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Sir Ridley Scott is really churning 'em out these days, barely taking a breath between finishing one movie and starting the next. For a man whose films are never simple character dramas, that's quite something. There is perhaps an argument to be made that his recent output has suffered because of that haste, but he still makes some of the classier films out of the mainstream Hollywood directors. Body of Lies is a case in point. It's yet another film about the War On Terror, a subject matter that has not proven to be commercially fertile ground despite dozens of efforts, and it's one of the better ones to have been made thus far. It attempts to walk a tightrope between Syriana-esque political intrigue and more multiplex-friendly action and does a generally good job, only occasionally, and regrettably, submitting to convention (particularly in the form of an unlikely romantic subplot in the film's later stages). Despite Sir Ridley's best efforts, though, it has not broken the streak of box office duds based on the current Middle East crisis. It's mystifying as to why the studios persist with financing them, frankly.
The reasons Body of Lies got the green light are obvious, however. Last year's American Gangster, the last collaboration between Scott and star Russell Crowe, was a sizeable hit, while William Monahan, Body of Lies' screenwriter, was hot off winning the writing Oscar for The Departed. (He previously wrote Kingdom of Heaven for Scott, which is superb in its Director's Cut form.) Monahan's clearly an intelligent guy and this shines through in his script here, in preparation for which he has obviously done a lot of research. His dialogue is dense and intricate but never overly wordy or unnatural, and a narrative through-line is sustained well despite a very complex and convoluted series of events. Incidentally, this is also the second time that Monahan has written words for Leonardo DiCaprio to say, and the actor is his usual intense and watchable self. As with American Gangster, Crowe gets the lesser of the two lead roles, mostly seen on the other end of a phone with DiCaprio, and while he's fine (and has noticeably piled on the pounds for the part), he doesn't get much to chew on.
Probably the closest approximation to Body of Lies in film terms would be something like the Tom Clancy adaptations (Clear and Present Danger, etc.), but the highly topical setting of Lies makes it seem more real. Scott mostly dumps his usually stunning visual sense in favour of the popular documentary style, but thankfully he hasn't forgotten what a tripod is, unlike some of his contemporaries. That's not to say it isn't a good looking film, either; on the contrary, it's very technically accomplished, just lacking the director's normal painterly sheen, which is probably a good thing given the subject matter. Locations are well used, with the story spanning from Baghdad to Manchester (or, at least, places in Morocco and America standing in for them), giving the film a suitably authentic feel. In the long run it doesn't quite capitalise on its full potential, reaching a rather pat and underwhelming ending, but that doesn't diminish the fact that it grips from the start and throughout.
The summary
Those in the mood for a political thriller with both action and intelligence will find a good one here, although it may prove to be a bit too conventional for some.
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