Cavalry in the defense of Calvary is not a vice in Ridley Scott's crusades-themed epic “Kingdom of Heaven,” but the filmmaker doesn't invite us to savor Christian warfare and the smiting of infidels, either.

If that sounds suspiciously — you know — humane for a movie that features skull-smashings by the cartload, well, welcome to the world. Set in Jerusalem between the Second and Third Crusades during a brief outbreak of Christian-Islamic harmony, this vast, vigorously fair-minded drama is less about demonizing foes than about honoring the tenets of peace. Since peace doesn't always win out, “Kingdom of Heaven” assumes a dual shape: An intense, bone-rattling war spectacle that also happens to carry an enlightened, timely message of inclusion.

“Lord of the Rings” face-guy Orlando Bloom plays Balian, a French blacksmith who is approached by his long-lost father, Godfrey of Ibelim (Liam Neeson), to help manage the family fiefdom in Christian-controlled Jerusalem, circa 1184. With the suicide of his wife and the murder of a priest tugging at his conscience, Balian agrees. Unfortunately, before enjoying any meaningful bonding, the travel party is ambushed and Godfrey is mortally wounded.

Though sparingly used, Neeson gives a pillar of a performance, particularly in a death scene where the father imparts a message of regret and hope to his newly knighted son. Beautifully acted and written, the scene provides Scott (“Thelma and Louise”) with a fertile emotional starting point.

Arriving in Jerusalem, Balian finds the Holy Land in a tenuous state of tranquility, ruled by a leper king, Baldwin IV (Edward Norton, shrouded), who enjoys a solid working relationship with his rival, the powerful yet moderate Saracen general Saladin (Ghassan Massoud). Not everyone is pleased with the armistice. Guy de Lusignan (French actor Marton Csokas) and his Templar knights — presented here as the sabre-rattling neocons of the crusades — are itching for war, as are hawkish elements of the Muslim army. Balian, looking to return to God's grace, sides with the king and his top lieutenant, Tiberius (Jeremy Irons), who know that waging full-scale war on the Muslims is not only immoral, but unwinnable.

Complicating matters further is the king's comely sister Sibylla (Eva Green of “The Dreamers”), who's married to Guy but takes a quick shine to gallant Balian, who looks great in his knightly livery but is still enough of a man's man to join his laborers in the pits as they dig for well water.
Surprisingly, Bloom's boyish handsomeness and Balian's troubled psyche never disrupt each other in “Kingdom of Heaven.” This is Bloom's most credibly manly work, though one occasionally wonders how Balian evolved from simple blacksmith to brilliant military tactician overnight.

Ultimately, Guy and his cohorts — including Reynald, a vicious, red-bearded thug played by period mainstay Brendan Gleeson (“Troy”) — scuttle the peace, revealing themselves as the true villains. And why not? After all, the movie takes place during Christendom's notoriously extremist era, where a well-wisher tells departing crusaders that “to kill an infidel is not murder, but a path to heaven.” Equivalence is not always welcome or well-founded, but here, it lends some much-needed moral complexity.

Which isn't to say that Scott (“Gladiator”) and first-time screenwriter William Monahan (he's also penning the upcoming “Jurassic Park” sequel) have gone all peacenik on us. Far from it. Thrust into a war that he doesn't want, committed to erasing his sins, Balian fights anyway and fights well — leading a cavalry charge so tightly choreographed, your heartbeat spikes as Balian's horses tear into the Saracen flanks. Later, Scott outdoes himself with an eye-popping, burning-oil-and-ramparts siege sequence.

Even while orchestrating the carnage, Scott keeps it two-sided: Never does it feel like we're watching a fourth “Lord of the Rings,” with Muslims serving as Orclike arrow fodder. Ultimately, Balian fights not to punish Islam, but to win a peace, short-lasting though it may be.