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Review by Susan Granger
3½ stars out of 4
'Remember "Catch 22" and "M*A*S*H*" - those black comedies
that captured the surrealist insanity of W.W.II and the Korean War?
That's what David O. Russell attempts in this astute blend of
action/adventure, drama, humor, and scathing political
commentary. George Clooney stars as a cynical career soldier - an
American Special Forces Captain - who's ready to retire. In March of
1991, he and his cohorts (Mark Wahlberg, Ice Cube, Spike Jonze) are
ready to return home from the Gulf War when they unexpectedly come
into possession of a map that indicates the location of a stash of
Kuwaiti gold bullion stolen by the Iraqi army. "Saddam stole it from
the sheiks," Clooney says, "and I have no problem stealing it from
Saddam." They take off at dawn, planning to return by noon. But it's
not that easy, particularly with a feisty war correspondent (Nora
Dunn) snooping around. There's chaos, confusion, and carnage - but
don't expect any stupendous battle scenes. Encounters with the "enemy"
are primarily skirmishes as Iraqi rebels, encouraged by George Bush's
exhortations to overthrow Saddam Hussein, courageously fight the
brutal Republican Guard, only to discover that the politically
expedient cease-fire has made the Americans unwilling to offer
humanitarian aid to the civilians caught in the turmoil. "We're
fighting Saddam and dying - and you're stealing gold," one angry rebel
astutely observes, igniting a moral dilemma for the greedy
treasure-hunters who are cornered into doing the right thing. On the
Granger Movie Gauge of 1 to 10, "Three Kings" is a suspenseful 8,
raising serious questions about the morality of the United States
position on military intervention and putting a human face on the
atrocities of war.
Copyright © 2000 Susan Granger
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out of 4
