Body of Lies

Body of Lies was an enjoyable, if somewhat generic, espionage thriller. Acting was good, DiCaprio and Strong in particular, the production values were nice, and the plot was good enough. Solid movie and I got what I was expecting.

So, the whole plot is about catching an Iranian terrorist leader... CIA alone doesn't work, CIA collaborating with Jordanian intelligence doesn't work because the CIA tries to use their assets. Then CIA tries to trick everyone into thinking there's another terrorist cell, forcing the Iranian out... which doesn't work, either. Finally, it's one of the assets of the Jordanians that saves the day and the CIA agent. A bit convoluted, everyone against everyone, some personal loyalties which save the day... but the overall impression: If they all just forgot their egos for a minute and tried to collaborate the goal could have been reached with far less injury torture and hurt egos... and maybe even before further attacks take place (but we know at the latest from 9/11 that poor communication costs lives in this business). The only thing I don't quite understand is that Crowe cuts DiCaprio loose in the end... would they really cut a senior field agent loose in that particular region? An agent who's dissatisfied and whose loyalties might be very much on the brink? Not sure. In any case: Intelligence is dirty business.