Movie Review

Body of Lies

“Body of Lies” was a triple threat from the start and add screenwriter William Monahan, fresh off his Oscar win for “The Departed," and you have a movie that looked almost as good as spending an evening with Megan Fox. There’s no way this movie could have sucked and that being said, it’s one hell of a cleverly written terrorist flick and it ranks among the very best films of the year. It explores themes that really could be happening in the war on terror and the plot is so complex and intricate that even stopping to blow your nose might lead to a lost plot detail. Sure, portions stretch believability but even then the movie seems more ingenious than stupid. That’s due in large part to the screenplay and Ridley Scott’s quick-paced direction. And then you have those two giants of the acting industry. Crowe is solid even when called upon to do very little (“American Gangster,” for example) and when the material’s there, well then there are few who are more powerful. And Leo’s been tearing it up lately with one compelling dramatic turn after another. This is a movie that lives up to its talent level in every way.

DiCaprio plays Roger Ferris, an undercover agent for the CIA fluent in Middle-eastern languages who can move with ease from Iraq to Jordan to Syria. Crowe plays Ed Hoffman, his boss in Washington who, as the film opens, tells us why Ferris is so needed. The terrorists have caught on to the U.S tracking their technology so they have stopped using it, making having a guy on the ground the only way to root them out. Their latest operation is to find Al-Saleem (Alon Aboutboul), the leader of the largest terrorist cell in Jordan. In order to do this, they must partner with the head of the Jordanian Intelligence agency, Hani (Mark Strong), as well as think cleverly and quickly because all of Europe is under constant attack. Just in addition to finding the terrorist, Ferris must also contend with the orders of Hani and Hoffman. Hoffman is a notorious manipulator and Hani expects complete honesty but is as shady as they come as well. It’s Ferris’ job to keep the balance as the go-between.

The idea of undercover men on the ground is engrossing. Ferris is that man and his servitude and often-immoral nature, especially when having to kill a man for the greater good in the first scene, are just two of the many fascinating elements in this movie. This is a man with blood on his hands but also so dedicatedly in the thick of things that bone actually gets embedded in his skin, "but none yours" the doctor tells him. And then you have Ed Hoffman, a Big Brother type sitting in a cushy surveillance room watching missions go down or playing family man to his wife and young children. He’s the definition of a string-puller, not terribly interesting from the outset but more so for what he’s hiding up his own sleeve.

Both of these men are very smart and know how to get the job done. Just one is also very vulnerable and the other is very calculating and that’s where the other rub comes in. There is a time to keep secrets and a time to need trust for every character in this movie. People only know as much as another character thinks they need to know or is willing to tell them and just because people share the same objective, it does not mean that they share the same belief of how to get there. By the time the movie gets to a certain undercover operation (which you’ll either find deviously clever or deliciously absurd. I was thinking a little of both) about creating a fake terror cell to draw out another cell, the movie has already hooked us with the engaging characters and their intense interactions with one another. Screenwriter William Monahan deserves major props for this screenplay.

Ridley Scott also proves himself a master of action movie suspense. The action is a non-stop barrage of explosions, cars flipping over, chases, guns blazing, bloody carnage, a scene where a guy gets his fingers smashed in. It’s all brutal and gritty in its style. His use of aerial views and satellite imagery also gives everything taking place on the ground an authentic and larger scope, showing us just how vast an area these undercover agents really have to canvas.

Nothing about the performances is necessarily unique or fodder for some awards but that’s not to say they’re not strong. Russell Crowe sports some extra weight and gray hair to play this manipulative, arrogant, and self-serving opportunist. He’s almost a villain in the way he undermines the best interests of other people in order to accomplish his own goals. Mark Strong, a suave-looking Andy Garcia-look-alike if I ever saw one, gives a good performance as well as a shady, twisted but also very intimidating man you do not want to cross. And I mention DiCaprio last because he is the man caught in the middle of these two. The go-between who has the most to lose if found out to be deceiving or being deceived himself. It’s probably the movie’s meatiest role and he portrays it with a frustrated but dutiful amount of bravery.

There are times when “Body of Lies” stretches for the sake of entertainment but there are more than enough themes to keep us thinking, like how far will we be willing to go to win the terrorism war before we become just as immoral as the people we’re fighting, and the complicated idea that in international espionage, trust and lying are both necessary in order to stay safe and in the drivers seat. This is countered by fine direction and some really gripping action sequences and performances. “Body of Lies” is one of the most hugely entertaining movies I’ve seen this year.

Craig's Grade: A-

A	10.9%
B	41.8%
C	31.8%
D	15.3%
F	0.3%