Review of Fair Game (2010) by Maksim B — 01 Apr 2011

A brutal and ruthless punch at the unscrupulous, dirty and unethical political machine represented by the Bush administration, Fair Game will evoke feelings of rage and anger towards a much hated political team.

This fine political thriller over one of the biggest and well-known spy-political scandals of recent years is a provoking, gripping and polarizing story of political abuse, personal ideals, professionalism and a family destroyed by the unethical political machine. The movie takes a little longer to build up the pressure and to introduce the main characters, but once they are set , it completely absorbs the audience. And even if it finishes before providing enough answers, it is an example of an excellent thriller in which the audience could not remain without a position towards the ugly political machine of nowadays.

Despite being a political thriller, Fair Game should receive also positive nods for its dramatic message as director Doug Liman successfully depicts the media, the professional and the personal nightmares which this family of two idealists have to undergo. The performances of Sean Penn and Naomi Watts match the excellent story and add up the necessary convincing acting, with the latter bringing in the extremely powerful personality of Valerie Plame.

Fair Game succeeds in what many political thrillers or biopics fail nowadays. It conveys its strong message in such a strong and emotional way that remaining a silent and uninvolved viewer is almost impossible.