Netflix delivered Kingdom of Heaven yesterday, and we watched it last night. I had wanted to see it when it came out last year, but it somehow slipped out of the theaters before I had to opportunity to catch it. What a film. It is a beautiful, incredible, epic film. One of the best films I have seen in the last five years. There is a director's cut that came out not too long ago also. Neither Netflix nor Greencine had it available for rent, so I settled for the theatrical version, which was impressive in its own right, but from what I have read on the internets, the director's cut is even better.

I also found that the film fared very poorly in North America, but substantially better in Europe and the Middle East, with its best showing in, of all places, Egypt. It's not a film about adventure or love or anything like that at its core, but rather a study of a clash of religions in one of the most violent times in history. I think I'm going to purchase the extended DVD, which is a rare decision considering the paucity of available cash in my life right now.