Review of Kingdom of Heaven (2005) by Thomas W — 20 Jan 2012

Orlando Bloom seemed more at home in this film than he did in Pirates of the Caribbean - probably because his character wasn't such a spotless do-gooder. Prone to bouts of murderous anger (regardless of how much his victim might have "deserved" it), but with enough of a conscience to lament his actions and find a life worth living, his turn as a blacksmith-turned-crusader made the setting of the film almost incidental.

His triumph is the audience's, as he finds the world he was meant to inhabit in the Middle East, seeking to build a world of understanding, rather than one ruled by superstitious dogma. Here was aperiod piece that deserved a more careful look, but was instead sidelined as period fluff by those without the willingness to forgive Bloom his earlier typecasting.