Review of Three Kings

Introduction

Three Kings was something of a surprise hit when it reached cinemas because it had done so with relatively little hype. Teaming George Clooney, Ice Cube, Mark Wahlberg and Spike Jonze together was a sweep of casting genius. As disillusioned US soldiers following the disastrous Gulf War, the disparity between this motley bunch makes compelling viewing.

Three Kings is certainly a film which is difficult to pidgeon-hole accurately. While it has a serious message about the futility of the Gulf War, and the oppression of the Iraqi people by Saddam Hussain, it also contains moments of irony and black comedy. At it`s most basic, Three Kings could be described as a `heist movie`, but that would be a blatant over-simplification.

I remember David Russell saying that he was not making any political points with this film, but I think he is kidding himself. Three Kings Carries a strong message in relation to the view that George Bush encouraged Iraqis to rebel against their leadership, and then left them without support when it came to the crunch.

Warner Brothers released Three Kings with a huge fanfare and a camouflaged tent cinema setup at this summer`s Live 2000 show, so it was vital that the disc demonstrated the highest production values...

Video

Three Kings uses a number of unorthodox methods of cinematography to represent different scenes, viewpoints and emotions. While this leads to Three Kings being a fascinating film visually, it has made accurate analysis of the quality of the picture difficult. Indeed, Warner appear so concerned about viewers raising questions about image quality that they saw fit to place a warning at the start of the disc.

Warnings aside though, when examined carefully Three Kings can be pronounced as having a superb image. The fact that some of the scenes are bleached, or foggy, or any other pictorial effect you could name, only goes to show what an excellent job this disc is doing to present those effects perfectly. The visuals alone are amazing to watch, and this disc keeps clarity and sharpness at all times. The additional documentaries discuss the various different ways that the look of the film was created, and this disc represents each with excellence.

Be prepared at first, however, to see an over-contrasted, over-exposed, grainy image. This is a picture which is intended to look as if it has been dragged through the desert - as if it has been exposed to the scratching sand and burning sun. Enjoy the presentation as a whole, and viewers will realise that these effects are all intentional.

Audio

While an excellent reproduction, the soundtrack does not quite reach the heady peaks of some of the more recent audio reference material. There is some surround action - mainly in dramatic scenes where there is gunfire. One head-turningly impressive use of the 5.1 matrix is the village well shootout, as the picture slows to a crawl, and single bullets ping around the room. However, this also comes off as something of a gimmick. for the rest of the film the rear channels get less to do than might be ideal.

The use of bass is also restricted to the larger set pieces. The subwoofer booms suitably when loud pop music is played at the soldier barracks, and when there are large explosions. Throughout the rest of the presentation, bass is only subtle.

Speaking of subtleties, the quieter sections of Three Kings are handled well from an audio point of view. Vocals are always well handled and clear. There is a haunting scene as the desert is enveloped in tear gas, and here the hissing soundtrack helps to draw the viewer into the moment.

Features

Congratulations to Warner for producing a special edition disc that carries enough quality extra material to wear the monicker "Special Edition" with pride. This was certainly a good disc to front their concerted effort on the DVD front.

Three Kings has two audio commentaries, both of which are entertaining and give a lot of information at the thinking behind the film. There is a set tour featurette with the production designer which shows the amount of background work which goes into the accuracy and detail which is put into modern blockbusters.

A further featurette is the the aforementioned section on filmography, and the film and effects used. The disc also carries some deleted scenes, with either the soundtrack or the director`s commentary. As opposed to some lost material, it is easy to see why these scenes were removed.

Addition clippings include the entertainingly unsual "Ice Cube`s Intimate Look Inside The Acting Process", and an amazing collection of footage with Russell who carried a camcorder around as he went about casting and preproduction of the film. To me, this is the ultimate DVD addition, and exactly what the format is ideal for. Russell has clearly thrown himself fully into documenting the entire process of his movies, and the background human interest of how the process progresses is fascinating.

There are also the usual bios, trailer and pictures, but these pale by comparison to the more original extras.

Conclusion

Three Kings is a bit of a love-it or hate-it movie. However, I would encourage anyone to give it a try. It is a war movie with a difference, and has important and touching messages about modern day conflicts, news reporting and the media, and the use of armed forces. At times shocking, and at times funny, Three Kings tugs at all sorts of emotional strings.

As a DVD, Three Kings deserves its continued success, and Warner are to be praised for pulling out the stops. While the picture was always going to be a talking point, and difficult to recreate on the small screen, this disc does an excellent job of holding it all together. With a fantastic and imaginative bevy of additional material, this is a good disc to own.