Traitor

Sometimes good is bad and bad is good. Or put more simply: everything is just a shade of grey. What kind of shade just depends on the viewer, the perspective. Steve Martin (yes, the comedian Steve Martin) co-wrote a solid modern day spy saga that is fortunately neither black nor white. The only thing this movie lacks is emotion. By trying too hard to get the message across, director Jeffrey Nachmanoff has lost eye on the need for viewers to be able to identify with the characters and has thus made it harder to empathize with persons and causes. You will, but only in the second half of the movie. Still, the storyline is solid. And the acting is more than that. Don Cheadle is (again) magnificent and so is Saïd Taghmaoui. This is not an action movie, but a thinking man's movie. And a good one too.

I was offered a ticket to a screener last Wednesday, and when I heard Don Cheatle was in it, couldn't pass it by. I am not a huge fan of action/suspense/spy movies, but this one was a cut above the normal. It was more intelligent, and delved a bit into motivations, beliefs, etc. of terrorists. I went into the movie cold, with no idea of the plot, and I recommend that. Most write ups I have read give away too much of the twists in the plot, which I was glad I didn't know beforehand. Don Cheatle was excellent, and so was Saïd Taghmaoui. It was also refreshing to see Hollywood recognizing the breadth of Muslim philosophy for once!

As a young child living in Yemen "Samir Horn" (Don Cheadle) experiences the death of his father in a car bomb planted by terrorists. Afterward his mother takes him to America where he grows up and eventually joins the army as a demolitions expert. After separating from the army he begins to sell explosive detonators to the highest bidder which eventually leads him to a Muslim terrorist movement in Sudan. Unfortunately, while a meeting is taking place he is arrested and sent to a prison and upon his escape joins a terrorist movement which has use for his skills. At any rate, rather than disclose the rest of the story and risk ruining the film for those who haven't seen it I will just that that this was a pretty good action film with some drama and suspense thrown in for good measure. I especially liked the performance of Don Cheadle who I thought played the part to near perfection. Above average.

Thrilling and exciting movie about terrorism , spies and geopolitical issues . A firm believer in the Holy Quran, Samir Horn ( Don Cheadle ), American citizen and former soldier in Afghanistan, lives a middle-classed lifestyle along with his love interest , Chandra Dawkin (Archie Panjabi). He is actively involved in selling explosives to Jihadis. However he is trapped and meantime in a Yemeni prison, Samir is hit , and another inmate, Omar ( Said ), comes to his support . Both men become close friends, subsequently getaway from prison, re-locate to Marsielle, executing a massacre , and elude authorities for some time . Later on they re-enter the U.S., meet with other important terrorists , and together they scheme to place bombs in 50 Greyhound buses ,one for each State. Using internet and mail they recruit 50 volunteers to carry out this gruesome aim . Meanwhile, the super-powerful CIA uses technological-gizmo-surveillance satellites , super-computers for people spying and hound terrorists relentlessly. The CIA agents ( Guy Pearce , Neal McDonough ) scheme a plot to chase the mastermind terrorist . They form a shaky alliance with Carter ( Jeff Daniels ),the boss of Intelligence to break the terrorist ring whose objective is the bombing civilian targets . They try to stop cruel group who plans terrorist bombings by means an uncanny masquerade .

Story's core is interesting and script is dense with information and drama . The ultra-brisk editing and rapid scenes movement leaves little time to consider some inadequacies. The picture takes parts from ¨ The Siege¨ (98, by Edward Zwick with Denzel Washington,Tony Shalhoub) about the dangerous terrorism Arab in US ; ¨ Spy game ¨(2001, by Tony Scott with Brad Pitt and Robert Redford ) concerning the spy-world and ¨Body of lies ¨ (2008 by Ridly Scott with Leonardo DiCaprio and Russell Crowe ) about sophisticated methods of the international terrorism . Don Cheadle , also producer , is the main attraction , he sustains interest in this tale of treason and terrorism . Guy Pearce and Neal McDonough are good as intelligent super-agents and Jeff Daniels's cool displaying a brief performance. The use of interesting messages to add weight to a romantic subplot between the terrorist and the Arab woman , though feels a little forced . The film packs adequate,evocative cinematography by Michael Muro and agreeable musical score by Mark Kilian with Arabs overtones. The motion picture is well written and realized by Jeffrey Nachmanoff . Rating : Above average, well worth watching.

I usually go to Malco's reviewers and then Rotten Tomatoes, to see what the consensus on a movie is. Well after going to see this movie with some very hardcore friends/critics, we all agree, the professionals are getting paid off! If it wasn't for the good amateur Malco reviewers, I would have missed a very good thought provoking movies. I disagree that this movie stereotypes its characters, they are anything but. The acting is rich, the character's are memorable, very great acting on all levels, especially the main characters, and respect is paid to traditional Islam as opposed to its radical splinter. About Cheadle's character, you may have heard his performance is wooden, that is untrue, he delivers a moving portrait of a tortured soul subjected to a traumatic past and exposed to soul rending choices. If you follow it, Traitor will offer an excellent, thoughtful, journey into the heart of a complex issue.