Review of Body of Lies (2008) by John C — 22 Jan 2011

I found this to be a surprisingly effective and well-acted movie about the nuances of the Middle East's war on terror and America's ham-handed way of butting its nose in where it isn't wanted and doesn't know what it is doing.

DiCaprio once again is enthralling. He is immersed in the character and makes it looks effortless. Crowe seemed to be going through the paces. I'm not saying he was doing a bad job, but I've seen him do more with less.

My one overall complaint is that the story is told too slowly. I'm pretty sure I could cut about 20 minutes out of it, and possibly closer to 30-35 and it would flow a bit better and move along. We get that Ed is a dick who doesn't understand the Middle East. We get that Ferris knows what he's doing and, if left alone to make his own way, would get results. It takes too long for Ed to finally piss everyone off, get Ferris in trouble, and wind up making a situation that just needs a light touch and some patience much worse than it needs to be.

As a special note, I hope to see more of Golshifteh Farahani. She lit up the screen whenever she was on it, and her smile was dazzling. A breathtaking woman with obvious talent. She had good chemistry with DiCaprio and held her own in the movie. Good job.