The Kingdom

The first three minutes and the last 30 minutes of this film are intense. What happens in between grabs your attention by the lapels.
Peter Berg has fashioned a slick political thriller. After a terrorist attack wipes out an American post in Saudi Arabia the FBI (Jamie Foxx, Jennifer Garner, Jason Bateman, Chris Cooper) travels abroad to investigate. Their forensic study is halted at every turn by politics and corruption. The Kingdom does not achieve a Syrianna level of intrigue but the procedural plot has its moments.
The film starts with a documnetary style introduction that explains the history of the Saudi kingdom from the early 20th century to the present day. The last half hour is jammed with explosions and action. Since Michael Mann is one of the producer the fireworks leans closer to Miami Vice than Children of Men.