Body of Lies (Ridley Scott/DiCaprio/Crowe)

[DarthSkywalker]

Leo is chasing someone that deals in death, in the trailer you see a number of bombs go off in various places, Crowe is in charge of making the plays that will stop more going off and setting up the chance to catch the man behind the bombs.

And yet he tows with pour Leo. Walk a mile in my shoes situation there.

 

[Doctor Jones]

I took it as Leo is working the field and gets set up with a different contact early on. He seems to already be in the field when the film starts, yet I got a vibe of the pair meeting during the film.



Wow way to overdo it. Perhaps if you understood that I was commenting on the marketing from my viewpoint your post wouldn't be so off base. Though I do like the idea that Leo's character only communicates with one other character the entire film. Wonder how they are going to shoot scenes without him talking to anyone else.

Yes, they meet. Leo kicks Crowe out of a chair. And they talk on the phone. Which is what people do from long distances. Especially in war zones.

 

[Dark Donnie]

9 Clips

Another Clip

Reviews:

Emmanuel Levy (B +)

Variety (Negative)

 

[dude stannis]

I love how the positive review said the same things the negative one did. It seems this film is definitely a fresh spin on the genre whether it works or not.

 

[Dark Donnie]

Guns N Roses Song in Body of Lies

 

[Doctor Jones]

Can't wait for this! Seeing it next Saturday!

 

[dude stannis]

83% opening at Rotten Tomatoes. 5 positive reviews, 1 negtive.

Empire. 4 stars.

 

[Nirvana]

Definitely plan on checking this out this weekend. Leo is one of my favorite actors.

 

[Apollo]

damn, its been getting some bad reviews...
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/10009225-body_of_lies/

well they wouldn't be critics if they didn't complain t:

i'll probably still check it out on dvd.

 

[Hunter Rider]

No surprise at the reviews, every single movie made about the war on terror that questions the US gets slaughtered by enough of their critics to keep the score low. I am not a huge fan of Empires reviews but on a level of trust I'd take an English movie mag over US critics after their actions last year.

 

[dude stannis]

Exactly, at least they're unbiased. Wow, it's getting raped on RT!

 

[Bunker]

Ugh.

I was hoping this would be an Oscar contender.

 

[Dark Donnie]

No surprise at the reviews, every single movie made about the war on terror that questions the US gets slaughtered by enough of their critics to keep the score low. I am not a huge fan of Empires reviews but on a level of trust I'd take an English movie mag over US critics after their actions last year.

Agreed 100% Look no further then The Kingdom which is at 51% at RT, but was amazing.

 

[FaT_tONle]

The Kingdom was good... it wasn't that good. If they had Denzel/Will Smith and a better actress than Garner you may have had a VERY good film... nothing against Foxx/Garner... but I am expecting a lot for this film because these two actors are on a different planet and the director hasn't had a hit in a while... it's time to deliver.

 

[Hunter Rider]

Smh

 

[Nirvana]

The Kingdom was good... it wasn't that good. If they had Denzel/Will Smith and a better actress than Garner you may have had a VERY good film... nothing against Foxx/Garner... but I am expecting a lot for this film because these two actors are on a different planet and the director hasn't had a hit in a while... it's time to deliver.

Hasn't had a hit in awhile? American Gangster did great.

 

[Spider-Fan]

Hasn't had a hit in awhile? American Gangster did great.

Beat me to it.

 

[BizarroAids]

I'm actually really wanting to see this flick. Can't wait til it comes out. t:

This movie seems more like a Tony film than a Ridley.

Tony is always doing the US spy movies, or government style thrillers. When I saw the Scott Free logo the first time I viewed the trailer, I immediately thought Tony, but was shocked and awed to see big brother Ridley was doing it.

Anyone else see where I'm coming from?? Or agree?

 

[TNC9852002]

50% on RT is more than enough to see this movie, especially if you were really anticipating seeing it no matter what.

-TNC

 

[FaT_tONle]

Hasn't had a hit in awhile? American Gangster did great.

Well I wasn't talking about box office so much... but critically I was expecting a heck of a lot more.

 

[Spider-Fan]

I'm actually really wanting to see this flick. Can't wait til it comes out. t:

This movie seems more like a Tony film than a Ridley.

Tony is always doing the US spy movies, or government style thrillers. When I saw the Scott Free logo the first time I viewed the trailer, I immediately thought Tony, but was shocked and awed to see big brother Ridley was doing it.

Anyone else see where I'm coming from?? Or agree?

This is true. Good point. I am excited to see what Ridley does with it though.

 

[Cinemaman]

No surprise at the reviews, every single movie made about the war on terror that questions the US gets slaughtered by enough of their critics to keep the score low. I am not a huge fan of Empires reviews but on a level of trust I'd take an English movie mag over US critics after their actions last year.

Agreed, it's rare for such movie to get positive reviews from American critics because of current situation.

 

[Dark Donnie]

Ebert's rating: 3 stars out of 4

User rating: 4 stars out of 4.

"With every move he makes another chance he takes."

If you take a step back from the realistic locations and terse dialogue, Ridley Scott's "Body of Lies" is a James Bond plot inserted into today's headlines. The film wants to be persuasive in its expertise about modern spycraft, terrorism, the CIA and Middle East politics. But its hero is a lone ranger who operates in three countries, single-handedly creates a fictitious terrorist organization, and survives explosions, gunfights, and brutal torture. Oh, and he falls in love with a local beauty. And of course he speaks Arabic well enough to pass for a local.

This is Roger Ferris (Leonardo DiCaprio), who seems to operate as a self-directed freelance in the war against a deadly terrorist organization (obviously a double for al-Qaeda). His brainstorm is to fabricate a rival terrorist organization out of thin air, fabricate a fictitious leader, create a convincing evidence trail and use it to smoke out Al Saleem, the secretive leader of the real terrorists (a surrogate for Osama bin Laden). Why will Al Saleem risk everything to come out of hiding? Jealousy, I think. Guarding his turf.

I can imagine a similar story as told by John Le Carre, even right down to the local beauty. Some of the characters seem worthy of Le Carre, especially Hoffman (Russell Crowe), Ferris' CIA handler, and Hani Salaam (Mark Strong), the brilliant and urbane head of Jordanian security. But Le Carre would never be guilty of such preposterous thriller-style action. Here we have a spy who doesn't come in from the cold, crossed with Jason Bourne.

The most intriguing aspect of Ferris' activities is his growing disillusionment with them. He feels one local comrade has been abandoned to face a certain death, and after he sets up an innocent architect to unwittingly play the head of the fictitious terrorist agency, he single-handedly tries to save his life from an inevitable attack. That Ferris survives this man's fate is highly unlikely. And it leads to a situation where his own life is saved by the last-second arrival of the cavalry.

The movie depends on two electronic wonderments. One is the ability of Ferris to maintain instant, effortless, cell phone contact with Hoffman, back in Washington. Wearing one of those ear-mounted devices, he seems to keep up a running conversation with his boss, even during perilous situations (his boss is often distracted by taking care of his kids).

The other wonderment is aerial surveillance so precise it can see a particular man walking down a street. The surveillance POV is so stable, it's hard to believe it originates from a fast-moving high-altitude spy plane. In discussing Ridley Scott's superior "Black Hawk Down" (2002), I questioned the infra-red technology that allowed distant commanders to monitor troop movements on the ground. Many readers informed me that was based on fact. Perhaps the astonishing images in "Body of Lies" are accurate; if so, it's only another step to locating bin Laden with an aerial eyeball scan.

Ferris' romance in Aaman involves a pretty nurse named Aisha (Golshifteh Farahani), who cares for him after he nearly dies in a blast. (One nice touch: A surgeon removes something from his arm and explains: "Bone fragment. Not yours.") The movie is realistic in showing a Muslim woman's difficulties in dating a Westerner; spying eyes are everywhere. It is less realistic in establishing why they are willing to take such a risk, since they're allowed no meaningful conversations to create their relationship. Aisha obviously exists as a convenience of the plot and to set up the film's overwhelmingly unlikely conclusion.

The acting is convincing. DiCaprio makes Ferris almost believable in the midst of absurdities; the screenplay by William Monahan, based on the novel by David Ignatius, portrays him as a man who grows to reject the Iraq war and the role of the CIA in it. Crowe, who gained 50 pounds for his part (always dangerous for a beer drinker), is a remorselessly logical CIA operative. I particularly admired the work of Mark Strong as the suave Jordanian intelligence chief, who likes little cigars, shady nightclubs and pretty women, but is absolutely in command of his job.

The bottom line: "Body of Lies" contains enough you can believe, or almost believe, that you wish so much of it weren't sensationally implausible. No one man can withstand such physical ordeals as Ferris undergoes in this film, and I didn't even mention the attack by a pack of possibly rabid dogs. Increasing numbers of thrillers seem to center on heroes who are masochists surrounded by sadists, and I'm growing weary of the horror! Oh, the horror!

http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20081008/REV IEWS/810089997

 

[RoboAmish]

Yes, I'll definetly be checking this out, if only to hear "If The World" over the end credits (only 90 secs of it though)

 

[Doctor Jones]

Ebert's the only critic I read. Though I hate them in general. Ebert is so unpredictable. One movie, you think he's going to write a 4 star review but it turns out the opposite, or vice versa.