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Three Kings
review by Zach B.
Rated R
1 hours 55 minutes
Starring George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg, Ice Cube,
Spike Jonze, Nora Dunn, Jamie Kennedy, Mykelti Williamson,
Cliff Curtis, Said Taghmaoui
Story by John Ridley, Screenplay by David O.
Russell
Directed by David O. Russell
Retail Price: 24.99
Features: Theatrical Trailer, Under The Bunker
Documentary, Feature Length Audio Commentary with David O.
Russell, Feature Length Audio Commentary with Producers
Charles Roven and Edward L. McDonnell, Deleted Scenes with
Optional Commentary by David. O. Russell, David O. Russell's
Video Journal, Tour of the Iraqi Village Set with Production
Designer Catherine Hardwicke, Interview with Director of
Photography Newton Thomas Sigel, An Intimate Look Inside the
Acting Process with Ice Cube, Stills Gallery with photos by
Spike Jonze, Production Notes, The Cast, Hidden Bunkers
DVD Rom Features: Persian Gulf War Web Links to CNN's Web
Site's Gulf War Archives, Ehanced Assmap with Direct Links
to Revelant Scenes in the Film, Character Biographies, and
Original Theatrical Web Site (Lots of stuff!)
Specs: Anamorphic Widescreen, 5.1 Dolby Digital, English
and French Subtitles, Chapter Search (31 Chapters)
Dual-Layer Format
What I thought was one of 1999's best films (I had a
three way tie with this, Toy Story 2 and the crinimally
overlooked Liberty Heights), and was very buzzworthy, Three
Kings really did have it all. Great plotting, fantastic
dialogue, humor, awesome action sequences and a deep
political message. Sadly though, it was semi-overlooked. The
reviews were great, but it did not get the audience it hoped
for (I think this had to do with the fact that the movie was
too political for some, it barely broke even at the box
office, basically making back it's budget) and it won very
few critic awards. I was really disappointed that it failed
to score Oscar® nominations, or even Golden Globe nods.
What did Hollywood have against this movie?
Besides that, Three Kings is a very good romp, and
something that I will watch over and over again, it's just
that enjoyable and really does get you thinking about the
whole war, and what is important in life. The movie begins
right at the end of the Gulf War, where, right out of
someone's behind, two soldiers (Wahlberg and Jonze) find a
map to hidden bunkers. They soon discuss it with Ice Cube
and George Clooney. Soon after, it's a race to the bunkers
to find the gold. They do find it at the first bunker (after
Clooney wonders about a well), but soon after, they face
some problems, like how to get the gold, but more
importantly, what to do about the people around the bunker,
who all may be doomed one way or another. I don't want to
give any more of the movie away, but there are a few turn of
an events, building to a nice climax and ending.
Three Kings is destined to become a classic over time,
and will hopefully find more of an audience on video then it
did at the theaters. It has great storytelling, stunts,
directing and ensemble acting, everyone does a great job.
The camerawork and editing is also magnificant, and it
really makes you wonder how corrupt the industry is if it
can't get nominated for just those catagories. You may have
heard that Three Kings does a different approach to how guns
fire, you see each bullet and where they exactly go. This is
very interesting, and nice to see. Three Kings is also a
great movie is that it really gets you thinking, after the
movie is over. What could have Bush done? What is important
at the right time and the right place? Three Kings... if you
haven't seen it yet, you don't know what your missing.
Another excellent Warner anamorphic transfer. Detail, no
scratches or anything distracting, everything pops out
perfectly. A gem to look at, and it's nice that such a good
movie has such a good widescreen transfer.
Three Kings features 5.1 Dolby Digital sound, and ranks
right up there with the transfer. It's an action movie of
sorts, and there are a lot of heavy sounds, which
thankfully, are loud and perfectly presented the way they
are meant to be. Dialogue is clear, and I even think the
menus are louder then the movie itself (!). This is another
great Warner mix.
A VERY nice feature selection, it's jammed pack (no
wonder the disc is dual-layered...) and has some great
stuff, for regular use and DVD rom use. There is an
informative and somewhat lengthy (longer then Disney's usual
"featurettes"!) documentary entitled Under the
Bunker. It has interviews, and shows some footage from
the on location on the set. Very good to watch. There are
also Two Audio Feature-Length Commentaries, one by
David O. Russell and the other by Charles Roven
and Edward L. McDonnell. Each one is informative and
very insightful, they are some of the best commentaries I
have ever heard, each is worth the listen. Deleted Scenes
with Optional Commentary by David O. Russell, is, well,
deleted scenes with optional commentary by David O. Russell.
The scenes are okay, most sorta expand on the characters,
but some are just stupid and you can see why they made the
cutting room floor. Russell just comments on them if turn
that option on. I found David O. Russell's Video
Journal to be one of the best features on the disc.
Basically, director and writer Russell made sort of his own
documentary, chronicling him writing the script, meeting
with the actors and studio heads and life on the set. It's
kind of short, but really nice to watch how the whole making
a movie process comes together. The Tour of the Iraqi
Village Set with Production Designer Catherine Hardwicke
is also nice, as we see and learn about the set and
everything. I also enjoyed the Interview with Director of
Photography Newton Thomas Sigel because, the movie has
some great shots. It's not really an interview either,
basically there are a few scenes and he gives his
commentary, how he shot it. Very cool and very well done.
An Intimate Look Inside the Acting Process with Ice
Cube basically has the rapper/actor showing off his
skills in a lottle short film (shot by co-star Spike Jonze),
there is a Stills Gallery with photos by Spike Jonze,
some lengthy and informative Production Notes, The
Cast roundout, a nice transfer of the Theatrical
Trailer and some Hidden Bunkers, which are easter
eggs basically, that give you some stuff which you may find
useful. I won't be giving them away, but if you play around
with the disc, you'll find them. The DVD Rom features are
Persian Gulf War Web Links to CNN's Web Site's Gulf War
Archives, and Ehanced Assmap with Direct Links to
Revelant Scenes in the Film, Character
Biographies, and the Original Theatrical Web
Site, which gives you the whole website packed onto the
DVD.
Great movie. Fantastic DVD. Nice price. What more can you
ask for? One for the collection!
 (4.5/5, NOT included in
final score)
(4.5/5)
(4.5/5)
 (4/5)
(4.5/5, NOT an average)
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