Three Kings is the rarest sort of action movie. It offers the expected adrenaline jolt, but it also has a surprising amount of heart and intelligence. It has all of the fun and little of the guilt.

The setup may be standard stuff (it’s remarkably similar to Kelly’s Heroes), but the handling by director David O. Russell (Flirting With Disaster) isn’t. Set at the close of the Persian Gulf War, Russell depicts the conflict with Iraq not as a heroic struggle or a journey into hell, but a bloody boondoggle. One group of soldiers has seen hardly any action. The only enemy casualty they’ve dealt with is a lone Iraqi soldier who wanders their way.

During a routine examination of Iraqi prisoners, Troy Barlow (Mark Wahlberg) and Conrad Vig (moonlighting music video director Spike Jonze) discover a map that leads to a gigantic stash of Kuwaiti gold that the Iraqis stole during the invasion. Their discovery attracts the attention of Chief Elgin (Ice Cube) and Major Archie Gates (George Clooney). With the exception of family man Barlow, none has much to look forward to back home. Vig has no job, career officer (and slacker) Gates is near retirement and Elgin is tired of handling bags at airports.

The four of them plan to go AWOL and grab the gold for themselves. Thanks to the recent cease fire, they are likely to take the loot without discovery (no one will miss them during the massive celebration) or maybe without even firing a shot.

Fat chance. The quartet discover that the Iraqi government is holding the village hostage. They soon find themselves developing consciences and trying to help the residents escape to Iran.

One could accuse Russell of following a formula plot (one of the quartet is obviously doomed) and going overboard with the quirky touches (do we really need to see Gates and Elgin silhouetted against rapidly moving clouds?). Still, Three Kings is refreshingly sharp. In addition to crisp dialogue credited to Russell and U-turn screenwriter John Ridley, our antiheroes gradually discover the horrors of the conflict that they’ve avoided, and while the Iraqi government is portrayed unflatteringly, individual soldiers behave in an understandable, if not commendable, manner. The movie also slyly pokes fun at stereotypes. When the bigoted Vig refers to the enemy as “sand niggers,” Barlow demands that he use a more acceptable term like “towel-head.”

Russell’s bleak and morally ambiguous handling strangely makes the movie more entertaining. By acknowledging the bloodshed and insanity that accompany combat, the movie feels more convincing and conversion of the cynics becomes more uplifting.

The movie has interesting bleached-out cinematography by Newton Thomas Sigel and, of course, some great action scenes. Three Kings may have its shortcomings, but it has been a long time since an action movie like this one bothered to make sure that the IQ’s of the audience weren’t taken for granted. (R)

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