Review of Closed Circuit (2013) by Devilmath — 26 Sep 2015

After a bomb blows away Borough Market and dozens of human lives, Farrouk Erdogan is arrested. He is the only survivor of the terrorist group that allegedly planned the attack, and he is now at the center of what promises to be the biggest terrorism trial in British history. Forget the John Grisham-style legal thrillers from overseas, though, and expect no “Law & Order” either. This is boring London, with barristers, solicitors, and a lot of technicalities. But there is a catch: in terrorism cases, for reasons ascribed to so-called national security, the Crown Prosecution Service can use classified evidence. Its content can be disclosed neither to the defendant nor to their lawyer, let alone to the general public. This is when a Special Advocate comes into play: a barrister appointed by the State to ensure a fair trial, the sole person authorised to examine the secret evidence and represent the defendant during “closed sessions”. It’s as complicated as it sounds, and given the key role it plays in the film, dialogues are full of ad-hoc explanations, grossly inserted and repeated to ease the audience’s understanding. To make “Closed Circuit” at least a little interesting, the Special Advocate and the barrister, who in theory can’t even talk to each other, are lovers. And they will break all rules to solve the case and defend Erdogan.

“Closed Circuit” stars Eric Bana as Martin, the defense barrister who likes to go canoeing on the Thames (a perfect excuse to get a shot of Westminster and other characteristic landmarks), and Rebecca Hall as Claudia, in the supporting role of the Special Advocate. The cast also includes the all-but-talented Hasancan Cifci as Erdogan's son, Ciarán Hinds as Martin's mate Devlin, and the great Jim Broadbent as the Attorney General. Broadbent plays the powerful man that loves to blab about how “transparent and fair” the judiciary process is, even if he’s just a tool of the powers that be, who doesn’t hesitate to sacrificy his integrity. His role as Chief Inspector in “Hot Fuzz” immediately comes to mind: looking at him, wide-eyed, always minimising the worst atrocities, it’s impossible not to giggle.

As the Big Brother is always watching through CCTV, Martin and Claudia’s investigative journey becomes more and more dangerous. Although the trailer warns that “Everyone is being watched” and “every moment is being recorded”, promising psychologically and even politically relevant twists, everything actually dissolves into banal conspiracies and chases through the dark streets of London. But what’s the role of secret services in all this? What does Erdogan's son know that can’t be revealed? Watching “Closed Circuit”’s trailer is enough to answer all these important questions; the film itself doesn’t amount to much. Beyond the first twenty minutes, it’s nothing but an unoriginal collection of the genre’s trademarks. Martin and Claudia’s rush towards the resolution adds very little to a story that already struggles to achieve the right pace and consistency. You find yourself expecting a twist that never comes, and before you notice it, the film reaches the most anticlimactic possible ending. Maybe because real life is boring, and certain things only happen in films. Is this what director John Crowley and talented screenwriter Steven Knight (“Eastern Promises”, “Dirty Pretty Things”) are trying to tell us? If this is the case, I really wonder why someone would choose to watch “Closed Circuit” instead of enjoying real life.