Don't Mess with History!

I watched "Kingdom of Heaven" last night. As was my wont(don't you just love that word?), I went to my bookshelf during the movie, to check out some of the facts. Mistake. That is, if I wanted to enjoy the movie. (Braveheart was ruined for me when I came home from the theater, and went to my bookshelf*). You see, I have an avid interest in history, and really enjoy historical fiction, whether it's in novel form or film. Why does Hollywood have to ruin history just so the protagonist can have a great romance? Okay, so Balian, the hero of the story, not only saves Jerusalem from destruction, but gets the girl. Well, that would have made her a bigamist, since her husband was still alive, in fact, she pre-deceases him. He is actually the step-father of her child, Baldwin V, whom she had with Baldwin VI, who died of leprosy. Yes, that makes her Baldwin IV's wife, not his sister.

Then, there's the language problem. Saladin, and all of the "Saracens" were Turks. Actually, Saladin was a Kurd, even. So why were all of them speaking Arabic? Why not Turkish, or even more acurately, Kurdish?

Overall, it was a spectacular movie showing the harsh reality of medieval warfare, and the mixed motivations for the Crusades. And the theme of redemption by having integrity and caring about the people, not just the Kingdom. That the Kingdom of heaven is in your heart, not in the physical world.

*In "Braveheart", William Wallace could not have slept with Isabella, Edward II's wife. She didn't even leave France to come to England until after William Wallace was executed. She later had an affair with Roger de Mortimer and committed further treason (queenly affairs were treason) by overthrowing her husband.