The 10 years the director spent elaborating this project definitely show.

Rating: 10/10 (9 July 2007)

The Good Shepherd is, although considerably long, extremely intriguing. The atmosphere generated is of such fine quality that - unlike in most spy stories, you can immediately relate to the main character, Edward Wilson, wonderfully portrayed by Matt Damon, and continue with him on a strange journey at the end of which Wilson is hopelessly entangled in the net of the early CIA.
What makes this spy story different from all other spy stories is that there are no spectacular action scenes, no bad guys and good guys, and, what is very rare in the cinema, the director does not transmit a ready-made opinion to the viewer on what he or she is supposed to think of each and every character. The viewer is thought to be capable to form an own concept. What a refreshing novelty! While most of the actors do fine, Matt Damon is brilliant.
And I have never heard of Tammy Blanchard before, but she does some great acting here.
The Good Shepherd sports some excellent music which is one of the reasons you are hooked on the film from the start. The first 15 minutes are more exciting than a dozen other spy thrillers put together (yes, the James Bonds included, yes, the newest one as well).
One of the many reasons The Good Shepherd works so well is that throughout the story a sense of reality and everyday life is kept. Pictures of the main character's working hours are followed up by equally interesting family matters.
The only thing that annoyed me was that the characters seemingly did not get any older, although a substantial amount of time passed as the story evolved.
It is absolutely a shame that this movie did not get any Oscars.
The Good Shepherd is not only an interesting account of the early days of the CIA, but the fascinating story of an unfortunate man who should never have trusted anybody but himself, and the consequences of when he did.