Fair Game

An outrageous act that the perpetrators managed to get away with it, in fact this particular perpetrators got away with more than anyone in recent history. Scooter Libby, guilty as hell himself became the protective shield of the Vice President. We all know that, so how is it possible that nothing has been done about it? Joe Wilson and Valerie Plane are the attractive protagonists of this thriller that looks and feels like a work of fiction. They are played by the wonderful Sean Penn and Naomi Watts, although the hand held camera and the digital thing worked against them, She looks as if suffering from some kind of skin ailment. David Andrews is great as Scooter Libby. Horrid. The director, however, should have been the Costa Gavras of "Z" or "State Of Siege" Fair Game doesn't go deep enough. If you don't know about it, you'll be very confused and won't be as outraged as one should be. I followed the outraged as it played on the Cable News networks, in the papers and on line, that's why I wanted more from the film but I'm glad it was made and I hope it tickles the curiosity of the naturally indifferent to awaken a truly patriotic sense of disgust.

Valerie Plame Wilson (Naomi Watts) is a woman with double life: she is the wife of the former Ambassador Joe Wilson (Sean Penn) and mother of two children. But she is also and efficient CIA Operations Officer working in the Nonproliferation Center and in charge of several operations.

In 2003, when Bush administration manipulates the information relative to massive destruction weapons to justify the invasion of Iraq, Joe Wilson writes an article in the New York Times criticizing the government and telling that the intelligence research had been manipulated. In reprisal, the government leaks Valerie's identity to discredit Joe, affecting their professional and private lives and almost destroying their marriage.

"Fair Game" is a bold film about the life of Valerie Plame Wilson, who has had her life destroyed by Bush administration in part of the farce about the existence of massive destruction weapons in Iraq to justify the invasion of that nation. But it seems that later the Wilson family wrote two books and won lawsuits against members of the government and they might have resolved their lives at least financially speaking.

The film glances also at the lives of Iraqi scientists that trusted on Valerie and were murdered by the Iraqi secret service, but does not show the fate of the civilian population that had their country bombed and invaded due to a farce. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Jogos de Poder" ("Power Game")

From the opening scene in Malaysia to the mines of Niger and then to the streets of Baghdad, "Fair Game" begins as an espionage thriller, a "Bourne" film without the obligatory car chases, shootouts and fights, but rather, with a woman who uses her brains and intellect.

Once the film shifts its focus back in the United States of America, the film takes a slight turn to the dramatic route and thus may seem melodramatic with this married people's lives being tinkered with and with no one but each other to help them. Having said that, "Fair Game" (no, not that dreadful Cindy Crawford/William Baldwin cheeseball) is a remarkably well-crafted political thriller that is driven home with outstanding, terrific performances by both Naomi Watts and especially Sean Penn.

Whether you believe the many questions posed in the film are truth or merely lies (whether the agency really did take that drastic measure to cover up what the government did not want to hear to prevent the war... or is this all propaganda from the start?), I really can't say, because this happened in another country far away from my home, so I have no right to say whose side I'm on.

Watts plays CIA agent Valerie Plame whose cover gets blown and who gets blamed for the leak of wrong information to the White House, who uses said information to invade Iraq. Is this all true? Suppose it is, given that the news footage of both at-the-time President Bush and Vice President Cheney look strikingly foreshadowing when compared to the events in the movie - this is meant to provoke outrage at the government's so-called "ignorance and stupidity" so they say, so what? I'm not saying anything to make myself sound like I'm on the wrong line, nor am I saying anything to disprove the film's "facts" either. I'm just stating that this is a great drama, no matter what you believe.

See, the thing with drama is that fact can and will be fictionalized so that it may be accepted easily by the ever-interested audience. "Fair Game" may be slow-paced and devoid of action sequences ala Doug Liman's previous blockbuster efforts, but here not a moment lost my interest, even the dramatic ones between Watts and Penn, as they ignite the screen with fiery performances, as this political scandal isn't only affecting their jobs and their reputations, it's also affecting their love life. And it's crumbling as things go from bad to worse in this film.

Watts is superb in this film. In the beginning she acts very convincingly as a strong, determined, iron-willed woman, mother, and wife who is very confident about herself and not willing to push into any demand that comes at her way. Later after the scandal is spread she slowly but surely devolves into a woman that is filling with desperation and fear, until she nearly loses control of her downward spiral. Ditto with Sean Penn here. He is absolutely mesmerizing, as always, as Plame's husband Ambassador Joe Wilson. Soft spoken and charming when he needs to, but when he's angry he makes everyone feel the rage without becoming too overdone. Wilson as portrayed by Penn is a character who's not about to let this scandal get in the way of his family, so he decides to clear his and his wife's name by using the media and criticizing the government. Of course, his wife isn't happy about this and it causes more tension between them. Penn and Watts show terrific chemistry together that hasn't been lost since "21 Grams" and both of them vividly portray not politicians trying to get the truth, but rather more of a family trying to pull themselves together. So it's not entirely an espionage thriller like this film was sadly marketed as. The supporting actors are also great in their own right.

This film does pose a lot of questions that make one think during the movie about the purpose and cause of the Iraq war, the invasion and more importantly, the power and impact the US government has on their own people and the various ways they can abuse it on them to get whatever they want. And this is proved with the decaying lives of Plame and Wilson from American citizens to branded traitors. You can't imagine how they really felt, but Penn and Watts come really, REALLY close to it.

The film has it's flaws, though. The pacing could be a little bit tighter and the dialog in Iraq doesn't sound genuinely Iraqi. However, Doug Liman's direction is enough to keep the tension gripping and the film focused on the characters and not just glimpses of the war and scandal themselves. John Powell's music score is refreshingly low-key and it suits the dramatic mood of the film even better. Liman's cinematography (pulling a double duty here) is nicely framed without excessive style to it, making it simple, easy to watch, and gripping. Editing is fluid and the screenplay is written very well with equal amounts of intelligence and emotions.

In short, this is a superbly fine drama of the lives of the people in the limelight of this political scandal, with terrific performances and strong direction worthy of a theater ticket. Go see this movie and savor the performances and the question of the US government on its own people.

I find it strangely coincidental that the filmmakers from the "Jason Bourne" series both released movies this year that criticize the Bush administration. Doug Liman made this film, while Paul Greengrass made the slightly superior "Green Zone" and even managed to bring star Matt Damon with him. Composer John Powell scored both films. You can think of this movie as a companion piece to "Green Zone", hell, you can imagine the events in both movies happening at the same time. Now THAT would be a wicked idea.

Overall rating: 80/100

First of all: I'm not an American, so I have no interest in any of the left wing vs right wing political immaturity that goes on there. And since I'm being honest: if this film was a work of fiction - it wouldn't have been that great, maybe a 6/10 IMDb rating.

What makes this film absolutely mind blowing is that this stuff actually happened. Wow! You can argue the little details if you wish, but the bulk of this is public record and you're not kidding anyone. This gets an 8/10 on IMDb from me because it's non-fiction and it's a very very important story.

The war in Iraq was a crime and the guilty should be required to watch this movie, a few times. How many thousands of lives could have been saved? Feel shame and learn from your mistakes. Get mad! Don't ever be fooled like this again!!!

Frankly this movie should be shown in schools for the next 100 years - it should be considered required viewing in History classes. I think it's important that this little piece of the past is not swept under the rug anytime soon. I praise the makers of this film, I praise Joe Wilson and Valerie Plame.

Those who forget history are doomed to repeat it - so cherish this 108 minute reminder of America's greatest mistake.

Fair Game follows in the tradition of All The President's Men as presenting a probing look into an important political issue in the form of a crackling thriller. Director Doug Liman uses his Bourne Identity/Mr & Mrs Smith skills to move the true story of exposure of Valerie Plame (Naomi Watts), the wife of US senator Joe Wilson (Sean Penn), as a CIA undercover agent by the Bush Administration at breakneck speed. Plame's research based on her contacts in Iraq had put serious doubts on the existence of WMD in Iraq, which was not in line with White House's view point. They thus considered her "fair game" for discrediting and public exposure. Fair Game is fascinating for all those interested in the mechanism of power and use/abuse of it; and is also a riveting piece of film making. In my view it's Liman's best film to date.