In this day and age it’s unusual to find a really arresting opening credit sequence. It’s even more unusual to find one as powerful and information-packed as the opening of The Kingdom. The new film from Peter Berg, which I loved, opens tomorrow, but you can head over to Yahoo! and see the first four minutes that lay out the history between Saudi Arabia and the United States. You know a film is a cut above the usual action picture when you need to include a history lesson up front; thankfully Berg et al have made the history gripping and not pedantic. Even if you know what’s what between Saudi Arabia and the US, you’ll enjoy the recap.
I should have an exclusive one on one interview with The Kingdom writer Matt Carnahan soon. Matt’s a really smart guy, and a lot of the conversation is about geopolitical stuff that is heavily reflected in the film. Which also manages to kick serious ass, even with all that smarts.
Click here to see the awesome opening credits of The Kingdom.