Epic Shades Of Gray

Rating: 8/10 (25 December 2006)

"Epic shades of gray...." That's how my son described this movie and I thought it was a very astute observation (he's 17 and graduating next year). DeNiro as director takes a lot of his cues from all the directors he's worked with, but with this film, it's obvious that Coppola was his biggest influence as auteur. Lots of use of shadow and light as alliteration to the screenplay. Muted color tones suddenly become vivid as truth is revealed. Use of flashback as exposition to Matt Damon's extraordinary turn as Edward Wilson, a fictional forefather of the CIA. The flashbacks act as a gauge to the gradual loss of Wilson's soul, from his introduction to Skull & Bones ritual and culminating in the ultimate disclosure of failure at the Bay of Pigs fiasco. Afficionados of the X-files will no doubt enjoy the shrouds of secrecy that permeate this yarn, especially since the most subliminal message of this film is: Trust No One. I felt that Angelina Jolie's character as Damon's wife, though well drawn, was missing something from the cutting room floor and towards the end of the film, it was hard to swallow the thought of Matt Damon and Angelina Jolie being the parents of a 22 year old CIA agent. William Hurt has a way of playing despicable characters that appear normal. John Turturro as Damon's assistant is a cool customer, never revealing what hand he is holding. Alec Baldwin as Wilson's FBI contact recalls the performance of Donald Sutherland's deep throat-ish character in JFK---warm, amiable, but dangerous. Even DeNiro takes a turn as the General who helps the President transform the wartime OSS to the peacetime CIA and as one of Damon's mentors. This movie is probably DeNiro's most ambitious, though I found his style lumbering, but the plot was strong enough to keep me attune to the story.