Beirut

In 1972, Mason Skiles (Jom Hamm) is a U.S. diplomat in Lebanon living in Beirut with his Lebanese wife, Nadia (Leika Bekhti) . They have recently started caring for Karim, a 13-year-old Palestinian boy who claims he is without a family , but he has actually a brother who has been linked to the 1972 Munich massacre. While hosting a party , Skiles is confronted by his friend, CIA analyst Cal Riley (Mark Pellegrino) , who wants to question Karim . Then the party is attacked by Karim's brother , Rami, and there takes place an ensuing gunfight with dramatic consequences . Ten years later , Skiles has become an alcoholic and is working as a self-employed labor arbitrator in New England . While arbitrating a labor issue between particularly intransigent parties and struggling to keep his small firm afloat , he is approached by Sully (Douglas Hodge) , an old client, on behalf of the U.S. government . Beirut: 1982 there Skile meets some CIA officers : Sandy Crowder (Rosamund Pike) , Gary Ruzak (Shea Whigham) and Donald Gaines (Dean Norris) to carry out a risked mission . The events developed in this film led to the known in Lebanon as "the invasion" , it began on 6 June 1982, when the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) invaded southern Lebanon , after repeated attacks and counter-attacks between the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) operating in southern Lebanon and the IDF that had caused civilian casualties on both sides of the border . The military operation was launched after gunmen from Abu Nidal's organization attempted to assassinate Shlomo Argov, Israel's ambassador to the United Kingdom. Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin blamed Abu Nidal's enemy , the PLO, for the incident,and used the incident as a casus belli for the invasion, subsequently , there took place Sabra and Shatila massacre of Palestinians and Lebanese.¨The Paris of the Middle East Was Burning . The Americans want to keep their secrets . The Israelis want to raise the stakes . He only wants to save a life¨.

Engaging and dark picture , skill montage , magnificent acting , thrills , plot twists , emotion and intense drama . Concerning murky and dark issues , dealing with thorny themes of corruption and betrayal in which our protagonists become involved . Set in Beirut , Lebanon, when it was full of a lot of warlike organitations and militias , especially formed by Drusos , Christians , Maronits , Falangists , Palestinians of PLO , Chii of Hamas , Sunnies , among others . In the movie there is action filled , brief studio character , drama with turns , as well as moving chases . It was originally conceived as a tense as well as thrilling flick based on actual events well written by Tony Gilroy though diverting in an action thriller , at times . Gilroy's fictionalized portrayal of U.S.A, Israeli and PLO -Palestine Liberation Organization- scheming in 1982 Lebanon ultimately proved too hot to handle , resulting in a real Lebanon encroachment . Jon Hamm is pretty well as the former U.S. diplomat caught in the crossfires of civil war, then CIA operatives must send to negotiate for the life of a friend he abandoned . And Rosemund Pike is very good as brave and stubborn CIA agent who helps him to execute his purport to negotiate for the life of a friend he left behind. In addition , a frankly fine support cast , such as Shea Whigham , Mark Pellegrino , Leïla Bekhti , Kate Fleetwood , Larry Pine , Douglas Hodge and Dean Norris.

It contains an atmospheric and evocative photography by Cinematographer Bjorn Charpentier, this expert cameraman paid homage to the time period chronicled in Beirut by fitting his cameras with vintage lenses, in fact those lenses were built from that era . And shot on location in Rhode Island and Tangier . Being accompanied by a thrilling and stirring musical score by John Debney. The motion picture was competently and splendidly made by US director Brad Anderson , though it had limited success at box-office. Brad Anderson was born in Madison, Connecticut, USA and was graduate of Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine, and member of the dramatic jury at the Sundance Film Festival . He is a notorious director and producer, known for Next Stop Wonderland (1998) , Session 9 (2001), The machinist (2004) , Transsiberian (2008) , The Call (2013) , Asylum (2014) , among others .

One reviewer indicated this was not filmed in Beirut and the city wasn't in the condition as depicted. Not ever having been there I won't dispute but the images of the damages and treatment of individuals were horrifying and set the tone for the film. But, terrorist activities in the area has been well documented since recorded history. Jon Hamm was exceptional in the development of his character and Rosemary Pike may have been somewhat miscast but she managed her character fairly well. What was most disturbing was the probability of sacrificing one to maintain a precarious "peace" in the Region. And, of course, there is the issue of corruption by a U.S. official in another country (go figure). All in all it is a complex story with something of an unlikely conclusion but it was still extremely entertaining.

First, yes, the filmmakers could have been more considerate and filmed it in Beirut and hired local actors and crew if they wanted to truly pay homage to the city, but is it that despicable or offensive? Probably not. They might have made up for it by including all the clichés that the Lebanese folks like to hear and see, such as "ski in the morning, go to the beach in the afternoon, and party all night", and the girl in the bikini walking next to a veiled woman. And their over-simplified summation of the very complex nature of the conflicts seems to hold some truth and is probably just enough for the short attention span folk, who could only consume brief over-simplified summation. But overall, the film is only slightly entertaining, the story is ok, nothing deep or moving, average suspense and action, but it's interesting how it's mixed up with the tragic events of the city, although most of them is made up.

Tony Gilroy's thriller "Beirut", tautly directed by Brad Anderson, propels that iconic "Mad Men" tv star Jon Hamm into the long-vacant Hollywood position created in the '40s by Humphrey Bogart. It's a character persona of disillusioned, world-weary masculine presence that springs into action, however reluctantly, when absolutely necessary.

Previous IMDb reviews of this exciting film either have been premature (of the "Gee, I can't wait to see it" non-review content) or ignorantly dismissive, as if fiction had to be judged by reality standards, or location hunting be abandoned in favor of merely using the practical "real" places from the script. I guess Matt Damon in "The Martian" was somehow exempt from that latter idiotic requirement.

Several hit films come to mind, clearly "Argo" the most relevant in terms of demonstrating box office potential, and Hamm is blessed with a talented and selfless co-star in a key yet subdued role by Rosamund Pike, coincidentally having risen to stardom in "Argo" maestro Ben Affleck's "Gone Girl". The director cites Peter Weir's "The Year of Living Dangerously" as a key influence, and that's a fine source to draw from.

I appoint Hamm as the next Bogie because in addition to his classic good looks as leading man he captures here and in "Mad Men" the uncanny ability to define a film noir hero -self-divided, prone to hitting the bottle, and winning over a viewer no matter how close he comes to betraying his best moral instincts in service of self-interest. Certainly he could handle a remake of "Casablanca" (perhaps with currently hot-hot Scandi star Alicia VIkander as co-star) without much of a stretch.

Though low-budget and closer to pulp than a major Hollywood blockbuster, "Beirut" succeeds because it is fun, not because it is giving us a history lesson. The cliches of its genre and the unfortunate real-life cliches of the Middle East as a quagmire work very well in the traditional roller-coaster ride that is what Hollywood does best. Quibbling over accuracy is absurd; rather Gilroy should be commended for fashioning, over a period of several decades, a tight script that makes its historical points while firmly inhabiting the fantasy land of movies.

That's the basis for this taut, fast-paced actioner set in the Middle East of the 70's. John Hamm is a State Dept. negotiator coaxed out of retirement to find an American operative held by (select one) the Palestinians, Israelis, Lebanese or maybe the PLO. Be sure to bring a pad and pencil to keep track of the cast and which side they are on, because you never know in "Beirut".

For some reason, this picture is getting bad ratings from IMDb contributors. I don't know if here is a Hollywood conspiracy against it, but the bad reviewers are way off. "Beirut" needs to be seen by fans of edge-of-your-seat thriller fans. Just pay close attention as some info goes by quickly, which is in keeping with the complex plot and brisk pace of the movie.

My star rating is in the heading. The website no longer prints mine.