4 out of 5

Director: Paul Greengrass

Theres the easy way to describe Green Zone – Bourne in the army – and its not entirely inaccurate, but it misses some of the content juggling that isnt apparent in the Bourne films, as well as the directors growth in composition from those action sequels to this film. Green Zone is a political thriller concerning warrant officer Bournes discovery of a potential government conspiracy during the Iraq conflict. This is the first time I have seen a political movie that criticizes a time period in which I am firmly entrenched, and it was a worthwhile experience. Criticizes? Well… I am not into politics, and I dont think you have to be to enjoy the film, but what I appreciated about this was the evenness with which it attempted to portray things, as well as keeping from rubbing any direct agenda in the viewers face (the criticisms of the government are somewhat well accepted today), saving the platitudes for things which are generally easy concepts to swallow. At the same time it does offer some room to ponder Big Decisions, if one is so inclined. But you can also allow the movie to just truck along as a thriller, which it does quite well. The Greengrass shaky cam is back, but as Ebert noted in his review, it seems placed accordingly in this film, more an addition to the action than a confusion-causing trick used to heighten intensity. I wouldnt quite suggest the movie outright, and there are moments where I was bothered with the questionably crossed line of presenting serious topics as entertainment, but overall, this was an effective, satisfying thriller, managing to keep one enthralled without mindless explosions and naked women every few minutes. And thats rather rare on the big screen, yeah?