Review of Rendition (2007) by Monica L — 07 May 2009
The fictional story of an Egyptian-born terror suspect who is covertly abducted by the CIA and whisked off to a secret prison, where he is tortured by a Middle Eastern Telly Savalas lookalike. Meanwhile, an ensemble cast of Hollywood stars phone in their performances to illustrate different sides of the debate about extraordinary rendition.
It's important subject matter, but the film has nothing to say. Jake Gyllenhaal wanders around with a distant, glazed look, as if he's still trying to wrap his head around the Zodiac case; Reese Witherspoon and Alan Arkin give the kind of lazy, disinterested performances that you can only get from recent Oscar winners; and Meryl Streep sneers her way through the picture like a pantomime villain.
The filmmakers were wise to leave the word "extraordinary" out of the title.
This review of Rendition (2007) was written by Monica L on 07 May 2009.
Rendition has generally received positive reviews.
Was this review helpful?
