1999, 1 hr 55 min., Rated R for graphic war violence, language and some sexuality. Dir: David O. Russell. Cast: George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg, Ice Cube, Spike Jonze, Nora Dunn, Jamie Kennedy.

Three reasons to see Three Kings: The Plot, The Dialogue and The Cast. Not to mention the action, the message and the cinematography. You can see what I'm getting at: Three Kings is a great film, one of the best of the year, if not the decade.

Note I didn't say the best of the year. I am still caught between American Beauty and The Sixth Sense for the top spot, but Three Kings isn't far behind.

I expected to be offended by this movie. Background: The Gulf War occurred during my 10th grade year as I was coming of age, learning about politics and the world in general. I was behind the war effort full tilt, rah-rahing for months in support of the U.S. That hasn't waned in the eight years since, and my patriotism is stronger than ever. When the soldiers sing Lee Greenwood's "God Bless the U.S.A." in the picture, I was singing along, still feeling the chills that occur every time that song is played.

But I was not offended, because the movie does not attempt to make Americans feel guilty for the suffering of Iraqi citizens who dared to speak out against Saddam's tyranny. What the film does is put a face on their troubles and help us gain a new sympathy for their plight. These people are not just "towelheads" or "camel jockeys" but are also the guy who sat next to you in Physics in college, just trying to get a degree and open a business to support his family in Baghdad. You can't help but think that the world is a smaller place after a movie like Three Kings.

The filmmakers do doubt our involvement as leaders of the coalition to free Kuwait and keep our oil interests safe. But they let the viewers decide for themselves as to whether it was justified. Anybody who watches the news or reads newspapers knows it wasn't just about Kuwaiti liberation, and I have no qualms about saying that it was a just war. Every argument is brought up in Three Kings and I believe you can support the ideas you held coming in with some part of the film, which means no one should be offended unless you're in Saddam Hussein's family.

Three Kings does make you think, so don't enter the theater thinking it is just another war film driven by action. Kings is far from it, which makes it one of the best of its genre. As is now the custom, Three Kings takes a decidedly anti-war stance. I doubt any serious film can be made that celebrates the heroism of battle without showing the horrible circumstances leading up to it and the consequences of warfare.

I agree with CNN's Jeff Greenfield, who said on "Ebert & The Movies" to leave all your expectations of the movie at the door. See it fresh, not expecting just action, or just a message, or just humor, or just drama, or just some cute guys doing manly things. Clear your mind of any bias and enjoy what director David O. Russell presents.

QUICK PLOT REVIEW: The ground war has just ended, and as the Iraqi troops continue to surrender three U.S. Reservists find a map ("I didn't join the army to pull paper out of nobody's asses") pointing to Saddam's secret bunkers, where he holds the gold. A Special Forces soldier (Clooney) finds out and leads the group to find the stolen Kuwaiti gold for themselves. Action, drama and humor ensue. Watch for the cow. A bovine hasn't been abused like this since Twister.

The cast delivers what could be the best performances of their careers. You think that may not being saying much after seeing Mark Wahlberg in The Big Hit or Ice Cube in Anaconda, but each has proven in the past their true acting chops. Each has proved he's not just a hip-hopper; Ice received acclimation for his roles in Boyz in the Hood and Friday, while Wahlberg was recognized for Boogie Nights.

I must give kudos to the filmmakers for not casting a supermodel actress as Wahlberg's wife. She was cute and had a sweet plain-looking appeal that any man would want to settle down with and raise a family. Not every man marries a woman that looks like Gwyneth Paltrow, nor would every man want to for that matter.

You may not have heard of Spike Jonze, who plays Conrad Vig, the country boy turned soldier who idolizes Wahlberg's character. Three Kings is only Jonze's third film, and he directed a movie coming out this year titled Being John Malkovich, a film that is drawing 90% favorable reviews. He may be a bit annoying, but blame his character, not the actor who did a fine job.

George Clooney may succeed after "E.R." in the long run if he continues to stick with films that provide the best scripts, not only for Kings but also last year's Out of Sight. I do have to admit a bias, that I am a Clooney fan, even in less-acclaimed roles in The Peacemaker and One Fine Day, and as a reassuring fresh face in a movie I didn't care for, last year's The Thin Red Line.

If you're a news junkie then you may also recognize former "Saturday Night Live" comedian Nora Dunn's turn as a world-renown reporter bitterly searching for respect and an Emmy. Dunn is obviously a clone of CNN's Christiane Amanpour, so set on getting the best story she has almost doesn't care anymore about "yesterday's" stories, such as birds covered in oil spilled by Hussein when he was losing the war.

The cinematography rivals Run Lola Run in pushing the envelope of filmmaking. The methods used are endless and more than riveting. For example, as bullets are fired from a gun we see and hear in slow motion the effects, when a torturer speaks of his dead child we not only hear of how he died we also see it, something not easy to take. On and on, there's constantly something to keep you interested, and on your guard.

There are some great pop culture references as well, such as Wahlberg saying to turn off a video of Eddie Murphy's "Party All the Time." (Wahlberg- "This is bad music.") Also in that scene the Iraqi soldiers are watching the Rodney King video that we've all seen a thousand times.

I will warn those who get queasy that there is violence and some unnerving scenes, but not just for the sake of being gruesome. Every bit of violence is shown for its consequences and is anything but celebrated.

See this movie. Then take your friends to see it. Three Kings is a movie that cannot allowed to be brushed aside for tripe like Double Jeopardy that beat it in the first week at the box office. That is a sad statement of how we judge great movies.