Rating: 4.5 out of 5
Starring: Adam Driver, Annette Benning, John Hamm
Streaming on: Amazon Prime
To watch or not to watch: A must watch when looking for something intense
The movie is a true story of a US Senate Investigative Committee’s report on the CIA’s interrogation techniques after the 9/11 attacks. The ungainful torture of the suspected terrorists was called “Enhanced Interrogative Techniques” by the CIA and was outsourced to independent contractors, who did not have the qualification to carry out the task. And yet, they got the free hand for many years. After the government changed, interrogation by torture was supposed to stop, but didn’t, thus leading to the investigation. The Committee was led by an idealistic and tenacious Daniel J Jones and his small staff, working in a basement office for about 5 years. They got 6.3 million documents to read which lead to 6,700 pages’ report and about 500 pages summary. Understandably, there was backlash from CIA and the red tape restricted the access directly into the Agency.
Though the premise of the movie doesn’t make it a compelling watch, but it is. Scott Z Burns managed to make the process of reading the documents and the presentation of the report exciting and intriguing. the role of Daniel J Jones, played by Adam Driver, is an inspiring character in and of himself. The investigation, the screenplay of reading of the documents were interspersed by the footage of the interrogation of the suspected terrorists, all playing the emotions of the viewer masterfully.
The acting skills of Adam Driver have never been in question. Coupled with the ideal outlook of Dan Jones, he is truly commendable. The movie doesn’t pull any punches and is transparent about the entire process, including the apathy of the CIA, the plot to cover up the truth and the resistance from the White House to stop the truth from coming out. It is an honest movie, simply made and yet delivers. A must watch.
cinemadilemma.com 