Burn After Blogging

BURN AFTER READING

Ok. So, here is a recipe for success:

Take 2 Academy Award Winning Directors, 5 cups of an extremely strong cast, 1 tablespoon of intriguing espionage plot, a dash of comedy, and a pinch of sex. Mix together in a film-can, slowly stirring in anticipation with a great trailer. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour and 36 minutes or until...burned.

Unfortunately, the Coen Brothers may not have let this dish cook long enough.

Burn After Reading tells the story of several strangers who get tangled up in a web of lies and deceit over what is supposedly a disc filled with CIA secrets. As the plot thickens, the character's lives cross paths in many strange, exciting, and deadly ways. The funny part is...it's all much ado about nothing at all.

The acting was solid, and the plot was not uninteresting, but the pacing definitely needed work. At times it was slow, and at others it felt as if I had completely missed something. Honestly, I actually felt like specific scenes were fully missing. For example, (technically there are spoilers ahead, but if you've seen the trailer you know what I'm talking about) we are first shown Tilda Swinton creating a copy of financial CIA documents from her husband's (John Malkovitch) computer. However, when we next see the disc it is being viewed by Brad Pitt on his computer. It was as if the entire process of the disc's loss was cut from the movie. The directors later give us a nod as to how the disc may have traveled, but it was too little too late. (end of spoiler).

I was also disappointed by the humor that I was expecting. The trailer actually made me laugh out loud when I first saw it. But, I found that when I saw them in context, they just weren't as humorous. There were some other fun moments, of course. But, it just wasn't as exciting as I expected.

I loved the acting, though. Brad Pitt was great. Several times, I got caught up in his rhythmic enjoyment of life and his ipod. I felt that Frances McDormand could have been a little bit more over the top, but she was still very good. George Cloony struck me as the typical George Cloony character: smooth-talking, good with the ladies, yet still sensitive...but in a manly way, of course. Both John Malcovitch and Tilda Swinton brought a great deal to the screen as well. In fact, there isn't much more I could have asked for in a cast.

I have been told that many people complained that the film didn't go anywhere. This is true. However, that is kind of the point. The film even goes so far as to say this at one point. The point is (for those of you who need one) that these events were caused by people being caught up in their own narcissistic worlds. (Spoilers) John Malkovitch was too proud to be reassigned. Brad Pitt overestimates his knowledge about what it is he has found. Frances McDormand is fixated on her own desires. George Cloony is only seeking self-gratification, and so on. (End of Spoilers). Had they stopped and thought for a moment about what they were doing or how it was affecting the people around them, there would have never been a problem and therefore no story. So, yes. The movie doesn't seem to have a point; but that IS the point!

In the end, the movie was good, but I found I had a hard time concentrating. There were moments when my mind would wander and I would come back to the film, but feel as though I hadn't missed much. I might recommend this film to people who love Coen Brothers movies. However, I would warn them that it is not their best work.