"Syriana" (Warner Brothers)
“Syriana” is a timely and topical film about the maneuverings and machinations that are part of the political climate in the Middle East. Everyone wants a slice of the oil pie and they are willing to do whatever is necessary to get it. This movie is all over the map piecing together various plots and actions designed to give the oil fields to the dirtiest player.
Stephen Gagan who wrote the screenplay for the similar “Traffic” wrote the screenplay for this film and also directed. Like “Traffic” there are various locales and players needed to make up the story but in “Syriana” tying them all up together is difficult and almost impossible.
George Clooney plays a CIA operative named Bob. He is a “lord of war” type who buys and sells arms. All of his actions are taken to try to keep the United States interest paramount in the Middle East oil rich areas.
Matt Damon plays Bryan Woodman, a financial advisor to some of the political powers in the Middle East. He generally is accompanied on his travels by his wife (Amanda Peet) and their two sons. When a tragic event occurs in his life, he finds he has more clout with his “client” than ever.
Meanwhile China is getting the edge on some oil rich property and the United States can not let this happen. A decision is made to eliminate the political ruler who is leaning towards the Chinese. This of course has to be done secretly and there may have to be a fall guy or two if suspicions are raised.
All of these intertwining plot elements are confusing and hard to follow. The audience is whiplashed between one country and another, and keeping the characters straight without a scorecard is impossible.
The acting is good with Clooney and Damon being outstanding. But their effectiveness is minimized by the confusion that reigns. When the various stories do begin to merge it is too late. The audience has tuned out and is just ready to get it all over with as quickly as possible.
The film is rated R for profanity, violence and some particularly gory torture sequences.
“Syriana” is as familiar as the headlines on the nightly news, while presenting a political agenda that says most of the people in power are corrupt and conniving. There are no good guys on view here. Everything and everyone operates on the idea that the ends justify the means. Maybe one hero in a white hat could have made the film a little more digestible.
I scored “Syriana” an oily 5 out of 10.
