Body of Lies: Unabashedly Unpatriotic
There's not much pro-American sentiment in Ridley Scott's latest thriller.
The movie is determined to set up a somewhat forced contrast by showing Crowe in comically un-dangerous suburban settings as DiCaprio dodges bullets, but surely the experienced desk man and the gutsy, Arabic-speaking field man are both vitally important.
Ferris goes to Jordan to share notes with the head (Mark Strong) of Jordanian intelligence, a dapper Machiavellian who may or may not be trustworthy and, in the hospital after one of many near-fatal attacks, he begins to chat up a quiet Iranian nurse (Golshifteh Farahani, a find) who is so shy she can barely return his gaze. Dating her could be dangerous for them both.
The operations keep hitting dead ends, which gives the movie a start-and-stop rhythm. At the halfway point, Ferris hits on a fascinating scheme: he decides to set up a fake terrorist group, use it to bomb a real American building in Turkey and have the fake terrorists claim credit for the attack — a move he hopes will draw Al-Saleem out to hook up with his newfound brothers in Jihad. What makes the idea even more bizarre is that Ferris is going to create a terrorist identity for a real person who doesn’t even know he’s being manipulated.
Tossing an entirely innocent person into a deadly game also poses a moral quandary, though it’s one that Hoffman doesn’t lose any sleep over. In one of many brilliant lines from the script by William Monhan (who won an Oscar for The Departed), Hoffman asks, “You gotta decide which side of the cross you on? I need nailers, not hangers.” (Monahan has a brilliant take on the fatalism of men in peril — another character, who is about to enter a possible redoubt of jihadists, says, “I am not getting my head cut off on the Internet. If something happens, shoot me.”)
Body of Lies is in the same category of engrossing action thrillers as last year’s Jamie Foxx-Jennifer Garner movie The Kingdom, but the earlier film, unashamedly patriotic, didn’t wring its hands like this one, which begins with an ominous quotation from Auden about how “those to whom evil is done do evil in return” and more or less takes the position that America has undermined its claim to moral superiority by stooping to the other side’s level.
The things that provide the most entertainment in Body of Lies have worked in a lot of other movies: the tech gizmos. As in the Jason Bourne series, experts call shots from thousands of miles away because they can watch anything in the world via satellites (it’s a comfort to know the CIA has figured out how to use Google Earth) or launch helicopter gunships to save Ferris from getting too singed in the hellfire. We’re assured at one point that U.S. forces won’t fail because “we have, uh, ninjas waiting.”
For his part, Hoffman may not need a flak jacket but he has his own ordeals, too: As he tells Ferris: “I have to take the kids to see The Lion King. Again. Never have kids.”
BODY OF LIES
Directed by Ridley Scott
Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Russell Crowe, Mark Strong, Golshifteh Farahani
2 stars/ 4
129 minutes/Rated R
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Kyle Smith is a film critic for the the New York Post. His website is at www.kylesmithonline.com.
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30 Comments
1. B Dubya:I hope it was another $75 million dollar production and I hope Ridley Scott and DiCaprio put up a lot of their own money for this.
Oct 10, 2008 - 4:32 am 2. DoktorNo:It will be praised by the critics and it might break $100,000 CONUS.
Don’t these asshats ever learn? I hope not.
” At the halfway point, Ferris hits on a fascinating scheme: he decides to set up a fake terrorist group, use it to bomb a real American building in Turkey and have the fake terrorists claim credit for the attack — a move he hopes will draw Al-Saleem out to hook up with his newfound brothers in Jihad.”
This movie gonna be a hit in Middle East and Europe.
Terrorists? What terrorist? Its all Bushzionisthaliburtoncianeoconsaudiunocal conspiracy!!
Oct 10, 2008 - 4:37 am 3. RE:This movie sounds worth missing. I’m sick of Hollywood nihilism and negativity.
Oct 10, 2008 - 4:57 am 4. Sheila:Here’s a better option – go see Taken. I loved it – the ex-CIA agent is the good guy. The Albanians and the big fat sheikh are the baddies. And the French is the lily livered traitor. Can’t really ask for more. And Neeson open ups a mighty big can of Whup-Ass! Excellent.
Oct 10, 2008 - 5:15 am 5. Review: “Body of Lies” | KyleSmithOnline.com:[...] A look at the Ridley Scott-Leo DiCaprio-Russell Crowe Iraq War thriller is up. [...]
Oct 10, 2008 - 5:36 am 6. Bonnie_:I saw American Carol in the theater with my family. Watching suicide bomber training films was worth the price of admission.
This movie won’t even make the rental list.
Oct 10, 2008 - 8:16 am 7. Joe Buzz:Kyle, Does DiCaprio’s character get killed by the evil American Empire? I might go to see that if my wife pays.
Oct 10, 2008 - 8:25 am 8. bud:This morning’s NPR review (some clown from the LA Times, I think) was bitching about this movie, too. He said that it treated Iraq “too obliquely”. Translation: He didn’t like it because it wasn’t anti-american ENOUGH.
Oct 10, 2008 - 9:05 am 9. AJ:ANY DiCaprio movie is not for me. And unlike American Carol, I’m sure the critics will love it. Fools.
Oct 10, 2008 - 10:35 am 10. Someone75:Hey Guys – I hope none of you were in the other discussion on “American Carol” trashing critics – those slimy jerks. Because, guess what? Kyle Smith – the author of this film review – has written a critique of a . . . FILM! Is he an irrelevant, moronic, intellectual, waste of skin? It seems like you commenters actually read it and were influenced by it.
What a bunch of self-righteous hypocrisy.
Oct 10, 2008 - 2:36 pm 11. RE:Someone75,
It’s the malicious anti-Americanism and negativity that’s the common thread, you moron.
Oct 10, 2008 - 4:00 pm 12. Oeuf:Someone75
That’s like the IQ, not your age?
Oct 10, 2008 - 7:49 pm 13. Someone75:Haha – you people are so sad. I’ll try to use small words so you can understand. It’s so easy to get you clowns worked up. Looks like small town, value driven America needs to broaden its horizons. There’s more to life than guns, tractors, and NASCAR. But go ahead and keep calling me a moron. I have a masters degree, but I’m guessing the average level of academic achievement in PJMedia is a GED.
Oct 10, 2008 - 8:52 pm 14. Pinkie Ann LeBrainne:Oh go see the Chihuahuas instead. At least you’ll know when you are supposed to laugh.
Oct 10, 2008 - 10:16 pm 15. jvon:Someone75: but yet you have to go belittle people in the comments sections on blogs to feel intelligent. Fascinating. Dead end job in a completely unrelated field, I’m guessing.
This movie does sound like one worth missing. Which is too bad. Looked somewhat interesting.
Oct 10, 2008 - 10:29 pm 16. Nahanni:Someone75,
“Haha – you people are so sad.”
Why so angry? Is it because you only have sock puppets and 50 year old friends who still live in their parents basement just like you.
“I’ll try to use small words so you can understand.”
My, my, my…aren’t you so all high and mighty. I discovered long ago that the ability to use a dictionary and a thesaurus is not an indication of intelligence or the capacity for cognitive thought. As any woman might tell you it isn’t the size, it is how it is used. In fact the more sanctimonious and pontificating the post the smaller the mind behind it.
“Looks like small town, value driven America needs to broaden its horizons.”
That is a rather humorous statement coming from someone who is so obviously a resident of the gated “reality-based community” of the mind. If you truly want to see a narrow minded bigot take a look in the mirror, hun.
“There’s more to life than guns, tractors, and NASCAR.”
There is more then life then IPods, Priuses and Starbucks.
“But go ahead and keep calling me a moron.”
There is no need to. You are doing a fine job of making that quite obvious to all.
“I have a masters degree, but I’m guessing the average level of academic achievement in PJMedia is a GED.”
Big deal. I have a Masters degree, too. I know a couple of people just like you. You sound just like them. They both have Doctorates in Physics. One lives in a cave in northcentral Washington state and the other drives a school bus. Neither one of them can cope with the real world yet have nothing but disdain for everyone but themselves. It helps them feel better about being total losers. Just. like. you.
Oct 11, 2008 - 3:21 am 17. pisudena:It was a marvelous performance as one could imagine by Leonardo DiCaprio. Well made movie that has many interesting discovers. As an action drama it was highly professional film. Love it so much. Enjoyed every second of the movie I m watched Movies Here http://www.80millionmoviesfree.com
Oct 11, 2008 - 10:56 am 18. Someone75:i always use it to watch the latest movies for free I’ve recommended it to a lot of people on here and I’ve gotten good reviews
Nahanni:
Just having a little fun. Sorry to provoke you into a detailed point-by-point response
It’s just so hard to resist when you guys set me up with such great material.
I fully support your ability to be as wrong and foolish as you want to be. America is a great country, even for the unfortunates like your supposed Physics PhDs. Great point though – all PhDs are miserable people who can’t cope with life. I *am* a total loser. How did you know?
No – actually I’m a proud centrist who is having fun at your expense. The funny thing is, if you people stopped getting so red-faced, my posting would lose all the amusement. In the mean time, I’ll continue because my friends love to see what sort of goofy stuff you guys will say next.
Have a nice day
Oct 11, 2008 - 12:30 pm 19. view from afar:someone 75 I think, as a fellow centrist, that you are a jerk. I only have a BS in education and agriculture, but hey, it isn’t the degree that matters…and if you are such a centrist you should be able to see all sides, and the various postings I’ve seen from you all seem very weighted left, better take a look at where the real center is…the line that amazes me the most though is “my friends love to see what sort of goofy stuff ou guys will say next…” that makes you like a scary loser type person, especially if your friends actually want to talk about your postings on blog sites…please go and get a real life, k? Nahanni hit the nail on the head…,
Oct 11, 2008 - 2:26 pm 20. philsmith:Ok,ladies, keep mewling and puking over this film while Pelosi is calling congress back to spend billions on more give aways.. a giant step forward to national socialism. Nazi?
Oct 11, 2008 - 4:20 pm 21. thegr8_1:If Obama wins time to get out of stocks go all cash and wait for interest rates to quickly go to double digits when the second term of Jimmy Carter is up and running. I liked the Cuba health care scene in An American Carol it may soon be coming to a hospital near you. To all lefties and not the hand you write with you dumb dopes if you are so smart maybe you can find Barack’s birth certificate, Illinois senate records, Harvard thesis and grades, etc. We knew more about Sarah Palin in 24 hours than we know about Barack period thanks to the mainslime media. Why doesn’t someone tell Pelosi where she can put her stimulus package it doesn’t stimulate me one bit.
Oct 12, 2008 - 2:08 pm 22. JDubya:You got me at Dennis DiCaprio’s fake chin beard!
Come on, this punk will never sprout any REAL facial hair. This pundit of the Gorebull pulpit obviously needs a seroius clue. Maybe when he finally drops, we will understand him better, as opposed to his whipsy dried yet crackling voice when he is “acting”.
And Crowe? I am surprised we didn’t hear some saucy insider gossip prequil typical Hollyfood self-centered glamorizing hype about how he “punched” some insignificant layperson for some trivial hyped up thing (like: the attendant did not prepare his oil and vinegar colonic at a brisk 86 degrees Fahrenheit [30 degrees Celcius for all you foolish dim-witted backwoods non-Eurocentric American fools] and therefore, Russy picked up his air-sickness bag and slapped the undocumented worker in the face…”
Call me when they pull Steve McQueen’s or Lee Marvin’s brains out of the cryogenic freezer for cloning. I will feign interest in what was once Hollywood.
Oct 12, 2008 - 9:19 pm 23. jamesbrunto:sure grate story it is
Oct 12, 2008 - 10:18 pm 24. Someone75:and story is written just as according to the novel
enjoyed it by me athttp://www.80millionmoviesfree.com
view from afar:
I tried posting very neutral, polite comments. I tried to have grown up discussions. I tried to see both sides, admit when I agreed with other people, and to state my case respectfully.
What did I get? Only the most petty insults, personal attacks, and flames. I found that the majority of posters weren’t interested in a debate. Marc Malone seems to have decent things to say and I’ve had a reasonable exchange or two with him. Other than that, it’s completely vicious.
So, I decided to respond in kind. What a shame people here cannot tolerate opposing views.
Oct 12, 2008 - 10:37 pm 25. Someone75:Oh yes, and re: my comment about discussing postings with my friends – we all have the right to a little amusement sometimes. If you don’t see the humor inherent in the majority of these postings, I don’t think you’re reading them very thoroughly. So much posturing, so much anger – it’s more amusing than you realize.
Oct 12, 2008 - 10:41 pm 26. BHuskins:mI thought that hollywood was in the business to make some money?
Oct 13, 2008 - 7:48 am 27. asdf:someone 75
Oct 13, 2008 - 9:47 am 28. Sheila:I think you have us confused with your angry psycho liberal buddies as this video demonstrates how “intellectual” you all are.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nQalRPQ8stI
Someone 75, you are delusional
Oct 14, 2008 - 2:04 am 29. TalkinKamel:When did you try posting anything neutral, or intelligent?
Certainly not on this thread. You came looking for a fight (not fun), and you got it. That’s the way it goes.
All the anger and posturing seems to be coming from you. Surely you and your pals have better things to do with your lives than waste time here, if it’s so awful—or do you?
As Sheila says, you’re delusional. But, do keep it up! You’re more amusing than your realize.
Oct 15, 2008 - 10:08 am 30. TalkinKamel:Certainly,people who amuse themselves, and their buddies, by making stupid posts on blogs they don’t like can’t have much a life.
Oct 15, 2008 - 10:11 am