Summoned from the front line back to Saddam Hussein's palace, Iraqi army's lieutenant, Latif Yahia (Dominic Cooper) is forced to join the royal family when he is appointed to become a copy of Saddam's son, Uday Hussein Prince, a impulsive and risk taker...
Equally as offensive as the movie's smorgasbord of smut and violence is the lingering whiff of colonial-era orientalism, a Western predilection for regarding Eastern cultures as innately idle, lascivious, irrational, and thus ripe for intervention.
Despite numerous pluses - Lee Tamahori's vigorous direction, handsome cinematography, outstanding production design, an impressive dual performance by Dominic Cooper as Uday and Latif - the film is more wearying than entertaining.
