reveal. The
film is full of surprises and the fact that you never know what the next act
will be is one of the things that makes this film so good. That it shows
realistic events in a film this alive is another reason. Star power from
Wahlberg, Ice Cube and especially Clooney is a third reason. Great
film-making is probably the most important. Director David O'Russell has
made one of the best war films I have seen. Together with his
cinematographer Newton Thomas Sigel he has given the film a look that makes
dramatic scenes really dramatic, action scenes pretty cool, and basically
all scenes realistic.