I’ve been very hesitant to write this
review, and not just because it’s an incredibly difficult story to
effectively sum up, but because it can also be incredibly difficult to
like Syriana.
I was talking to a prominent reviewer after the local
screening the other night about how best to describe it, and he said to
me “Well, it’s about Oil, isn’t it?”, which to me, is like saying The
African Queen is about a boat ride or Hoosiers was about Basketball
– the underlying basic is there, but it’s not quite accurate.
The best way I can describe the storyline is this: Two American
energy companies are in the midst of a merger, that will grant access
to drilling rights in Kazakhstan – Killen, headed up by Jimmy Pope
(Chris Cooper) & Connex, presided over by Lee Janus (Peter Gerety).
Investigating the rumors of corruption behind the merger are Bennett
Holiday (Jeffrey Wright), Sydney Hewitt (Nicky Henson), and Dean
Whiting (Christopher Plummer). The proposed drilling area is presided
over by the aging Emir Hamad Al-Subaai (Nadim Sawalha), and his sons,
Prince Meshal (Akbar Kurtha)and Prince Nasir (Alexander Siddig), the
idealist with plans to reform his nation’s economy. Rounding out the
players are Energy Analyst, Bryan Woodman (Matt Damon) who is working
with Nasir on new policies, Bob Barnes (George Clooney), an undercover
CIA agent in the twilight of his career, and Wasim (Mazhar Munir), a
young Pakistani who slowly is falling in with the wrong crowd.
Sound confusing? I haven’t even mentioned Tim Blake Nelson, Amanda
Peet, William Hurt, or any of the other major players in the piece, but Syriana really isn’t that complicated when you’re watching it on the
big screen. Putting it in simple terms, if you watched, enjoyed, and
could easily follow Traffic, you are in for a serious treat when it
comes to this film. It’s no surprise in saying that the same man behind
the screenplay (and in the Director’s chair), Stephen Gaghan, was also
responsible for the Academy Award winning screenplay for Traffic, and
has managed to put the shambles of Abandon well behind him to make a
“Soderbergh” film without the Soderbergh (well, he does produce it).
The cast of Syriana put in phenomenal performances as a whole,
leading of course with Clooney as Bob Barnes, who puts in his best
“acting” performance since Out Of Sight, (I say “acting” because I’ve
enjoyed all of his films, but he often seems to be playing a version of
himself, ala Steve McQueen). Matt Damon continues to put in solid
performance after solid performance, and here is no exception, Chris
Cooper – ditto, Christopher Plummer – the same, William Hurt – great in
a small part…. I mean, Jamey Sheridan, Amanda Peet – they all put in
amazing work! I will point out that I haven’t ever been a fan of
Jeffrey Wright, but he sold me big time here in one of the largest
roles in the film.
I’ve never disguised my love of Traffic, and I was worried about Syriana from the get-go, particularly after watching Abandon,
Gaghan’s Directorial debut. I had no doubt that it would be a solid
script given his background, but the difference in control between this
and that is infinite, and the overall film was of such high quality
that I named it my number one film of 2005. Many lay claim to the
title, but Syriana is the true must-see film of this year.
