Syriana

Syriana illustrates the swirling cesspool of oil corporations, lawyers, congressional types, entrepreneurs, and secret service in their quest for oil rights and big money in the Middle East. The plot unravels in a spiraling motion giving us glimpses of characters, their backgrounds and interconnectedness. Even the players that start out as seemingly “good guys” reveal themselves to be less than that by the film’s end. Syriana is considered a “thriller” but its story mirrors the current US-Middle East situation so completely that the thrill is replaced by resignation. The acting is great. George Clooney, Matt Damon, and Jeffrey Wright perfectly exhibit the complexities of their respective characters, and their storylines are full of those “thrilling” twists and turns which ultimately lead to a somewhat predictable conclusion.