Review of Burn After Reading (2008) by Natalee K — 23 Aug 2011

First of all I would like to say that I viewed this film on television, so it was allotted for time and edited for content, but I think my review it still a reliable source.

Many people say this is the coens worst film and it is definitely not worth a perfect 100% rating, but I believe that this is an incredibly intricate, thought out, and hilariously crafted film. It has one of the best ensemble cast I have seen. The coens know what each actor does well and they use that talent to help escalate the film to perfection and true brilliance.

The film revolves around an ex cia agent Osbourne Cox (John Malkovich) who is writing a memoir his wife(Tilda Swinton) copies the file and long story short it gets found by two idiots (Brad Pitt) and (Frances McDormand) they belive its sensitive cia information so they call Cox and they arrange a meeting. Mean while McDormand and Swinton are booth having an affair with Harry (George Clooney) unaware that he is married to Sandy (Elizabeth Marvel). I can't say anything else without giving away the plot, but that is pretty much the main idea.

First of all the performances are some of the best I've seen. As you can see the plot is somewhat complicated so each character gets limited screen time, but the coens use every actor to its full ability in the limited amount of screen time there given.

The overall characters are the films greatest assets. They are all extreme idiots and completely clueless individuals and we get to witness them trying to accomplish these tasks that are all made overly complicated and have plenty of problems because of the flawed execution by the characters.

George Clooney gives a great performance he is charming and somewhat funny. It's amazing how well he can accidently kill somebody then give a hilarious line, and not come across insensitive. He has great chemistry with the two women he is having affairs with. He also is believable as he portrays a man who is unhappy with his marriage. Once again it's amazing how the Coens can make us look at a character who is a twisted, sick, dark, pervert as someone who is hilarious and generally likeable.

Brad Pitt and Frances McDormand give the greatest performances in the film they are booth great as they portray foolish idiots who find what they believe(it isn't) to be very sensitive cia information and they go to sell it to the Russians. Pitt tries something ne. I have never seen him attempt this role before and he probably never will again but he was great. He could act stupid and also be really likeable and he does a great job of assuming a character that we probably all have encountered in are life.

Frances McDormand is also great. She is really charming and has really great chemistry with George Clooney and is hilarious throughout the fil. She assumes a role and uses her own strengths to perfect the character.

John Malkovich is great as the foul Mouthed ex cia agent. He really embodies this role and gives one of his best performances in a long time. He also feels so believable in this role. It didn't feel forced or that he tried too hard. As he plays a man overacting about how he got fired, not trying to hard is not an easy task to accomplish.

Swinton is great as a wife who is unhappy with marriage and we really get to see why she leaves her husband and begins to have an affair with this jerk. Elizabeth marvel is also great as someone who is trying hard to keep the marriage alive (unsuccessfully).

The plot is just brilliant and truly hilarious. These characters that are presented are all supposed to be characters we can relate to or characters we have encountered in our own personal life. The coens succeed in perfectly diagnosing characters that all of us either have the pleasure of having involved in our lives or sadly we have to put up with in our lives.

It's amazing how the coens can make a film basically about idiotic generally unlikeable people doing stupid things that are trying to accomplish fairly easy task. The Coens make it amazingly entertaining and hilarious.

We get to see somewhat the Coens twisted and very interesting sense of humor. It almost makes you feel guilty that you can laugh at someone getting shot in the face or being beaten to death with a hatchet.

What some would view as the films greatest flaw I view as a hilarious film technique, many people might be frustrated that not once in the film is there any hinting or is it addressed at how foolish these people are. I personally found it hilarious how every character in the film thinks they are personally smart and they really know what's going on.

Also I'd like to say this is one of the most memorable films I've ever seen. When I finished viewing it every single scene was going through my head over and over.

Burn after reading is so well cast and every actor/actress is so comfortable portraying the character there given, that the flaws can be overlooked very easily. I would recommend the film just for the cast. The ensemble cast is amazing. Every character knows exactly what they need to be doing and they do it better than anyone else probably could have.

The coens script is amazing. Everything pretty much happens on the basis of chance and accidents. It's amazing to see actors who in general are just ok, come together and in unison all work together to balance each other out and elevate a film to perfection.

The pacing of the film is great it develops characters. They develop them to the point where we are emotionally invested with them. The jokes are so incredibly funny because the characters are completely unaware of their involvement in the extranet circumstances unraveling in the plot.

Another great thing about the script is that the two cia officials played by J.K Simmons and David Rasche, are booth great. The whole film they are trying to figure out what's going on. So basically they are somewhat a stand-in for us, the audience and it helps us further understand the plot. Throughout the movie they are also just as confused about what is happening as we are.

Burn after reading is just a great film. It proves the coens talent how they can make a film basically about idiots running around doing stupid things, really entertaining. We become emotionally invested with these characters. Burn after reading is an amazingly well crafted amazingly made, with a hilarious script and ends up being one of my favorite films.