Something interesting regarding "Kingdom of Heaven"...

[hopein08]

I know the movie came out in May (I saw it and I loved it) but the DVD came out this week (saw it again and still love it) and it got me thinking all over again. I know it's a touchy subject from another thread that was going on, but I found this very interesting and thought that you all might too.

Personally I think that it showed a very balanced version of things. The good, bad, and ugly from both the Christians and the Muslims (and I fully believe that both sides had all three). Anyway, I started looking up Saladin on the Internet and ended up with two interviews that the man who played Saladin in movie (Ghassan Moussad, a Syrian actor) did and I wanted to share to interesting snippets that I found. By the way, Moussad made it clear that he and Ridley Scott wanted Saladin to be seen as the even-handed and at times compassionate man that history generally says he was in order to maybe create a dialogue in today's society.

But enough about that, here are snips from two articles (and the links) that are very important.

1) http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=10&categ_id=4&article_id=15093

While hoping for dialogue, Massoud blames much of the problems between the Muslim world and the West on current U.S. policies and the leadership of George W. Bush, who he says is trying to divide and weaken an already divided and weak Muslim world. He does not trust Bush's promises of democratic change in the region and hopes that the American public will understand that Syrians want to reform their country on their own, separate from U.S. interference. A typically mild-mannered man, Massoud is almost out of his seat when he speaks of Bush.

"George Bush is stupid and he loves blood more than the people and the music," says Massoud. "We loved Bill Clinton here. Why? Because he was a musical man. He was an educated man leading the world. He was a peaceful man. He did not like war and fighting and the clashes between states and civilizations. But, this man, I wonder if he reads the newspapers. If Saladin were here he would have at least not allowed Bush to destroy the world, especially the feeling of humanity between people."

2) http://www.beliefnet.com/story/166/story_16644_1.html

What was your impression of the situation in the U.S. and in the West?

The West—I went there. There is a bad image of Muslims and Arabs after Sept 11. But the actors and the artists, they deal with you as an artist, not as a terrorist. They used to welcome me with a lot of humility. I was there to give the West a good image of Islam, about Arabs, and about Saladin. Now that they have this information, they need to make revisions about their information about Arabs and Islam.

We (Arabs, Syrians) can distinguish between the American administration and the American people. So, for me, there were no surprises because the people are very sweet.

I hope that the U.S. public will change their viewpoint towards Syria. As a people, as a country, we love cinema and poetry and music. We love life. And we want to live our life in our way. And I hope they respect this wish.

If Saladin was here, what might he have done today?

If Saladin were here, he would not have at least Bush to destroy the feeling of humanity between people. Maybe he would have used the media and would have been able to war against George Bush with the media. We loved Bill Clinton here in the area. Why? He was a musical man, he played the saxophone. He was an educated man leading the world. He was a peaceful man. He did not like war and fighting and the clashes between states and civilizations.

BOLD emphasis is mine and mine alone.

So what to you all think?

[mzmolly]

1. I am thankful for this sentiment:

"We (Arabs, Syrians) can distinguish between the American administration and the American people. So, for me, there were no surprises because the people are very sweet."

Thanks for sharing.

[Cha]

2. Massoud has *'s number!

Oh that Saladin were here today!

I'm glad it's so obvious to other people besides us just exactly who and what g w bush is.

[Patchuli]

3. It's sweet to know

that they know we are not happy! I hope we can make things right with Muslims once we get the evil warmongers out.

[niallmac]

4. I think I want to see this movie.

Have read a bit about Saladin already and was impressed at how he escaped any reference in my early education concerning the Crusades.
What Massoud says resonates very strongly with me. I believe that people are basically peaceful beings but when the leaders get power hungry it does not matter what the people think or feel. Clinton communicated a real humanity that people could sense and relate to.
JFK was loved for similar reasons I think. He spoke to the people first, then the leaders.

Massoud says it right when he says bushie loves blood more than the people and the music.
Bush is a scary, stupid, crusader and a lap dog of the corporations.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

5. Bush is a divider not a uniter, despite his propaganda to the contrary.