Somewhat disappointing gumbo cooked up by the Coens; Pitt & a game cast excel w/the material they are given

Rating: 6/10 (16 September 2008)

BURN AFTER READING (2008) **1/2 George Clooney, France McDormand, Brad Pitt, John Malkovich, Tida Swinton, Richard Jenkins, David Rasche, JK Simmons, Elizabeth Marvel. Somewhat disappointing Coen Bros.' fare of 'a league of morons' plot involving an alcoholic, ex-CIA wonk SOB (Malkovich chewing up the scenery) whose computer disk is found in the unlikely hands of a doofus gym employee (Pitt, stealing every scene with gonzo glee at being dim) and his co-worker (McDormand) who team up to exhort money from him for her benefiting radical cosmetic surgery (!) Clooney is added to the mix as yet another CIA wonk whose predilection for dating-outside-his marriage (including his affair with the chilly Swinton, Malkovich's very unhappy wife) adds insult to injury (pun intended). An uneven blend of nutty comedy and dark ennui that is balanced with élan by the comic duo of Rasche and Simmons as subordinate and supervising 'spooks' added to the potboiling gumbo concocted.