The Good Shepherd
| Directed by: | Robert De Niro |
|---|---|
| Written by: | Eric Roth |
| Cast: | Matt Damon, Angelina Jolie, Robert De Niro, John Turturro, William Hurt, Alec Baldwin, Billy Crudup, Michael Gambon, Gabriel Macht, Tammy Blanchard, Vladimir Mashkov, Joe Pesci |
| Studio: | Universal Pictures |
| Genre: | Thriller |
| Official Site: | www.thegoodshepherdmovie.com |
I loved this movie despite the backlash it has received from critics, though for understandable reasons. Yes, it is a long movie. Yes, it does have really dry dialogue scene. And yes, Angelina Jolie is barely in the movie. But all of this is needed in order to make the story work.
The story revolves around Matt Damon's character "Edward Wilson", which is based on a real life CIA spook James Jesus Angleton prior to and during his tenure at the agency. Dry dialogue dominates Matt Damon's character, but it's neccesary to show how cold and focused he is. Every spy needs to take a lesson from Matt Damon's peformance. Placidity is your friend.
The movie's length was key in detaling Edward Wilson's life which revolved mainly in the spy community. You see him getting married at one point, then leave for 6 years to Britain to serve in the intelligence field during WW II. It is because of this dedication to his work that you rarely get to see the beautiful Jolie, whose character is forced to raise a son on her own during the first 6 years of his life without a father. Drama then ensues when he ultimately returns to her and his never-before seen son, but goes right back to work.
I do have to admit, there are some points in the film that the editors could have done away with. But for the most part it all worked extremely well. The acting was spot on during the movie, with the exception of Edward's son, Edward Jr. in his adult years. The dude annoyed me for some reason.
Though there wasn't any action in the film (especially when the backdrop is a freakin world war), the "action" is all in the dialogue. The scenes with Wilson and "Ulysses" was perfect. Double speak dominates the conversations between the two spies, and I loved it all.
All in all, the movie was solid. Robert De-fucking-Niro has proved to us that he can create movies just as well as he can act in them. I look forward to his next directorial romp.
