Rendition

The basis of the film is "extraordinary rendition", what basically equates to an anti-terrorist loophole in the constitution where suspects are taken out of the country for interrogation and/or detainment. The story unfolds in a flash, with a highly regarded chemical engineer abducted from a Washington, DC airport and taken to an undisclosed location in "North Africa".

Seemingly parallel plots converge in a twist of flashbacks and different vantage points, but a major continuity flaw left me unsatisfied in the end. Rendition is not your typical patriotic anti-terrorist film, instead it is a reflection of the gray area that surrounds the constant struggle with the war on terror and the thin line between security and liberty.

I also found myself thinking during the film that Reese Witherspoon is the most over-rated actress in the industry. She has only three emotions; happy, angry and confused/sad. I don't find her appealing in the slightest. The added detail that she was 9 months pregnant did nothing to help the story, and although I was sympathetic to the situation, her character evoked nothing from me.

Jake Gyllenhall did a fine job as the CIA liason observing the interrogation. The role was understated and worthy of recognition. I have enjoyed his work in his past few movies, particularly Brokeback Mountain, Jarhead and Zodiac. The other standout performance was the interrogated Omar Metwally, who keeps you suspicious and sympathetic at the same time up until the very end.

The great thing about this movie is the cautionary moral tale. In today's society almost anything can happen, and there is adequate justification for it on either side of lady liberty's scale of justice. It is just too bad that Hollywood has been so entranced with the Muslim Jihad angle lately. It is frankly getting a little old.

Good performances by Gyllenhall and Metwally, mediocre from the other stars; Arkin, Streep and Saarsgaard. Reese Witherspoon continues to rub me the wrong way. Good story, but the continuity flaw ruined it just enough for me to ding it a couple of points. 7/10.