Brilliant, entertaining and thought provoking film

Rating: 10/10 (10 December 2012)

One of the few films in recent years where I walked out of the cinema and said to myself 'I'm going to buy that on DVD' then and there. Cannot praise it highly enough, great acting, an all time wonderful performance from Nic Cage eclipsing even 'Wild at Heart' and stellar supporting cast especially Eamon Walker. Great dialogue and such an intelligent film, so well written, you don't know whether to root for Yuri or Valentine. The final revelation about the UN in-security council had the audience both gasping and laughing at the same time. Surprisingly funny at times too and a quick scan of the newspapers reveals very true to life (would the US government use Yuri to supply the Syrian rebels whilst still having plausible deniability?). I love the gag where Yuri tells us that he never sold to Osama Bin Laden because he bounced cheques.
All told, the sort of film that you go to the cinema to see and how it didn't win an Oscar is frankly beyond me.