Burn After Reading

Burn After Reading (Joel and Ethan Coen, 2008)

****
USA

A bunch of tenacious lunatics with low emotional IQ's and single-minded pursuits run around Washington D.C. with an inflated sense of their own importance in the way the world runs. This leads to many hilarious and convoluted mishaps and a sneaky grand statement about the moral relativism, paranoia and blinding self-interest that have defined the decade.

Burn After Reading

Starring: Tilda Swinton, Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Frances McDormand, John Malkovich
Comedy, 2008

In this movie at one point or another no one is who they seem. A personal trainer stumbles upon a CD that appears to have secret intelligence information on it. His co worker who thinks that her health insurance should cover her cosmetic surgery and is a frequent online dater sees an opportunity to finance her make over and they quickly find themselves way over their head. The antics and tangled web of confusion that ensues is absolutely hilarious.

• I wasn't particularly interested in seeing this movie for some reason but I happened to catch it on Cinemax and I am glad that I did.
• I loved Brad Pitt in this. His whiney portrayal of a pretty boy personal trainer was absoloutely spot on and entertaining. I am used to seeing him play Mr cool private eye types so this was great. George Clooney's character was really funny too.
• Totally entertaining.

5 Stars

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Just Me

BURN AFTER READING (2008)

BOTTOM LINE: Stupid, messy, crap; that in a nut-shell sums up this film which despite its all-star cast and a moment or two of witty satire, is downright annoying to watch.

THE GOOD: From the outset it appears that "Burn After Reading", the Coen Brothers follow up to the Oscar-winning "No Country For Old Men", is going to be an off-the-wall satire of the intelligence industry in the United States, and the setup gives the indication that the film will do a decent job of it with CIA Analyst Osbourne Cox (John Malkovich) unceremoniously dumped from the Agency in the first scene and his explosive response. Following that, Cox decides to right his memoirs but through an elaborate series of events, the memoirs end up in the hands of two fitness instructors, Linda Litzke (Frances McDormand) and Chad Feldheimer (Brad Pitt) who believe they have stumbled upon all the secrets of the CIA and amateurishly try to sell them first to the Russians and then back to Cox. The Coen brothers set up an odd-ball world that you could almost imagine occurring behind the closed walls of the CIA. No more is this evident than in the extended cameo of JK Simmons as the CIA Director who is overlooking the events that occur in this film. In the final scene he asks, "do we even know what happened?" It is the best moment in the film and a biting jab at institutions like the CIA, especially as they proceed to cover up all the questionable actions of the characters they are surveilling even though they do not know what they are covering up.

THE BAD: After that description of the plot you might think it's a good film, however, "Burn After Reading" is a convoluted mess that takes forever to get going (a singularly odd thing given the film is only 90 odd minutes long). Although the plot becomes clear by the end of the film, there's a real sense throughout the running time where you think to yourself, "where is this going?" There are so many characters and so many different jumping off points in the plot that are all clumsily interconnected that the film never really coheres in to delivering any of its intended satire. There are a few moments of comedy, but they are few and far between, and any intended moments of comedy are lost in the mess. Perhaps the most annoying part is that this all-star cast have been made to create some of the most annoying, unrealistic characters you are likely to see. Poor Frances McDormand; her unreal, over-the-top character whose motivation is to get a lot of plastic surgery and sees an opportunity to get the money to pay for it by selling Cox's secrets is woeful. Brad Pitt is a close second; his character appears to be an early-20's idiot, but he looks over forty and completely ridiculous, despite the fact that he has one or two funny lines. George Clooney tries to have some presence, but even he isn't spared; his character's neurotic personality is only manifested in some crazy, over-the-top facial expressions and odd womanising behaving. John Malkovich is perhaps the best of the bunch, mainly because he's playing his usual intense character but his character's plot-line does not really go anywhere. I guess the point of the film is that intelligence is chaotic but I really didn't want to have to sit through 90 minutes of crap just to have that one great scene at the end with the CIA Director asking, "do we even know what happened?" to make the point.

RATING: 3/10

Todd Murphy <br />
http://www.allaboutmovies.net

Burn After Reading

Joel and Ethan Coen are amazing story-tellers, capable of making the simplest situation become interesting to their audience. And what happens in "Burn After Reading" is exactly that - a hugely complicated conflict that boils down to nothing important in the end of the day - which is what makes the movie funnier, since the main characters seem to believe they're in the middle of something immense.

It begins when Osborne Cox (John Malkovich), a small-time CIA analyst, is fired and decides to write a memoir book. Problem is, the classified information ends up in the hands of two morons, Chad (Brad Pitt) - a fuckwit who refers to everything as "shit" ("Man, look at this 'shit'" or "I just got this 'shit'") due to his obvious lack of vocabulary - and Linda (Frances McDormand), a woman obsessed with her appearance who needs money to pay for four plastic surgeries. They decide to blackmail Cox, who's got a serious temper. Meanwhile, Harry (George Clooney), who works at the treasury and has online dating as one of his hobbies, is fucking Cox's wife.

That's the main premise. And then everyone fucks up at some point or another, a fuckup piles on top of the previous fuckup and eventually it's a clusterfuck of relatively epic proportions - and I mean relatively because the CIA doesn't actually give a shit about the files, which makes the characters' self-importance all the funnier.

"Burn After Reading" is supposed to be the third film in a trilogy comprised of "O Brother Where Art Thou" and "Intolerable Cruelty" - I dislike the former and haven't watched the latter, so I'm happy the final film is actually very good. It's incredibly entertaining to watch the characters' lives intertwining into a huge mess, especially since they're very distinct among themselves - which makes their interaction much more interesting. Just watch the scenes where Brad Pitt and John Malkovich share the screen.

Malkovich, by the way, stands out thanks to his ability to be histrionically hilarious. His outbursts are some of the best scenes in the film. Pitt, who has done retarded and eccentric characters before, is wholly convincing as Chad: his attempts to be smarter than he actually is are brilliant (I love the voice he makes when trying to sound intimidating). Frances McDormand, though, seems determined to be funny, which obviously causes the opposite effect - she's terrible in her first scene, which is something I most definitely don't expect from McDormand. Fortunately, that's (almost) counter-balanced by her well-written character. George Clooney is in complete control of his role and clearly having fun, the bastard. That's clear in the scene he slices carrots.

Impossible not to mention J. K. Simmons who, as ALWAYS, is phenomenal in every frame. And he shows up only twice. Someone give this guy his own movie, he's too talented to be a supporting character, although he always works wonders as that. Richard Jenkins cleverly avoids trying to be funny, and instead plays his character seriously - with a touch of tragedy, even - , which just makes his fate even more hilarious. Tilda Swinton plays a cold, stuck-up bitch and she's so convincing I wonder if she's not like that in real life.

With a cast where the only weak link is - I cannot believe I'm saying this - Frances McDormand, the Coens tipically do an excellent job as directors (as well as screenwriters - the dialogue is pure gold, as I've come to expect from their films). Also responsible for the brilliant editing, they compose their frames with tremendous care (something visible in the room Osbourne Cox is told he's being fired, when the camera focuses on four characters with perfect balance) and even play with some spy movie conventions, like satellite vision and the music composed by Carter Burwell, which is hilariously solemn and mysterious, intending to reflect an atmosphere of intrigue and mystery that boils down to just a bunch of assholes having trouble. To make things better, the Coens also use the kind of humor I'm a fan of - black humor. They always do, yes, I'm just glad they're still doing it and I hope they continue.

Proving once again the Coens' versatility - this movie comes after "No Country For Old Men", after all - "Burn After Reading" is a clever comedy of errors, well put together and with a great cast. It's good to see that even after the tremendous success of their previous movie, the Coens are keeping their heads upright and away from their asses.

PS: The chair Clooney's character invents is pure fucking gold.

Written by André Navarro on December 28th 2008

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http://andrenavarro.wordpress.com/

Last updated: 2009-12-21 04:09:05 by andre_navarro

Burn After Reading

In 1998, Joel and Ethan Coen introduced us to a man in a used up brown robe that liked to be called "The Dude" (or El Duderino, if you please). A simple man who wanted nothing more than to go bowling and drink white Russians. But instead this poor man was thrust into a world of nihilism, kidnapping, and ferrets just so he can receive some compensation for his defiled rug. After all, that rug really tied the room together. This, of course, is The Big Lebowski, the film that incorporated the Coen Brothers into mainstream America for the first time. Anybody who has seen it cannot go to a bowling alley without laughing at least a little bit. Ten years later, the Coen Brothers are returning to the world of comedy-crime-capers with the star studded Burn After Reading. Looking at the billing alone, one knows what they should expect from this film. Main actors John Malkovich, George Clooney, Frances McDormand, Tilda Swinton, and Brad Pitt have all either won or been nominated for an Academy Award. Cap it off with the reliable Joel and Ethan Coen, and you have a Best Picture award waiting to happen. Sadly, Burn After Reading does not warrant this praise, nor is it anywhere near as good as the iconic Big Lebowski. But like I said, if you put enough delicious ingredients into a single bowl, you are bound to find something to like. Burn After Reading is a terrific ensemble piece that takes effort from everyone involved to create something wonderful.

The story of Burn After Reading is very difficult to explain given the numerous characters and their respective plot lines. If it gets to be confusing... try reading it again. Linda Litzke (Frances McDormand) is a physical trainer at Hardbodies Gym. She is a very unhappy woman who surfs internet dating sites for Mr. Right. She is also intent on undergoing numerous reconstructive surgeries to help boost her self esteem. However, her dreams are dashed when she finds she does not have the money to pay for all these procedures. Her luck seemed ready to change when her co-worker Chad Feldheimer (Brad Pitt) discovered a disc in the women's locker room which held secret CIA information. Linda convinces Chad to help her find where the disc came from so they could blackmail the person, which could help her pay for her surgeries. They find that the information came from Osborne Cox (John Malkovich), a CIA analyst who recently quit his job after they tried demoting him for his drinking problem. Unhappy with her husbands decision, Osborne's wife Katie (Tilda Swinton) files for divorce, kicking him out of the house so she can be with her man on the side Harry Pfaffer (George Clooney). Katie knows that Pfarrer is cheating on his wife with her, but little does she know he is also cheating on her with anybody he can find. After a chance meeting on the internet, Pfarrer ends up hooking up with Linda, who is still in the process of trying to blackmail Osborne. As every one's lives begin folding over into the others, the result is a very funny (and confusing) film.

To the Coen Brothers, it is not simple enough to just make a comedy. They cannot just write a film that is riotously funny, because it seems to be somewhat beneath them. Much like The Big Lebowski, Burn After Reading is not a one dimensional story that relies deeply on hilarity. The humor in Burn After Reading is found more in subtle plot elements and the traits of the characters than in actual jokes. It is the clever writing and perfect execution by the actors that makes the movie funny. There are few directors that could use this technique effectively, and the Coen's fall into that category. Joel and Ethan are unstoppable forces in the world of film making, able to mold a film exactly to their liking, whether it be a taught thriller or a goofball comedy. This is proved by the 1-2 punch they executed with No Country For Old Men and Burn After Reading. The brothers make sure they are involved in every element of the film making process. Acting as writers, directors, and producers of every single one of their films ensures that no outside force affects their work. Unswayed by the uneducated criticism that "the Coen's make boring movies", they repeatedly come out and deliver exactly what they want to, and the result is usually terrific. Burn After Reading is not their best effort, but in the hands of any other directors, it would have failed miserably.

But I'm sure if you were to ask the Coen Brothers, they would tell you that their success rests heavily on the shoulders of the actors. In Burn After Reading, spot on performances by every single actor involved helps keep the movie afloat. Given the confusing plot, it was imperative that the performers delivered exceptionally well to keep the audience interested. With not a single wet match in the pack, the movie exceeded typical standards that are expected even of a Coen Brothers film. Frances McDormand, whose character Linda can be considered the main protagonist, is often hilarious as she becomes wrapped up in the world of blackmail. Her real moments of recognition came as she interacted with Pitt and Clooney. Pitt acted as the real comic relief in Burn After Reading, due to his character's dimwitted nature and humorous dancing while listening to his iPod. He also served as a significant character foil in the film, especially when sharing screen time with Malkovich's smart Osborne Cox. George Clooney delivers the most engaging performance in the film as the womanizing hobbyist Harry Pfarrer. He brought a real sense of charisma to the screen and proved to be very enjoyable. But the two actors who deserve outstanding praise are John Malkovich and Tilda Swinton. Both are absolutely unforgettable in their roles. Malkovich's scathing and deeply irritated portrayal of the jaded Osborne Cox was not only intensely dramatic and entertaining, but also served as the jumping off point for some jokes. That is the textbook definition of getting the best of both worlds. Swinton too deals out a performance worthy of the Oscar winning actress. Balancing a divorce and an affair, her character was devoid of comedy but still managed to be fascinating.

Although Burn After Reading was blessed with brilliant writing, directing, and acting, it still manages to fall short of what you would hope it to be. The main reason for this is the constantly developing story that takes quite some time to fully reveal itself. Pacing usually is not a problem for the masterful Coen's, who can make a lengthy sequence of desert shots with no dialogue interesting like in No Country, but they seemed a tiny bit off their game here. In this one single aspect they suffered, and it managed to bring the film down a noticeable amount. Their script was full of cunning wit and clever components, but it was still confusing as hell. Even George Clooney in an interview stated he had no idea what the movie was about because it was so damn puzzling. I'm sure he was exaggerating a little, but it gives you an idea of what we are dealing with here.

Burn After Reading is a pleasant 96 minutes long, which is something I thank the Coen's for. Even The Big Lebowski, as terrific as it was, was verging on obscenity with it's length. Even if you are not a fan of the Coen's, Burn After Reading is a different movie for them, and I think they will be able to make a fan out of you. My rating (8/10)

Burn After Reading

Geoge Clooney, Brad Pitt, Frances McDormand, Tilda Swinton, John Malkovich…these are names that don’t necessarily scream comedy, but rather Oscar-worthy dramas, so the fact that this turned out to be a comedy left me in shock and awe.
John Malkovich is quite the eccentric, but talented, actor. Throughout the course of this film he shown the full range of emotions, proving that while he may be a strange cat, he is not without talent.
Brad Pitt is one of the highlights of the film. Sorry ladies, he’s not around very long (think Clooney couldn’t handle it…lol). In his short time he is around, though, he manages to steal the scenes. For some reason, I did not find it hard to believe him as a airhead trainer, who more than likely, was a jock in high school.
George Clooney shines as a paranoid Treasury agent, but we never really find out why he is so paranoid. His paranoia just seems to get worse, especially after he finds out his wife is cheating on him. Ironically, he had been cheating on her with half the women in D.C.
Tilda Swinton and Frances McDormand turn in excellent performances, as well. Swinton disappears about halfway through the film and McDormand becomes more of a major player as the film progresses, even going so far as to play a major role in the film’s climax.
J.K. Simmons also has very limited screentime. As a matter of fact, his time is so limited, he might as well have been a cameo. However, he is hilarious as the CIA director who doesn’t seem to care or understand what is going on with Osbourne Cox and all those around him when the file is brought to him after Chad is killed.
This film was…odd, to say the least. The plot is pretty good well executed, characters well acted, and there are some funny parts (mostly with Brad Pitt, of all people), but I just didn’t know what to make of it.Still, it wasn’t bad, and I did enjoy this film. I won’t be running out to buy it or anything, but it was worth a viewing.

http://thankyounetflix.wordpress.com

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