Director
David O. Russell
Leading Actors/Actresses
George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg, and Ice Cube
Supporting Actors/Actresses
Spike Jonze, Cliff Curtis, and Nora Dunn
Genre
War
Language
English
Awards
No major awards
Date of Release
October 1, 1999
Producer
Charles Roven, Paul Junger Witt, Edward L. McDonnell
Setting and Context
Iraq, the Persian Golf War, 1990 or 1991
Narrator and Point of View
The film is told through the point of view of the three soldiers.
Tone and Mood
Tense, Violent, Revalatory, Unfortunate, and Intense
Protagonist and Antagonist
The three soldiers vs. enemy Iraqi fighters
Major Conflict
The major conflict is the soldiers' struggle to find and take Saddam's gold stash.
Climax
The climax occurs when the soldiers stop trying to get the gold and escort a group of refugees to safety.
Foreshadowing
The fact that the soldiers don't find any gold is foreshadowed early on in the film.
Understatement
The lengths to which the soldiers go to find Saddam's hidden stash is understated in the film.
Innovations in Filming or Lighting or Camera Techniques
Three Kings is a well-shot and well-made movie and pioneered the use of handheld camera shots and Steadicam shots to establish a journalistic feel.
Allusions
Allusions are made to Gunga Din; 3 Godfathers; The Wild Bunch; The Good, the Bad and the Ugly; Kelly's Heros; the Bible; history; and geography.
Paradox
The three soldiers aren't supposed to steal gold, but do so anyway with very little repercussions.
Parallelism
No significant instances of parallelism.
