Body of Lies (R) ★★★

Body of Lies is an unexceptional but exciting Middle-East thriller that is lifted by the potent screen teaming of Leonardo DiCaprio and Russell Crowe.

Story

Although its Mideast trappings have become terribly familiar in any number of recent movies from Syriana to The Kingdom to director Ridley Scott's own Black Hawk Down, William Monaghan's (The Departed) tight script still has pertinent things to say about the lies and deceptions inherent in our covert operations in the region. Cloaked in a cat and mouse thriller format, the story centers on Roger Ferris (DiCaprio)--a top CIA operative, fluent in the Arab language-- who roams from country to country trying to penetrate top secret terrorist cells and uncover plans for mayhem. In trying to smoke out a shadowy terrorist who has been directing a series of key bombings against civilian targets in Europe, Ferris comes up with the ingenious idea to create a phony rival group that appears to be taking credit for the "real" Al Qaeda-type organization's business. Complicating matters for Ferris is his boss, Ed Hoffman (Russell Crowe), back at CIA headquarters, who sees the world in black and white and believes there is no such thing as going too far to achieve goals in the best interest of the U.S. Both must also deal with the head of Jordanian Intelligence, Hani Salaam (Mark Strong), who recognizes that each is useful for his own counter-terrorism efforts.

Acting

There are a LOT of explosions that keep getting in the way of the dramatics--and much of the Crowe/DiCaprio teaming is played out on opposite sides of a phone line. But Body of Lies incorporates a first-rate cast, including many local Middle Eastern performers who make strong impressions. Crowe--adopting some sort of quasi-southern accent (apparently from Arkansas)--creates an amusing CIA boss who sees the world from one perspective--his. Juxtaposing his duties to family as well as America, Crowe creates a full blooded portrait of a husband, father and CIA lifer who thinks he knows all the answers. His few scenes when he is face to face with co-star DiCaprio are worth the wait and both stars play off each other with ease. DiCaprio is back in Blood Diamond territory here as a rogue operative using his own ingenuity to make a difference. His on-screen command of some Arabic phrases is unforced and impressive and he earns the audience's empathy , particularly when he winds up in well over his head. There are also some nice scenes opposite a Muslim nurse he strikes up a relationship with while in the hospital. Iranian star Golshifteh Farahani is beautiful and nicely understated in these moments. Strong, who also is very fine in another of the week's new releases, RocknRolla, is suave and powerful as the shrewd Jordanian Crowe and DiCaprio cross swords with. Other regional actors fill out their roles with uncommon authenticity.

Direction

There can be no question Ridley Scott is a master of the film medium. Body of Lies moves very well and thanks to the Scott style manual has lots of urgency. Employing his usual use of multiple cameras getting simultaneous angles in every scene, Scott doesn't rely on actors having to do a lot of takes and in the process manages to give the film a documentary kind of feel. Although the filmmaking approach sometimes leads to more confusion than we would like, it also puts us right in the center of the action. And there's plenty of that. Working for the fourth time with Crowe, the two clearly have a rapport and similar seat-of-the-pants way of working, which DiCaprio seems to have picked up nicely. If this isn't as impressive an overall achievement as Black Hawk Down, it's still an entertainment that is a cut above some of the other recent spate of Middle East-set thrillers. Locations are well used too, with Northern Africa and specifically the Moroccan environs filling in for the some dozen countries identified on the screen.

Bottom Line

Hollywood.com rated this film 3 stars.