This entry was posted on Sunday, October 12th, 2008 at 4:16 pm and is filed under Action - Spies, B, Movie Reviews, NEW IN THEATER. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
Director: Ridley Scott
Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Russell Crowe, Mark Strong, Golshifteh, Oscar Isaac, Ali Suliman
DiCaprio continues his trend of working with the biggest names in Tinseltown, as he teams up with Russell Crowe in this gritty 21st century spy nail biter. Di Caprio is steady, but unremarkable, while Crowe shines as one of the worst bosses in film history. Crowe always manages to find different ways to portray characters that seem, on the surface, to be similar to his past selections, and its always impressive to watch. Add directing master, Ridley Scott to the mix, and all the ingredients are present to make a film that is actually worth the ten bucks they charge for it.
Leonardo is Roger Ferris, a smart, fearless hands-on kind of modern spy who is after a terrorist leader named Al-Saleem with the shadowy help of Jordanian intelligence leader, Hani (Mark Strong), and the dubious support of his manipulative boss, Ed Hoffman, who is half soccer Dad and half sociopath (Russell Crowe). There is an unconvincing Hollywood-style romance tacked on with the usual style and results, but the dark story is still engaging and is sprinkled with authentic action scenes.
Body of Lies is an appealing blend of films like Traitor, Spy Games, Syriana and Enemy of the State, that mixes a good story with a not so subtle message about the weaknesses of U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East with striking visuals and high quality production. If tricky espionage action is palatable to you, then don’t miss this one.
