Burn After Reading (2008)

Burn After Reading (2008)

6/10

Starring

George Clooney

Frances McDormand

John Malkovich

Tilda Swinton

Richard Jenkins

Brad Pitt

Directed by Joel and Ethan Coen

The movie is what you will expect from the Coen brothers, it is fun, memorable actors and many scenes that will stick with you for long.

Burn After Reading is one movie that makes you the viewer God. You are watching this movie from the view from above where all the actors are running around unaware of what the others are doing. Even the CIA (make believe CIA in this movie) is confused, but you the viewer have all the pieces needed to put it all together. When the movie ended I was like if only the CIA will just reach out and ask me.

Let me bring you into the plot, Ozzie (Malkovich) is being demoted at work with the CIA, his boss Palmer made him understand that it has more to do with his character than his work. Ozzie goes home and tells his wife Katie (Swinton). She sees it as an opportunity to finally leave him as she was having an affair with a married U.S. Marshal Harry (Clooney).

Ozzie starts a memoir and he saves everything onto a PC. Katie from her lawyers advise copies everything she could specifically his financial records from the PC to give to them to go through.

One of the lawyers assistant forgets a CD which had Ozzie’s memoir at a gym where two not so smart workers at the gym find it Linda (McDormand) and Chad (Pitt).

Linda needing money so she can get some plastic surgery saw this as an opportunity so she and Chad decided to blackmail Ozzie. When Ozzie did not bite they decided to take this to the Russian embassy, which got them more trouble than they could handle.

Also Harry is not as faithful in cheating and we find out. Before you know it everyone is in everyone’s mess and the whole thing resulted in deaths and unneeded aggravation for the CIA.

The movie’s actors were all in good shape giving out performances that will captivate you, especially Brad Pitt’s role and the way he interpreted it.

Kudos to the Coens with the way they directed this movie, which made everyone seem out of it and you the viewer more in control, which for me is a good feeling. There did not put laugh out loud moments, just moments that will make you smile and be happy as you watch.

The movie has a very memorable ending. Where the CIA director speaks to Palmer when everything had gone crazy, “what did we learn Palmer?” “I don’t know sir”... "I guess we learned not to do it again." Even though they did not know what they learned.

The movie is very fun to see it was a critical and commercial success and I will say if you have not see the movie you should go ahead and see it.