A spectacle with flowery dialogue from Cecil B. De Mille
Cecil B. De Mille was not a subtle moviemaker. He created historic and Biblical epics with casts of thousands and lavish production detail. A fixture of the film industry from its inception, De Mille gravitated toward stories featuring grand events, romance and action.<br /><br />“The Crusades” is a decidedly Hollywood take on the Crusades. Set in the twelfth century, the film focuses on the Third Crusade but incorporates characters and events from all of the Crusades. Supporting the Crusades for reasons both religious and selfish, the Christian kings of Europe strove to conquer Jerusalem and drive the Moslems out, whatever the cost. While the actual Crusades were spread out over 200 years, De Mille neatly consolidates them into a manageable running time.<br /><br />Jerusalem has fallen to the Saracens, who demean Christianity and abuse Christians in the Holy Land. The elderly are bound in chains, nuns are sold into slavery, and a huge cross is pulled down from the city walls. A pious hermit (C. Aubrey Smith) witnesses the slaughter and rape of the city, returns to Europe to seek vengeance, and succeeds in securing the involvement of King Philip of France (C. Henry Gordon). Fearing that while he’s away, Richard the Lionheart of England (Henry Wilcoxon) will usurp his throne, Philip attempts to enforce an old pledge by Richard’s late father, Henry II. Richard will marry Philip’s sister, Princess Alice (Katherine De Mille). But non-believer Richard opts to lead the Crusades and have his marriage vow voided.<br /><br />As Richard and his army are starving in Marseille, the King of Navarre (George Barbier) agrees to give Richard cattle and other provisions as a dowry if he marries the king’s daughter, Princess Berengaria (Loretta Young). With no other options, Richard agrees to the marriage. He cares little for Berengaria. However, when she is captured by Saracen leader Saladin (Ian Keith), he determines to get revenge.<br /><br />The screenplay contains a good deal of flowery dialogue and characters often orate instead of speaking conversationally. Wilcoxon, with his chiseled face and impressive bearing, comes off worst as he tries to balance his conquering hero persona with passionate lover. Clearly, Richard is a warrior first, a lover second. Loretta Young, looking beautiful, has the thankless role of a pretty pawn in the midst of warfare. Joseph Schildkraut is on hand as the unctuous Conrad of Montferrat, an ally of the king of France and supporter of Richard’s ambitious brother, Prince John, who covets Richard’s crown and schemes with Montferrat to have Richard killed.<br /><br />There’s a lot in “The Crusades” and the film is entertaining in its extravagance. With its title promising battle scenes, we’re made to wait until fairly late in the film for them. They are staged excitingly and involve gigantic siege towers, catapults firing flaming projectiles, sword fights, boiling oil poured on attacking soldiers, Crusaders and Saracens shot with arrows, violent hand-to-hand combat, and general mayhem. When these scenes are on screen, the film comes alive.<br /><br />Otherwise, the movie is top-heavy with political machinations and intrigues. It meanders to such an extent that it gets mired in its own excesses. De Mille was far better with action than with actors and most of them affect a highly artificial manner to suggest noble themes and historic importance. The director’s weakness is having his characters become representative types rather than flesh-and-blood people. Only Loretta Young conveys humanity in this overblown picture. De Mille’s tried-and-true approach was to give the audience sex, romance, and action. It was successful for decades. Even later De Mille films, such as “Samson and Delilah” and “The Ten Commandments,” adhered to this signature formula. Seen today, however, “The Crusades” is a creaky artifact of a bygone era.<br /><br />Bonus materials on the unrated, Region A Blu-ray release include an audio commentary and several trailers.<br /><br />The production values of “The Crusades“ are lavish, with sets and costumes reflecting a huge budget. The primary flaws of the movie are the melodramatic script and the stilted acting style. Lines are delivered in a stiff, formal manner more at home in stage productions of an earlier period. The prejudices of the script jump out at modern viewers: Christians are good, Moslems are infidels to be crushed. Ultimately, the film is pure old-school Hollywood reimagining of history redeemed somewhat by its stirring battle scenes.
The movie title "The Crusades [Blu-ray]," available on None, has received an average rating of 4.6 from 77 reviewers. 
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This title falls under the categories of Movies & TV, Featured Categories, Blu-ray and Drama. 
The additional details include the following in key-value format :
 {"Genre": "Drama, Action Adventure, Historical", "Format": "Blu-ray", "Contributor": "Henry Wilcoxon, C. Aubrey Smith, Cecil B. DeMille, Loretta Young, Alan Hale", "Language": "English", "Runtime": "2 hours and 5 minutes", "MPAA rating": "NR (Not Rated)", "Package Dimensions": "6.73 x 5.35 x 0.39 inches; 2.22 Ounces", "Director": "Cecil B. DeMille", "Media Format": "Blu-ray", "Run time": "2 hours and 5 minutes", "Release date": "March 7, 2023", "Actors": "Loretta Young, Henry Wilcoxon, C. Aubrey Smith, Alan Hale", "Subtitles": "English", "Studio": "KL Studio Classics", "Country of Origin": "USA", "Number of discs": "1"}

Here is a brief synopsis of the title : Master filmmaker Cecil B. DeMille (The Sign of the Cross, Cleopatra, The Ten Commandments) combines religious fervor and a stirring love story in one of his greatest screen spectacles, The Crusades. Christians in Medieval Europe are planning war against the Saracens, who have taken over the Holy City of Jerusalem. In order to obtain supplies for his soldiers, England’s king, Richard the Lion-Hearted (Henry Wilcoxon, Unconquered), is forced to marry a princess (Loretta Young, The Stranger) he has never met. The two are soon involved in a treacherous battle for survival of the Holy City—and of their love. This powerful epic unfolds in true DeMille fashion, bringing the past to glorious life as a cast of thousands creates “the kind of excitement that pulls an audience irresistibly to the edge of its seat” (The New York Times)..