And Crowe is arrogant but compelling in a role that has him dispensing murderous orders while at his child's soccer game buffet and swinging by school for a drop off. DiCaprio is intense, but his Titanic-like charms add much-needed levity when he comes a-courting at his beloved physician's home. Or at least one that illuminates or adds depth to what we already know - from the news and from other movies that have taken on the subject - about the war on terror.īut Body of Lies does do one thing perfectly: give viewers a chance to see two fine actors go toe to toe. Although it offers a fascinating (if labyrinthine) look at the intricacies of running covert operations, in the end, it focuses too much on serving up stylized fare when all we really long for is a good, old-fashioned spy movie. But couple that with the movie's nearly unrelenting violence (bombs exploding, machine guns firing, bodies bleeding) and you end up with a thriller that flirts dangerously with being overdone (this is not a film for anyone prone to migraines). The quick camera cuts and the rough, gritty terrain add to the pressure. Plot: C.I.A operative-Roger Ferris (Leonardo DiCaprio), under the guidance of his handler, Ed Hoffman (Russell Crowe) sets in motion an. Crowe gained a substantial amount of weight for the role, and it's completely unclear why he bothered.The tension begins from the first moment and rarely lets up in Ridley Scott's BODY OF LIES. After narrowly missing being blown-up in Iraq, Agent Ferris (DiCaprio) is sent to Jordan to tease out a terrorist ringleader. Whoppers have become the lingua franca of our culture, useful in presidential campaigns, Wall Street bailouts, even diet books.
Not to be left out, Mark Strong oozes coolness while still maintaining an. I think DiCaprio gives another solid performance (as we can usually expect from him) and Russell Crowe showed he does have more range than people give him credit for as the portly, senior agent and quasi-foil, Hoffman. Though Crowe gets in a few funny jokes, and is seen caring for his kids while telling Ferris to kill people over across the ocean, Hoffman is a plot device more than an actual human. Body of Lies (2008) is an overlooked spy thriller. You want the truth Nothing but the truth Leonardo DiCaprio and Russell Crowe take on torrents of terrorists in this overlong, overly disgusting spy thriller.
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All he cares about is winning the thing.Įarly in the movie Ferris loses his driver when they're attacked while investigating an al-Qaeda safehouse in the desert his regret over the loss, along with a later flirtation with an Iranian nurse (Golshifteh Fahrani), is the only character development we get for the guy, who is amorphous and bland in the way of the old private eyes. He's guided from Washington, via frequent cell phone conversations, by Ed Hoffman (Russell Crowe), a pudgy and sarcastic Southerner who has little use for the Middle East at all, and can't bother with questioning the purpose of the Iraq War. With the help of Ed Hoffman (Russell Crowe) who is a master of subterfuge, Ferris. Russell Crowe as Ed Hoffman and Leonardo DiCaprio as Roger Ferris in 'Body of Lies. CIA agent Roger Ferris (Leonardo DiCaprio) hatches a bold but dangerous plan to capture terrorist Al-Saleem. When Ferris devises a plan to infiltrate his network, he must first win the backing of cunning CIA veteran Ed Hoffman. Movie Review Body of Lies Big Stars Wielding an Array of Accents, Fighting the War on Terrorism. Leonardo DiCaprio, one of the best parts of this average-at-best movie, stars as CIA operative Roger Ferris, who spends his time all over the Middle East smoking out Al-Qaeda operatives by whatever means necessary. Based on Washington Post columnist David Ignatius 2007 novel about a CIA operative, Roger Ferris (Leonardo DiCaprio), who uncovers a lead on a major terrorist leader suspected to be operating out of Jordan. Body of Lies, Movie, Review, Ridley Scott Followers of Grimescene would have realized a dip in the frequency of Movie Reviews.