Review 2

Rendition(2007)

Cast:  Reese Witherspoon, Meryl Streep, Peter Sarsgaard, Alan Arkin, Jake Gyllenhaal and Omar Metwally.
Director: Gavin Hood
Genre: Drama film

The film was shot excellently. Gavin Hood presented the film as two separate stories which seem to have no connection with each other. Events of these stories run parallel to each other and only at the end of movie they finally crossed. This director’s trick, I think, added a little tension to the film and made audience be on the alert constantly and follow the course of events carefully. Work of screenwriters is also great. The plot of the film reveals the dark sides of CIA work in America excellently but a little toughly.
Synopsis:
The events take place in America and North Africa. CIA analyst Douglas Freeman lost his partner in the explosion of a suicide bomber in Egypt. He was charge to investigate this case. In view of it, an Egyptian-born chemical engineer Anwar El-Ibrahimi coming back from Africa to the USA was arrested in the airport by American police on suspicion of connection with terrorist organization. Anwar was sent to a secret prison outside the country without any legal causes where he was tortured for the purpose of getting information. The process of questioning and torturing under Douglas Freeman’s control was guided by Abasi Fawal, a high-ranking police official, who was the main target of a terrorist attack. Meanwhile, a pregnant wife of Anwar alarmed at her husband’s disappearance asked for help her old friend Alan Smith who worked as an aide to Senator to find Anwar. Smith knew that Anwar El-Ibrahimi was arrested by order of Corrine Whitman, a high-ranking political official. But Whitman made it clear that his arrest was top-secret. In a parallel storyline, Abasi's daughter Fatima escaped from home with her lover Khalid who was a supporter of an extremist offshoot. At the end of the film we know that Khalid was this suicide bomber who made the explosion which killed a lot of people including Fatima.
Review.
The film shows the severe truth of the modern government system. It reveals an insignificance of human life before the state power. I think this is another film that refers to the category of “bold” ones. Gavin Hood is worth of praise because not every film director dares to expose vices of own country. Hood openly demonstrates the fact that the US use tortures. To my way of thinking developments of the movie instigate us to think: what if the government uses even more horrible methods for its goals which we don’t even suspect about? What if the tortures and murders of people are usual practice for state power? Why was Anwar El-Ibrahimi tortured? Did Abasi really think that Anwar was a terrorist? It is hardly. Anwar was only scapegoat. Abasi Fawal tortured him not for the sake of truth but for results. It doesn’t matter to government who committed a crime, it’s more important to find guilty ones because the society requires it. To kill one for the sake of thousands. The end justifies the means. These are the main mottos of the government. But is that really so? NO. No end justifies such means. Violence gives rise to violence. And this is endless.  So in this connection, the film shows: it’s really scary to live.

Speaking about actors, their performance was perfect. But I think the cast is secondary in such sorts of films. To my way of thinking, there are no differences if other actors star in this film. I’m sure it will lose nothing by it. The main accent is not on the actor’s performance but on the process and main idea of insignificance of human life before the state power.

To sum up, the movie is very exciting. Certainly it is not for the general public. This film is for narrow circles of people who are ready to accept the worst truth of the modern government system and our “small” lives.