UPDATE: Here comes the release date for the ‘Kingdom of Heaven’ re-release. It’s set to hit theaters on May 14. By the looks of things, it also sounds like a one-night-only deal, for now. I’ve included the official poster, which can be seen below. A trailer is expected sometime this week.
EARLIER: When it comes to director’s cuts, not many films have been as vastly improved as the masterful given to Ridley Scott’s “Kingdom of Heaven.”
Further, Scott’s Crusades epic, originally released in the summer of 2005 to negative reviews, had a new version released on DVD, which featured more than an hour's worth of deleted footage. The result? A 195-minute cut with character development, less plot holes and a much-improved story.
Hot off the heels of a just-announced 4K Blu-ray release, “Kingdom of Heaven: Director’s Cut” is now finally going to be released in theaters, according to EmpireCity Box Office. No date has been officially announced, but it’s been a long time coming for this one.
“Kingdom of Heaven” follows blacksmith Balian (Orlando Bloom), who travels to Jerusalem seeking redemption and becomes a key defender of the city during the Crusades. He serves under Godfrey of Ibelin (Liam Neeson) and navigates political intrigue involving Queen Sibylla (Eva Green) and the leper King Baldwin IV (Edward Norton).
Upon release, Scott was not happy with the theatrical version of “Kingdom of Heaven.” He blamed the truncated cut on Fox paying too much attention to the opinions of test audiences, which led to their request to shorten the film by almost an hour.
Unlike the mixed critical reception of the film's theatrical version, which stands at 38% on Rotten Tomatoes, the Director's Cut received overwhelming raves. Empire Magazine called the reedited film an "epic", adding, "The added 45 minutes in the director's cut are like pieces missing from a beautiful but incomplete puzzle."
It’s long been the hope of many fans for a theatrical release to come to fruition, but obstacles, including musical rights issues, prevented it from happening. It sure looks like 20th Century has cracked the code, and we’re finally going to be able to watch this glorious extended cut on the big screen.
Scott is well known as a director who tends to “improve” some of his films via director’s cuts. The best, and most improved treatments to date have been for “Blade Runner” and “Kingdom of Heaven.” Last year, Scott released a 3.5 hour cut of “Napoleon,” which was met with a giant shrug. He’s also threatened to release a lengthier cut of “Gladiator II.”