Body of Lies - BD
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Warner / 2008 / 128 / R / Street Date: February 17, 2009
While there certainly hasn’t been a lack of feature films attempting to shine a well-deserved light on post-9/11 America, still in the throes of a never-ending “War on Terror,” few have been able to garner much attention at the box office. Even fewer, still, have been able to capture the essence of the country’s split personality when it comes to foreign affairs and our treatment of Middle Eastern residents. Despite a couple of notable exceptions — Peter Berg’s manic The Kingdom and Paul Haggis’ In the Valley of Elah — most of the films inspired by 9/11 and the Iraq War have failed to tap into that sharply-divided dichotomy between flag-waving patriotism and deep-seated hatred for the needless acts of violence taking place around the world. Like just about everything in life, it’s an issue that will never be wholly black or white … and films that take a strong stance on one side will never gain the respect or understanding of the other. This is why I think so many of these war-torn films have fallen by the wayside, even despite positive reviews and glowing endorsements.
Roger Ferris (Leonardo DiCaprio) is the idealistic CIA agent literally working in the trenches in the Middle East. Ed Hoffman (Russell Crowe) is his arrogant and all-powerful boss at the agency, who spends most of his time watching people via satellite surveillance systems from back in the comfort of his home in Langley, Virginia. As the film opens, Roger loses his longtime partner during a mission and has obviously become somewhat disenchanted with the way the CIA has been dealing with the War on Terror. He is assigned to find and capture the notorious Al-Saleem (Alon Abutbul), a dangerous Al-Qaeda terrorist akin to Osama Bin Laden. To help him in this task, Ferris seeks help from Jordanian Intelligence Chief Hani Salaam (Mark Strong), who is very keen to punish Al-Saleem for his past transgressions and is willing to use whatever means necessary to stop him. There’s just one caveat: Salaam warns Ferris to never lie to him, which immediately gives Ferris pause as to whether he’s to be fully trusted. Meanwhile, terrorists in the Al-Qaeda network have gotten wise to U.S. intelligence techniques and have abandoned using all digital forms of communication for more archaic means — couriers, messengers and handwritten notes — which makes it far more difficult for Ferris to track down any potential terrorists.
The film races to a harrowing climax as Ferris closes in on his intended target while Hoffman continues to play the all-knowing, all-seeing Big Brother role — watching everyone and everything from his satellite surveillance system and setting up covert operations that even Ferris doesn’t know about. Even when it comes to giving up important classified information that could possible save a fellow agent, Hoffman is less than willing to reveal his secrets. Sly and manipulative, Hoffman remains appropriately detached from the people he rubs elbows with — and that includes his “friend” Ferris. When Ferris winds up getting captured by a network of terrorists working with the notorious Al-Saleem, Hoffman initially does his best to keep track his fellow CIA agent … but when he loses them in a dust-cloud of decoy SUVs in the desert, he doesn’t lift a finger to go the extra mile or send out a rescue team. When Al-Saleem reveals himself to be behind both Ferris’ capture and Aisha’s kidnapping, things look pretty grim for both and Ferris finds himself in a frightening situation that’s been repeated by Al-Qaeda terrorists before: sitting in front of a video camera with hooded and armed men surrounding him. It’s an uncomfortably realistic reminder of what’s happened to other Americans in the name of Islam.
The Video: How Does The Disc Look? The film’s original 2.40:1 aspect ratio is presented in a very good high-definition transfer compressed with the AVC video CODEC. Despite some noticeable grain and a rather dull and monochromatic palette, this is a solid and sharp film-like transfer. Color balance is particularly strong with ample earthy tones and plenty of browns, tans and yellows. This is a clean and consistent transfer with no signs of compression artifacts, specks or blemishes. Details such as the rocky terrain in Iraq during an early sequence and the salt-and-pepper razor stubble in Mark Strong’s beard during close-up shots of Salaam all pop off the screen. Black levels are rich and remain deep, dark and inky while flesh tones all look natural and nicely-rendered. Overall, a superb and detailed video presentation. The Audio: How Does The Disc Sound? Matching its video counterpart, the lossless English TrueHD 5.1 track is a robust and active audio option with plenty of deep bass, crystal-clear high end, and solid midrange. With ample amounts of dialogue emanating from the center-channel mix, there’s also plenty of discrete directional and ambient content to fill out the front stereo and rear surround channels. The six-channel matrix really gets to kick in and flex its muscle during a couple of the big bombing sequences in the film, while Marc Streitenfeld’s original score is given a full and expanding soundstage throughout. Although much of the film tends to become a dialogue-driven affair, there are standout action set pieces that provide plenty of ear-candy such as the aforementioned bombings and a couple of frantic shootouts. Overall, a strong and dynamic audio presentation. The optional subtitles are in English SDH, French, Spanish, and Portuguese. The Supplements: What Goodies Are There? Body of Lies comes to BD with a fine offering of supplementary material beginning with a feature-length, screen-specific audio commentary track featuring director Ridley Scott, screenwriter William Monahan and author David Ignatius. Scott remains an engaging and confident filmmaker whose unique perspective always makes for an interesting commentary track. He’s capably supported here by Monahan, who previously worked with Scott on Kingdom of Heaven and then went on to win the Academy Award for penning Martin Scorsese’s The Departed, also starring Leonardo DiCaprio. The two have a friendly rapport and provide some fascinating details about the production. It’s also interesting to hear input from Ignatius, whose fact-based novel was the source material for the film. Ignatius, a columnist for the Washington Post, based his book on actual experiences in covering foreign affairs for the newspaper. Next up is the documentary-like Actionable Intelligence: Deconstructing Body of Lies that is broken up into nine separate featurettes, all presented in 1080p high definition. Uneasy Alliance: Ferris and Hoffman (7:23) examines the dichotomy between the two characters and how they sharply differ in their methods of getting information. Foreign Relations: Ferris and Aisha (6:37) is an interesting look at the cultural and social differences between a Muslim and American couple. The Color of Toast: Costume and Production Design (8:41) is the most interesting of the featurettes, offering a glimpse into how they made select areas of Morocco, where the bulk of the film was shot, look like Iraq and Jordan and also how director of photography Alexander Witt added to the overall look of the film. Master of the Craft: Ridley Scott (7:59) is a brief look at the talented filmmaker and how his unique perspective and vision can greatly influence a project. Safe Haven: Morocco (7:50) also delves into Scott’s fascination and affection for the country, which began when he first filmed portions of Gladiator there in 2000. The country has since become a popular destination for film projects. Controlled Hostility: Stunts and Special Effects (14:33) is a comprehensive and somewhat overlong examination of the various stunts and effects devised for the film. Field Operation: Safe House (8:06) takes a peek behind-the-scenes at how Morocco was used not only to achieve a certain look for the film, but also to utilize the country’s various resources and people. Likewise, Field Operation: The Terrible Room (8:17) delves into the film’s most harrowing sequence — a virtual recreation of the many viral videos posted online by Al-Qaeda terrorist groups. Lastly, Author Provocateur: David Ignatius (7:53) examines the writer who penned the original novel and the sources for his inspiration. All of these featurettes can be viewed individually, collectively or via a pop-up onscreen icon option when activated during the film proper. Although some of the same information is imparted in the next bonus feature, titled Interactive Debriefing, it’s been divided into topics and categorized by participant that can be accessed via an onscreen matrix. Topics such as “Story,” “Collaboration” and “Intelligence” are discussed by either director Ridley Scott, co-star Leonard DiCaprio, or co-star Russell Crowe. To see what Scott has to say about “Collaboration,” for example, you select the box corresponding to each row and column and press “view.” It’s a fun and innovative way to offer additional bonus material, although a bit redundant given the ample featurettes also included on this disc. There’s also a collection of five deleted scenes (14:45 aggregate, 1080p) that come with a video introduction by Ridley Scott and can be viewed with optional commentary from the director. These include: Bassam’s Wife, Christmas is for Everyone, Crossing the Line, Gel Bridge and Alternate Ending. After watching Scott’s introduction, I tend to agree with him in his choices. Having whittled the film down to its bare essentials, none of these deserve to be included, although they do provide some insight into the creative process. Even the so-called Alternate Ending here is just an extension of the existing ending with an additional moment between Ferris and Salaam. The BD also includes a digital copy DVD that allows you to transfer the movie onto portable media devices via a Windows-based PC or Apple’s video iPod, and offers downloadable content for players that are BD-Live enabled. The 128-minute film is divided into thirty-three chapters. Final Thoughts Clearly one of the best post-9/11 terrorist movies to come down the pike, director Ridley Scott’s Body of Lies is a competent, intelligent and chilling spy thriller. Scott’s even-handed direction is only eclipsed by two fine performances from co-stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Russell Crowe. With stellar video and audio presentations and a nice complement of innovative and interesting bonus material, this BD is highly recommended.
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Thankfully, in the competent hands of director Ridley Scott, Body of Lies manages to transcend the usual trappings of other post-9/11 movies and provide something more than the predictable “us against them” message. It’s more of a morality play without the predictable heavy-handed preaching that also serves to entertain with some well-staged action sequences and swift but easy-to-follow dialogue courtesy of Oscar-winner William Monahan (The Departed). What could have easily become a convoluted and confusing talking-head affair in lesser hands has been elevated to a slick and savvy spy thriller in which everyone’s motives are decidedly dubious. Scott establishes an immediate aura of mistrust within a world where even the most innocent flirtations between a wounded man and a dedicated nurse could have fatal repercussions. That the film’s two central characters — one representing the idealistic and well-meaning optimist and the other serving as an obvious metaphor for Big Brother — are played by Leonardo DiCaprio and Russell Crowe, respectively, only adds to the complexity of the film.
Body of Lies is the perfect blending of cast, director and writer — all working collaboratively to produce a well-oiled and brisk production. While much of the credit goes to both Leonardo DiCaprio and Russell Crowe for their stellar performances, both Ridley Scott and screenwriter William Monahan also deserve accolades for juggling a varied collection of plot points and scenes and keeping them concise and comprehensible. Crowe, making his fourth appearance in a Ridley Scott film with plans for a fifth already in place, has cultivated one of those unique actor-director relationships wherein the two just seem to click … not unlike the similar pairing of Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio. Crowe intentionally gained weight for the role of Ed Hoffman — becoming “the heavy” both literally and figuratively — and he lumbers around with a noticeable paunch playing the role of a greedy, arrogant “fat cat” to a tee. Likewise, DiCaprio hits another one out of the park with his portrayal of the good-hearted and somewhat gullible Roger Ferris, whose enthusiasm and optimism is gradually tamped down as the movie progresses. Scott, the consummate filmmaker, keeps everything moving and pares every scene down to its bare essentials. While I’ve had trouble wrapping my head around some of his recent choices (A Good Year, Kingdom of Heaven), Body of Lies is a welcomed return to form for the ever-evolving director.
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