Body Of Lies (2008) – film review

Good film, terrible title.

I expected this to be a so-so surveillance thriller with lots of unconvincing satellite imagery, CCTV snoopery, shouting down mobile phones by sharp suited government agents trying to save the world and well worn suspense thriller clichés but, although it does have some of those elements, it actually has a lot more to offer.

Body Of Lies is more about what a Western intelligence agency tracking down a terrorist organisation has to do when modern surveillance methods fail to deliver any real results and their field agent has to rely on people, relationships and face-to-face dealings in order to get the job done.

That said, about two thirds of the way in the plot is sort of thrown away and our heroes just try something else instead, rendering everything that’s gone before it a bit redundant… or maybe what starts two thirds of the way in is actually the real plot but it just takes ages to get going. I’m not 100% sure.

Russell Crowe is fun as the film’s rotund exposition sponge and Mark Strong is nice and menacing as a very convincing Arab intelligence boss, but don’t let the posters and video covers’ promise of a double billing fool you, this is Leonardo DiCaprio’s film and he plays a man growing bitter at having to play dirty in order to fight for what’s right with great conviction. As always his manner and general persona lets his performance down in places, but his eagerness and commitment to the part ends up shining through and winning us over.

Ridley Scott keeps a sturdy hand over everything, perhaps wisely resisting setting the wrong tone with his usually poetic visual trademarks, although there are a few moments that remind us that he’s behind the camera. It’s also a great example of his mastery of production economics as, although the narrative takes us to five or six different countries, it was all shot on location in either Washington DC or Morocco.

There are a few clunky editing choices which offset the pace, in particular a moment where Scott and editor Pietro Scalia try to have their cake and eat it by showing us an explosion within the standard editing/camera format of the film and then, for no reason at all, shows us it again through the jumpy frame-skipping tape of a CCTV recording. The two could have been woven together in the editing room but, no, we’re just shown it happening twice instead. There are also some awkward cuts between scenes that are jarring with the previous scene’s dialogue and shots promising something in the next scene that’s not delivered. There’s also a light hearted moment where a character waves a napkin as a mock gesture of peace and surrender, but it’s not pulled off well by the actor and could have been saved by a reverse shot or some quick cutting.

But apart from a few speed bumps this is a smooth, sleek and exhilarating ride that was perhaps unfairly dismissed by some critics, a potentially larger audience (including me) and it's own marketing campaign at the time, but it’s definitely one that’s built to endure.

A rough diamond that’s worth dusting off and giving a go.

3/4