At the Movies with Fatwayne

This is an action war movie depicting the search for WMDs (weapons of mass destruction) which were supposedly being produced by Saddam Hussein and the main reason for the U.S. to invade Iraq. As we all know, no such weapons were ever found despite intelligence that suggested otherwise. At the time in which this movie is set, everyone is scrambling around in attempts to find these weapon caches and report to their superiors or their newspapers depending on who they were.

Matt Damon portrays Chief Warrant Officer Roy Miller who is becoming discouraged after conducting several dangerous and non-productive searches for these weapon stockpiles. He is beginning to suspect the validity of the intelligence being provided. At a debriefing he questions the accuracy of the intel and the fact that it is coming from an anonymous source. Of course this does not sit well with CWO Miller’s superiors. He finds himself battling the chaotic surroundings that were Baghdad at that time and the equally impossible maze created by his own government and the CIA. Everyone, it appears, has their own agenda.

A central character in the mystery is Iraqi General Al-Rawi (Yigal Naor) who is hiding in safe houses since the Americans are after him. He has been designated the “Jack of Clubs” which was a pseudonym for one of the 52 most wanted Iraqis in the famous deck of cards. In an earlier meeting in Jordan, Al-Rawi was said to have stated that there were no WMD since the first Gulf War. It seems that he gave this information to the Pentagon Special Intelligence Chief, Clark Poundstone (Greg Kinnear) who in turn lied to his government to insure the overthrow of Saddam and the establishment of democracy in Iraq. Poundstone is very dangerous as a bureaucrat with unlimited power and the will to use it in order to accomplish his own agenda no matter the cost in lives.

Suffice it to say that there is a lot in intrigue and backstabbing in this movie. It is factually accurate enough to bring about feelings of deja vu and memories of newspaper headlines from the not too distant past. It almost has overtones of an effort by Michael Moore as it seems to be making a political statement. It is also an action filled adventure with many gritty war scenes and multitudes of bodies to keep even the most numbed amongst us interested.

Matt Damon delivers pretty much the same performance that he has in the Bourne films. He is a good action star but it seems his career is becoming typecast. Too bad. As for the rest of the cast, they do a credible job of creating an aura that positively envelopes this film and makes you just want to shake the sand out of your boots! I found this production to be just average, nothing more.

Quotes from Green Zone

Rated   -  R  -

Fatwayne’s Rating   –   -