'Body of Lies' review

Russell Crowe and Leonardo DiCaprio (Credit: Warner Bros.)

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Russell Crowe gained more than 60 pounds to play Ed Hoffman, a CIA official who sends operative Roger Ferris (Leonardo DiCaprio, not bad with his Arabic) from Iraq to Jordan to sniff out a terrorist leader (Alon Abutbul). As Hoffman continually undermines Ferris' authority from overseas, the operation involves Ferris befriending a powerful player in Jordanian intelligence (Mark Strong) and falling for a nurse (Golshifteh Farahani).

The buzz: Perhaps this is the topical drama viewers will actually go see: The movie continues DiCaprio’s streak of working only with big-time directors (Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg, Edward Zwick), and whenever Crowe teams up with director Ridley Scott (“American Gangster,” “Gladiator”) there’s usually high-stakes drama and plenty of bloodshed to match. Based on the 2004 novel “Penetration” by Washington Post columnist David Ignatius, the film’s got a new, generic title because we assume a movie called “Penetration” brings in a different type of actors for the casting call. (Er, as opposed to “Body of Lies,” which sounds like a late-night Cinemax flick.)

The verdict: Enough with jamming love stories in the middle of this madness (remember “Rendition”?). That said, “Body of Lies” is intriguing as Ferris struggles to spearhead the operation as Hoffman’s faraway decisions change the situation like the earth’s plates moving beneath him. There’s a lot of finger-pointing at disjointed U.S. procedure, and a hole at the film’s center where there should be an unraveling of this operational inefficiency. But Scott does something most directors of terrorism-related films haven’t: He makes the threats, the obstacles and the explosions seem shatteringly real, and fashions big-budget entertainment that’s neither exploitative nor patronizing.

Did you know? Hani (Strong) comforts a skeptical Ferris by saying that he’s not watching him, he’s watching out for him. As long as it’s in your best interests, who cares who’s got their eyes on you?

Video: Watch the review of 'Body of Lies'

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