Great, Great movie if you know what to expect

Rating: 8/10 (14 September 2008)

I thought this movie was great! I read a lot of reviews and comments that said there was too much swearing and parts were unnecessarily offensive/shocking...but I am assuming that a lot of these people are not huge fans of the Coens, because if you really, truly know the Coens, what the Hell else did you expect? This is a classic Coen comedy.
Another thing bothering me about the reviews are people commenting on specific performances and how great they were, this is a waste of time and effort. The ENTIRE cast brings their A-Game and if you have Pitt, Clooney, Malkovich, McDormand, Swinton, Jenkins and Simmons bringing their best, then you have a powerful ensemble cast to be reckoned with. It would be unfair to point out how awesome Clooney was or Pitt or any particular person because every single actor in this movie does a spectacular job. They embodied their characters humorously and realistically, I have a feeling people are mistaking more interesting characters for better performances.
The story, upon some scrutiny is a bit jumbled and hackneyed, which is the only reason it didn't get a 10/10 from me. However, the slightly muddied plot never once interferes with the pure joy and FUN being had by the cast, the filmmakers and therefore, the audience. That's what Burn After Reading is all about having some goofy, if at times dark and adult, FUN! These are some of the best actors/directors of our time just saying "Screw it! We just did a serious film, let's goof off for a while" and I can attest I enjoyed the ride thoroughly.