Kingdom of Heaven

This topic contains:

• overall comments and recommendations
• details about Kingdom of Heaven's classification and consumer advice lines
• a review of Kingdom of Heaven completed by Young Media Australia (YMA) on 3 May 05.

Overall comments and recommendations

Kingdom of Heaven is an epic movie about warfare between Christians and Muslims, with historic and religious themes, and some romantic elements. The realism of the siege warfare is visually spectacular and actors' performances are very good.

However, due to the amount and graphic nature of the violence, the movie is not suitable for children and adolescents under the age of 15. Parents and caregivers are reminded that Kingdom of Heaven 's MA rating means that it is against the law for children under the age of 15 to view this movie unless they are accompanied by an adult.

About the movie

This section contains details about the movie, including its classification by the Office of Film and Literature Classification (OFLC) and the associated consumer advice lines.

YMA review

This review of the movie Kingdom of Heaven contains the following information:

• a synopsis of the story
• use of violence
• material that may scare children
• sexual references
• nudity and sexual activity
• use of substances
• coarse language
• the movie's message

A synopsis of the story

In France 1184 Balian (Orlando Bloom), a village blacksmith, is mourning the recent death of his wife and child when he is approached by a passing crusader Baron Godfrey of Iblein (Liam Neeson) who claims to be his father. The Baron offers Balian the chance of a new life in Jerusalem , which Balian declines, wanting no part of his father's life. Later, however, Balian kills a village priest in a fit of rage, so runs off to join his father and travel to Jerusalem . When soldiers try to arrest Balian for the priest's murder, Baron Godfrey is seriously wounded. Before he dies from the wound, he knights Balian and bestows upon him the title of Baron of Iblein.

Use of violence

Research shows that children are at risk of learning that violence is an acceptable means of conflict resolution when violence is glamourised, performed by an attractive hero, successful, has few real life consequences, is set in a comic context and / or is mostly perpetrated by male characters with female victims, or by one race against another.

Repeated exposure to violent content can reinforce the message that violence is an acceptable means of conflict resolution. Repeated exposure also increases the risks that children will become desensitised to the use of violence in real life or develop an exaggerated view about the prevalence and likelihood of violence in their own world.

Kingdom of Heaven contains constant, graphic and very strong violence, including images of impaled flesh, gaping wounds, severed limbs and decapitations, and bloody and gruesome images of battle scenes. Examples of violent scenes are:

• Balian removes a white-hot sword from the blacksmith's forge and impales a priest through the stomach. He then pushes him onto the forge's fire and watches the priest as he is engulfed in flame
• a man is impaled through the neck by an arrow. The man's neck is covered in blood, but he fights on until his body becomes so riddled with arrows that he is no longer able to fight.
• repeated images where a sword or axe slices through a man's torso leaving a gaping wound with large amounts of blood spraying up into the air and over the assailant
• a man's head is split open by an axe
• a sword slices a man's throat; blood gushes out as the man drops to his knees
• Templar Knights attack an Arab caravan and there are images of blood spraying over their faces
• in a violent fight between Balian and three Templar Knights, Balian breaks the neck of one of the knights, and stabs another through his helmet visor
• the new king stabs an Arab through the throat with a dagger, leaving a pool of blood as the body is dragged away
• battle scenes where the landscape is littered with thousands of blood covered bodies, and severed heads piled on the ground
• Balian pours oil over attacking Arabs and sets the oil alight, engulfing the attackers in flames
• a mass grave containing thousands of bodies is set alight
• implication that Reynald is going to assault, or sexually assault, Saladin's sister before killing her—he approaches her with a crazed murderous look in his eyes
• Balian's father suffers a slow agonising death due to blood poisoning from an arrow wound.

Material that may scare children

Under eight

Children under eight are most likely to be frightened by scary visual images, such as monsters, physical transformations, the death of a parent or child abandoned or separated from parents, children or animals being hurt or threatened and / or natural disasters.

The violent images presented throughout Kingdom of Heaven , as described above, are capable of scaring, disturbing and possibly traumatising younger children. The enactment of violent acts, and the resulting pain and suffering are all done with graphic realism.

In addition, particular scenes that may be of concern for children under eight are:

• visual images of the leper King Baldwin, initially masked, and then even more so when unmasked. His face is grotesquely deformed and has the appearance of rotting flesh; both nose and lips are non-existent.
• the siege of Jerusalem contains many loud explosions with a giant ball of fire exploding into walls and giant siege towers collapsing to the ground.

Over the age of eight

Children aged eight to thirteen are most likely to be frightened by realistic threats and dangers, violence or threat of violence and / or stories in which children are hurt or threatened.

Children over the age of thirteen are most likely to be frightened by realistic physical harm or threats, molestation or sexual assault and / or threats from aliens or the occult.

The violent images and scenes of concern for children under eight could also scare or disturb children between the ages of eight and fifteen years. Of particular concern to older children and adolescents is the graphic detail and realism used to represent the acts of violence and the blood and gore.

Sexual references

There is one sexual reference: Sibylla approaches Balian in his home stating that she did not come because she was bored or wicked, but because she desired him.

Nudity and sexual activity

In one scene, Sibylla and Balian embrace and kiss passionately, implying discreetly that lovemaking is to follow. There is no nudity.

Use of substances

Wine is consumed during one dinner scene.

Coarse language

There is occasional use of the word bastard.

The movie's message

Although the film is set in a period of time that is historically intolerant, and the movie itself is very violent, at the same time it sends messages of tolerance:

• Balian and Saladin's despair over the senseless bloodshed and their sense of mutual respect and understanding for each other, eventually puts an end to the struggle
• Balian and Saladin both view religious fanaticism as an unacceptable excuse for war
• Jerusalem is portrayed as a place where different cultures could live side by side in tolerance, and where religious fanaticism is outlawed

Major themes are personal honour, fighting for one's values and beliefs (both Christian and Muslim). Balian's character demonstrates chivalry, honour and tolerance, protecting those who are incapable of protecting themselves.

Values parents may wish to encourage include racial tolerance, codes of honour and willingness to make sacrifices for the welfare of others.