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The Kingdom

Release Date: September 17, 2007 (US)
Director: Peter Berg
Writter: Matthew Michael Carnahan
Jamie Foxx as: Ronald Fleury
Co-Stars: Chris Cooper, Jennifer Garner, Jason Bateman
Runtime: 110 min
Genre: Drama, Thriller
Rated: R for intense sequences of graphic brutal violence, and for language
Production budget: $ 70 million (estimated)
Box office: $ 86.5 million
Links: ImdbOfficial Site

 

Plot Summary

When a terrorist bomb detonates inside a Western housing compound in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, an international incident is ignited. While diplomats slowly debate equations of territorialism, FBI Special Agent Ronald Fleury (Jamie Foxx) quickly assembles an elite team and negotiates a secret five-day trip into Saudi Arabia to locate the madman behind the bombing. Upon landing in the desert kingdom, however, Fleury and his team discover Saudi authorities suspicious and unwelcoming of American interlopers, into what they consider a local matter. Hamstrung by protocol–and with the clock ticking on their five days–the FBI agents find their expertise worthless without the trust of their Saudi counterparts, who want to locate the terrorist in their homeland on their own terms. Fleury’s crew finds a like-minded partner in Saudi Colonel Al-Ghazi, who helps them navigate royal politics and unlock the secrets of the crime scene. With these unlikely allies sharing a propulsive commitment to crack the case, the team is led to the killer’s front door. Now in a fight for their own lives, strangers united by one mission won’t stop until justice is found.

Photos

 
More pictures here!

Trivia

  • Ronald Fleury (Jamie Foxx) mentions the Terrell Tribune newspaper when discussing the terrorist attacks. Terrell, Texas also happens to be Jamie Foxx’s hometown.
  • The movie was filmed in Arizona, Phoenix, Washington DC, Mesa (USA) and Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates).
  • The production team had originally wanted to shoot the film on location in Saudi Arabia, but political and logistical issues made this far too difficult. Instead, the production design team re-constructed exterior urban scenes for the chase and shootout on an empty lot near Mesa, Arizona, using photographs from the internet and some that director Peter Berg had taken on a visit to the country prior to filming. Some additional on location photography was shot in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. This includes the Prince’s palace and larger exteriors with skyscrapers, major city streets and highways.
  • The movie had been banned in several Arabic countries for claims of being biased against Saudi treatment with terrorism.

Quotes

Jamie can project himself so thoroughly into characters and identities. He’s absolutely credible to me as somebody in the FBI—there is a seriousness of intent that these folks have – Michael Mann about Jamie Foxx.

Trailer