Hollywood Thriller : Body of Lies

Islamic Terrorism is a subject of host of Hollywood as well as
elsewhere but the latest one released recently in Mumbai Body of Lies
is an interesting and exciting Middle-East thriller. It is further
lifted by the potent screen teaming of Leonardo DiCaprio and Russell
Crowe.

The theme is terribly familiar in any number of recent movies from
Syriana to The Kingdom to director Ridley Scott's own Black Hawk Down,
William Monaghan's (The Departed). But what impress is tight script
that speaks pertinent things about the lies and deceptions inherent
in covert operations in the Middle East region. Cloaked in a cat and
mouse thriller format, the story centers on Roger Ferris (DiCaprio)--a
top CIA operative, fluent in the Arab language-- who roams from
country to country trying to penetrate top secret terrorist cells and
uncover plans for mayhem. In trying to smoke out a shadowy terrorist
who has been directing a series of key bombings against civilian
targets in Europe, Ferris comes up with the ingenious idea to create a
phony rival group that appears to be taking credit for the "real" Al
Qaeda-type organization's business. Complicating matters for Ferris is
his boss, Ed Hoffman (Russell Crowe), back at CIA headquarters, who
sees the world in black and white and believes there is no such thing
as going too far to achieve goals in the best interest of the U.S.
Both must also deal with the head of Jordanian Intelligence, Hani
Salaam (Mark Strong), who recognizes that each is useful for his own
counter-terrorism efforts.
A number of explosions keep getting in the way of the dramatics--and
much of the Crowe/DiCaprio teaming is played out on opposite sides of
a phone line. But Body of Lies incorporates a first-rate cast,
including many local Middle Eastern performers who make strong
impressions. Crowe--adopting some sort of quasi-southern accent
(apparently from Arkansas)--creates an amusing CIA boss who sees the
world from one perspective--his. Juxtaposing his duties to family as
well as America, Crowe creates a full blooded portrait of a husband,
father and CIA lifer who thinks he knows all the answers. His few
scenes when he is face to face with co-star DiCaprio are worth the
wait and both stars play off each other with ease. DiCaprio is back in
Blood Diamond territory here as a rogue operative using his own
ingenuity to make a difference. His on-screen command of some Arabic
phrases is unforced and impressive and he earns the audience's empathy
, particularly when he winds up in well over his head. There are also
some nice scenes opposite a Muslim nurse he strikes up a relationship
with while in the hospital. Iranian star Golshifteh Farahani is
beautiful and nicely understated in these moments. Strong, who also is
very fine in another of the week's new releases, RocknRolla, is suave
and powerful as the shrewd Jordanian Crowe and DiCaprio cross swords
with. Other regional actors fill out their roles with uncommon
authenticity.
Ridley Scott is in full command. Body of Lies moves very well and
thanks to the Scott style manual has lots of urgency. Employing his
usual use of multiple cameras getting simultaneous angles in every
scene, Scott doesn't rely on actors having to do a lot of takes and in
the process manages to give the film a documentary kind of feel.
Although the filmmaking approach sometimes leads to more confusion
than we would like, it also puts us right in the center of the action.
And there's plenty of that. Working for the fourth time with Crowe,
the two clearly have a rapport and similar seat-of-the-pants way of
working, which DiCaprio seems to have picked up nicely. If this isn't
as impressive an overall achievement as Black Hawk Down, it's still an
entertainment that is a cut above some of the other recent spate of
Middle East-set thrillers. Locations are well used too, with Northern
Africa and specifically the Moroccan environs filling in for the some
dozen countries identified on the screen.

-
pradeep gupta