Three Kings
1999 Directed by David O. Russell
Synopsis
It's good to be King.
A group of American soldiers stationed in Iraq at the end of the Gulf War find a map they believe will take them to a huge cache of stolen Kuwaiti gold hidden near their base, and they embark on a secret mission that's destined to change everything.
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The one where Danny Ocean royally fucks up his master planning. Needed his 11. These guys did not gel like the 11.
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Just a brilliant war comedy. You've got George Clooney doing what George Clooney does in his comedy roles, Mark Wahlberg and Ice Cube being as equally hilarious, a great script, some great action scenes, and some surprisingly serious ones as well. All in all, a great Friday night movie.
Except for the cow though.
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1. I had totally forgotten about the explosive football vs. helicopter bit.
2. Spike Jonze should be in more movies. "I don't really have a day job."
3. David O. Russell should make another action movie. He's good at it.
4. Jim Gaffigan is in this movie.
5. Carter Burwell did two of the best scores of 1999. This was one of them. BEING JOHN MALKOVICH was the other.
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Equal parts action and comedy -- with a fair bit of political and social commentary, too -- David O. Russell's Three Kings is an eclectic film that probably shouldn't work, but does. Quite well, I might add. I mean, I really really liked it.
I was watching an interview earlier this week from the 2012 Toronto International Film Festival with Bradley Cooper, and in it he mentioned why he wanted to work with David O. Russell in Silver Linings Playbook. "Well I've never seen a bad performance in the six movies that he's made," Cooper states. "I've not seen one, not one."
As I make my way through Russell's filmography -- now having scratched Three Kings off my watchlist -- I'm finding that sentiment to ring true indeed.
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At the time, the most impressive thing about Three Kings was how it maintained being a serious war film, a comedy, an action-caper, and a heist movie, all in one, without any element feeling incomplete. Now, the most impressive thing is still that but, also, how it has stood the test of time, proved to be relevant long after the Gulf war, and, within that, how it reflects more contemporary issues, such as the aloof view of the public and the role of situational ethics within war. But best of all, like most David O Russell films, there is nothing else like it. For that, it needs to be seen.
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An original anti-war film that thought-provokingly surprised me. Set in the immediate aftermath of the Gulf War during the ceasefire, Three Kings starts as a war comedy but continuously scrapes away until it becomes a war drama. Accompanying the transition is stylistic spectrum that starts kinetically and gradually sobers up. The more conventional final third is supported by what came before to make it successful. Russell employs a ton of different filmmaking techniques to give the film a bleached out high contrast look; an environment with no easy answers but lots and lots of bloodshed.
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Fun war movie, very satirical, great acting and pace. The action is good, the dialog is witty and the plot is interesting with a very clear morality question at it's core.
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At the time, the most impressive thing about Three Kings was how it maintained being a serious war film, a comedy, an action-caper, and a heist movie, all in one, without any element feeling incomplete. Now, the most impressive thing is still that but, also, how it has stood the test of time, proved to be relevant long after the Gulf war, and, within that, how it reflects more contemporary issues, such as the aloof view of the public and the role of situational ethics within war. But best of all, like most David O Russell films, there is nothing else like it. For that, it needs to be seen.
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1. I had totally forgotten about the explosive football vs. helicopter bit.
2. Spike Jonze should be in more movies. "I don't really have a day job."
3. David O. Russell should make another action movie. He's good at it.
4. Jim Gaffigan is in this movie.
5. Carter Burwell did two of the best scores of 1999. This was one of them. BEING JOHN MALKOVICH was the other.
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A masterpiece. You will be hooked from beginning to end. David O. Russell is an elite director
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A reminder that David O. Russell has made considerably better films than Silver Linings Playbook
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After writing a movie blog for nearly two years now, you would expect I'll be able to say why I like certain movie, right? I am sorry but you are wrong. I am still a little confused as to why I like this movie. There are so many things in this movie that ideally should not work or do not work in many other cases. It is almost cheesy 'and everyone lived happily ever-after' story which should not make sense; it is shot in weird way, especially with all the saturated colours during desert sequences and uses slow motion, among other things, ad nauseum and I am still not sure if it is a parody or a serious movie trying to take stand on very serious matter but somehow despite them all, I still think I like this movie.
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Have no idea why it has taken me so long to go back to this film. Despite its setting, it still feels as fresh and thrilling as it was all those years ago in a small cinema in Stirling that is now a bingo hall.
Oh, and the scene where the intrepid thieves are rescued by the resistance amidst great plumes of tear gas is a thing of beauty.
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Shot on film, cross processed and sometimes bleach bypassed. This probably explains the crazy, authentic, cinematography. Filming explosions with only one camera also helps.
A manic film by David Russel, that manages to shift between a satirical comedy and a drama. George Clooney delivers a solid performance and almost steals the scene, casting Spike Jonze was also brilliant, he really feels lost not only as a soldier. Mark Wahlberg is always awesome and even Ice Cube did a great job!
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The rumors state David O. Russell has a tyrant on set. If true, it would explain the manic film he delivered. From the hyper cinematography to the zany performances, THREE KINGS is a kinetic satire. A high voltage MASH. Everything is unexpected from a technical front which juxtaposes with the somewhat conventional story. The quirky and absurd narrative takes a backseat to Russell's screwball antics and zany style. It's a shame he blows his wad so early since the show-off loses steam at a rapid pace.