Body of Lies (15) (From Basingstoke Gazette)

Body of Lies review

5:19pm Wednesday 19th November 2008 in Reviews By Joanne Mace

IT’S almost hard to believe that Leonardo DiCaprio is now the wise old age of 34.

But his years of filmic experience have honed his sense of who to work with and on what material. After much success with Martin Scorsese, he’s chosen to work with another industry stalwart, Ridley Scott.

Body of Lies sees him as Roger Ferris, an action-man lead, but events open without his needing to be involved. A Muslim milkman can be heard whistling Rule Britannia before a house blows up in an English street, tying us into our immediate present.

Things take a while to settle down, and for an audience to then get to grips with what’s happening. Ferris is a US undercover government operative, something that is clearly revealed when he’s attempting to get information from someone about a terrorist cell, and looks to the sky towards the US satellite that captures his every move. The film’s other big star, Russell Crowe, plays CIA veteran Ed Hoffman, who liaises with Roger mostly over the phone while doing the school run or taking his son to the toilet. The duo are investigating who is behind the terrorist organisation Al-Saleem, given that the latter are carrying out an orchestrated bombing campaign, which is mainly targeting Europe.

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Scripted by William Monaghan, who won an Oscar for his work on Scorsese’s The Departed, Body of Lies opens with a W.H. Auden snippet of poetic wisdom – “those to whom evil is done do evil in return”, but chooses not to ram this message home. It’s much more subtle than many other films on the Middle Eastern conflict, even though it’s a relatively straightforward tale on the page, with DiCaprio trying to track down a fairly one-dimensional suicide bomber, courtesy of any number of far-flung locations (in reality, mostly Morocco).

DiCaprio’s skittish energy works well in the cocky young whippersnapper role, which requires him to slink around in grotty athletic gear attempting to disguise himself in places where, let’s face it, he stands out a mile. But he does very well as the plot thickens, his relationship with the head of the Jordanian General Intelligence Department (Britain’s Mark Strong, whose profile is rising fast after RocknRolla) gets a little tense and he looks like he might take a fall.

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Neither of the latter actors let a bullish Crowe, looking fat and wearing a grey wig – resembling himself in one of his breakthrough roles in The Insider – walk away with anything, more than matching his commitment and intensity.

Those who are a little nervous should be aware that there are some brief but harsh scenes towards the end, which will provoke a sharp gasp and may require you to briefly cover your eyes, but, for the most part, Body of Lies is an exciting, intelligent actioner, expertly directed by Ridley, who’ll turn 71 on November 30.

There’s obviously a ton of life in the old dog yet.