Green Zone

Title: Green Zone
Director: Paul Greengrass
Actors: Matt Damon, Greg Kinnear, Brendan Gleeson

This movie isn't about the characters or the action. It's about a question. Why did we go to war? The movie attempts to answer that and it is an angering answer. But what is one to do? The real answer may never be known.

You know a movie is good when it makes you feel something. Something other than, "Well, that was fun." I have some bones to pick about this particular movie, but I must admit that it made me feel, even if it wasn't the kind of feeling I was expecting.

To start off with I was expecting "I Can't Believe It's Not Bourne." Far from it. Here we have a main character that is chasing WMD's in Iraq, realizes the intel provided is wrong, and wants to do something about it. He discovers the truth of the situation in the end. At least the screenwriters version of the truth. Does it piss me off? Yes. Does it make Americans out to be bad guys. Yes. And that is why it pisses me off.

I'm sitting here trying to articulate how I feel about the whole situation. It's a difficult task. But to think that a movie has stirred this reaction in me, is something indeed.

Alright, I'm moving off the topic of the Iraq war and the politics involved and moving on to the movie itself.

I hated the camera work. It was soooo damn bouncy that at times you couldn't tell what was going on. At those times I would think, "Why even bother to have something on the screen at all if you can't even tell if that's a human or a lamppost?"

The action was good. Lots of running,and gun battles.

The plot is what made this movie worth watching, despite the headache inducing camera work. The sole purpose of this movie: discover where the WMD's are. When Miller realizes they're on a wild goose chase he asks the obvious. He's shut down by his superiors and recruited by another division led by Gleeson. The film takes us through the war from a soldiers point of view on the ground and then juxtaposes it with the politicians. The latter are so far removed from the reality that their decision making comes off as questionable at best and blatantly manipulative and evil at worst. But that's just the tip of the iceberg. You discover the rest of it as the plot progresses.

What I really like about this movie is it's seeming simplicity. It has one question. The main character sets out to answer that question and correct the problem. There are no sub plots or back alley deals to get lost in. Straight forward is the phrase I'm looking for. You don't usually come across a politically motivated movie like this that's so straight forward and it is refreshing. It was easy to follow and I greatly appreciated that. Had it been more complex I would have lost interest and called it a dud.

Matt Damon turned in another good performance. Nothing too original or difficult to portray. He did a good job with his character. But, and I know I'm repeating myself here, the plot/question of the film really was the main character. Damon was merely a supporting player, facilitating the simple progression and importance of the story.

All in all: decent movie. The plot is the star of the show and the director knew it, kept things simple and easy to follow. The camera work annoyed me to no end, but honestly, you don't have to stare at the screen to know what's going on. Recommended.