Keith Cohen (24 May 2012)

This compelling film reaches out to the audience and instills a feeling of great pride in being an American. No movie this year has done a better job of entertaining, educating and informing the audience. It deserves to be in the discussion for...

(24 May 2012)

Very nasty, very real, political tricks come to the surface in prime time.

This review is from: Fair Game (DVD) Fair GameWith the exception of Watergate, I can't remember another movie that shows the corruption that abounds within the highest-of-the-high executive offices of our government. This is the story of how a CIA agent was outed and her husband's reputation smeared because he publicly exposed a blatant lie regarding shipment of material to Iraq from Africa. The lie was being used by the Bush Administration to help draw us into a war with Iraq.If you watch television at all you know the lead characters in this film. Valerie Plame, former CIA agent and her former ambassador husband,Joseph Wilson, played by Naomi Watts and Sean Penn. They played their parts with great skill and insight.The movie is a thriller and tells the story very well. The V.P. and his aide Mr. Libby,(Scooter) to those who are his friends, are all there. The aftermath of Valerie's outing comes to life and the suspense builds.Most people who are breathing are aware of this story and no matter your own thoughts on the matter will enjoy this true-to-life drama. You can decide what is fact and what is fiction. However you lean, it is a good movie, well written and well acted. Buy it and enjoy.

Jason Best (15 May 2012)

Gripping real-life spy movie Fair Game, a sober and sobering account of the double-dealing of the Bush White House in the run-up to the US invasion of Iraq.

Kevin McCarthy (15 May 2012)

Fair Game is a powerful thriller that rides that fine line between telling the truth and keeping things entertaining

(30 April 2012)

Spies Like Us

Valerie Plame could have stepped out of a spy novel or a Hollywood thriller. A beautiful wife and mother, married to a diplomat, she has a day job, and she's a CIA spy. It's a true life version of something like "True Lies."It is a story we all saw unfold on the news and Sunday morning news shows in 2003. Plame's husband, diplomat Joseph Wilson is asked by Vice President Dick Cheney's office to go to Niger to investigate whether 50 tons of yellow cake uranium was secretly sold to Saddam Hussein. While at the CIA Valerie is involved the controversy of whether aluminum rods sold to Hussein are meant for the enrichment of uranium to make nuclear weapons. Both are discovered to be unfounded, both are answers the White House didn't want to invalidate their effort for a war with Iraq. The Bush administration sent Scooter Libby over to the CIA to try and intimidate the CIA into providing the answers they wanted about WMD. In response to President George Bush's State of the Union address in which he said Niger sold the yellow cake uranium to Iraq, Wilson writes an opinion piece that contradicts the President's assertion and the next thing they knew, Plame was outed as a CIA field agent, and it appeared the leak came from the White House in an attempt to discredit Wilson and Plame.As Wilson, Sean Penn turns in a performance where he disappears into the role without totally disappearing. Being the consumate actor that he is, Penn doesn't offer an impersonation of Wilson but delivers the sense of Wilson through his mannerisms, and that's what really sells the believability of the character Penn has created. Naomi Watts looks like she could be Valerie Plame's younger sister, and turns in one of the better performances of her career. David Andrews as Scooter Libby conveys all the condescending arrogance, not only of the Bush administration but of power. Adam LeFevre does a good Karl Rove. Sam Shepard does a cameo as Plame's father and provides a nice moment as the voice of reason providing her character with sage advice and perspective. President George W. Bush is shown in news footage.Director Doug Liman who directed "Mr. and Mrs. Smith" realistically shows the flip side of "Mr. and Mrs. Smith" they could be bookends, one that shows a fantastical husband and wife spy team, and one that realistically portrays a couple in that situation. "Fair Game" is a low key antidote to the fantasy. Limon also shows the repercussions of Plame's outing not only in the Wilsons' relationship but in the bigger picture that with Plame's outing, U.S. officials knowingly exposed her contacts and they "disappeared."In the end "Fair Game" is the story of a family withstanding the most divisive forces brought to bare to divide and conquer Plame and Wilson. In the beginning of "Fair Game" Plame and Wilson have to live their lives as a lie. But in the end it is the truth that saves them.The only bonus feature is a commentary by Wilson and Plame which is good when the corroborate the factual in the film.

Nigel Andrews (30 April 2012)

Reality disguised as improbable thriller fiction.

(30 April 2012)

Riveting Film

This review is from: Fair Game [Blu-ray] (Blu-ray) The video and audio on this blu ray are excellent. What really bears comment if the film itself. "Fair Game" is the true story of Valarie Plame Wilson, a covert CIA agent and her husband, former ambassador Joe Wilson. Leading up to the 2003 war in Iraq, was the concern that Saddam Hussein was gearing up to produce nuclear weapons. And at the request of the Vice President's office, the CIA asked Joe Wilson to go on a fact finding trip to Niger (the presumed location of the purchase by Iraqi agents of a form of uranium called "yellow cake"). Wilson was previously an ambassador under Presidents GHW Bush and Clinton and knew the area well. His findings were in fact that rumors of such purchases were false and he reported such.When GW Bush launched the war against Iraq, the rationale was based principally on the Iraqi possession of such weapons of mass destruction. When that lie was perpetuated by Bush in his State of the Union address (the now infamous "sixteen words"), Joe Wilson spoke out in a Op-ed piece in the Washington Post. And from that point on, members of the Bush administration, from Dick Cheney on down, sought to discredit Joe Wilson by exposing his wife (Valarie Plame Wilson) as a covert CIA operative. And they further attempted to assassinate the character and reputation of both by claiming that his wife had sent Joe Wilson on the trip as a junket.The official records are now clear (after the Fitzgerald investigation and the indictment of Scooter Libby) that Joe Wilson was telling the truth as he exposed one of the biggest lies in the history of U.S. foreign policy one that lead to biggest foreign policy disaster since the Vietnam war----namely the Iraqi war. Libby was convicted of lying and obstruction of justice. Bush took care of his own by commuting Libby's sentence, but he did not pardon him.This film is a story of patriotism and bravery; and it also the story for abuse of power, treachery and deceit.

del91 (30 April 2012)

Fact and fiction balanced with terrific performances

From the opening scene in Malaysia to the mines of Niger and then tothe streets of Baghdad, "Fair Game" begins as an espionage thriller, a"Bourne" film without the obligatory car chases, shootouts and fights,but rather, with a woman who uses her brains and intellect.Once the film shifts its focus back in the United States of America,the film takes a slight turn to the dramatic route and thus may seemmelodramatic with this married people's lives being tinkered with andwith no one but each other to help them. Having said that, "Fair Game"(no, not that dreadful Cindy Crawford/William Baldwin cheeseball) is aremarkably well-crafted political thriller that is driven home withoutstanding, terrific performances by both Naomi Watts and especiallySean Penn.Whether you believe the many questions posed in the film are truth ormerely lies (whether the agency really did take that drastic measure tocover up what the government did not want to hear to prevent the war...or is this all propaganda from the start?), I really can't say, becausethis happened in another country far away from my home, so I have noright to say whose side I'm on.Watts plays CIA agent Valerie Plame whose cover gets blown and who getsblamed for the leak of wrong information to the White House, who usessaid information to invade Iraq. Is this all true? Suppose it is, giventhat the news footage of both at-the-time President Bush and VicePresident Cheney look strikingly foreshadowing when compared to theevents in the movie - this is meant to provoke outrage at thegovernment's so-called "ignorance and stupidity" so they say, so what?I'm not saying anything to make myself sound like I'm on the wrongline, nor am I saying anything to disprove the film's "facts" either.I'm just stating that this is a great drama, no matter what youbelieve.See, the thing with drama is that fact can and will be fictionalized sothat it may be accepted easily by the ever-interested audience. "FairGame" may be slow-paced and devoid of action sequences ala Doug Liman'sprevious blockbuster efforts, but here not a moment lost my interest,even the dramatic ones between Watts and Penn, as they ignite thescreen with fiery performances, as this political scandal isn't onlyaffecting their jobs and their reputations, it's also affecting theirlove life. And it's crumbling as things go from bad to worse in thisfilm.Watts is superb in this film. In the beginning she acts veryconvincingly as a strong, determined, iron-willed woman, mother, andwife who is very confident about herself and not willing to push intoany demand that comes at her way. Later after the scandal is spread sheslowly but surely devolves into a woman that is filling withdesperation and fear, until she nearly loses control of her downwardspiral. Ditto with Sean Penn here. He is absolutely mesmerizing, asalways, as Plame's husband Ambassador Joe Wilson. Soft spoken andcharming when he needs to, but when he's angry he makes everyone feelthe rage without becoming too overdone. Wilson as portrayed by Penn isa character who's not about to let this scandal get in the way of hisfamily, so he decides to clear his and his wife's name by using themedia and criticizing the government. Of course, his wife isn't happyabout this and it causes more tension between them. Penn and Watts showterrific chemistry together that hasn't been lost since "21 Grams" andboth of them vividly portray not politicians trying to get the truth,but rather more of a family trying to pull themselves together. So it'snot entirely an espionage thriller like this film was sadly marketedas. The supporting actors are also great in their own right.This film does pose a lot of questions that make one think during themovie about the purpose and cause of the Iraq war, the invasion andmore importantly, the power and impact the US government has on theirown people and the various ways they can abuse it on them to getwhatever they want. And this is proved with the decaying lives of Plameand Wilson from American citizens to branded traitors. You can'timagine how they really felt, but Penn and Watts come really, REALLYclose to it.The film has it's flaws, though. The pacing could be a little bittighter and the dialog in Iraq doesn't sound genuinely Iraqi. However,Doug Liman's direction is enough to keep the tension gripping and thefilm focused on the characters and not just glimpses of the war andscandal themselves. John Powell's music score is refreshingly low-keyand it suits the dramatic mood of the film even better. Liman'scinematography (pulling a double duty here) is nicely framed withoutexcessive style to it, making it simple, easy to watch, and gripping.Editing is fluid and the screenplay is written very well with equalamounts of intelligence and emotions.In short, this is a superbly fine drama of the lives of the people inthe limelight of this political scandal, with terrific performances andstrong direction worthy of a theater ticket. Go see this movie andsavor the performances and the question of the US government on its ownpeople.I find it strangely coincidental that the filmmakers from the "JasonBourne" series both released movies this year that criticize the Bushadministration. Doug Liman made this film, while Paul Greengrass madethe slightly superior "Green Zone" and even managed to bring star MattDamon with him. Composer John Powell scored both films. You can thinkof this movie as a companion piece to "Green Zone", hell, you canimagine the events in both movies happening at the same time. Now THATwould be a wicked idea.Overall rating: 80/100

Bill Gibron (24 April 2012)

Up until the moment the MSNBC/Fox News TV trial of the truth begins, Fair Game is gangbusters

James Verniere (23 April 2012)

I'm not saying that a great film cannot be made out of the run-up to the war in Iraq. But "Fair Game," Doug Liman's flat drama about the 2003 politically charged "outing" of covert CIA agent Valerie Plame Wilson (Naomi Watts), is not it.

(21 April 2012)

Great true political thriller that will have you debating for days. Watts is fantastic in this. Very good movie. I say B+

How can you hide when everyone knows who you are? This is the true story of outed CIA agent Valerie Plame (Watts). After her husband Joe (Penn) writes a newspaper article contradicting the findings of the White House about "Yellow Cake" and the reasons for the Iraq war, her real name appears in the newspaper and her life is changed forever. After finding out the White House was behind the outing her husband, Joe tries to take on the government. This will be a hard movie for me to review. I really enjoyed it, I love movies that spark debate, but it will be hard to keep my personal political views out of it. This is another movie (there seems to be a lot lately) that because of a low budget and no explosions doesn't get the studio support that it deserves in order to get a wide release. The performances are great. Naomi Watts really steals the movie, which is hard to do opposite Sean Penn. I really do recommend this movie, but it has the capability of polarizing people so be warned. This is definatly a movie that will have you talking long after the movie is over. I give it a B+.Would I watch again? - Yes, with a few people I know just so we can talk about it after.

(20 April 2012)

Fascinating story, good movie

I didn't know much about this story before watching the movie, so I learned a lot. Watching the movie made me want to learn even more. The story was well-told and the acting was great.

ladymoonpictures (20 April 2012)

Political Folly_Liberal Attempt to Distort and Confound_Underhanded Penn Diatribe

Okay, we know Penn's a good buddy of the Venez. dictator Hugo Chavez.Would we expect anything fair and balanced from this unAmerican? Ofcourse not. And that's exactly what we get. A movie hell bent onattempting to prove Iraq didn't have WMD's. Of course! they had WMD's!They used the chemical ones on their own people, killing over 5,000 ofem. Frankly, it wouldn't have mattered if they didn't have any withsuch a corrupt, evil, murdering dictator as they had in Hussein! If ourguys would've only found a pack of firecrackers...they were justifiedin the unified invasion...agreed to by the Dem's AND Repubs as well asthe international coalition! So please, let's quit, once and for all inblaming Bush and Cheney for something that was agreed to by our entiregovernment, albeit a few and I mean few exceptions. And the only realthing we can blame on Cheney (excepting Hallieburton) is that he's alousy shot!

Brian Gibson (19 April 2012)

Makes a remarkably taut, tense story out of recent events. In its thrilling exposure of the web of lies built around the Iraq invasion, it reminds us how much the rhetoric of the 'war on terror' invaded all of our homes, depending on us to be doormats.

(19 April 2012)

Requires High IQ

This review is from: Fair Game (Amazon Instant Video) If you are looking for a bang bang ... F * F ** movie (as so eloquently stated by the 1 and 2 stars ratings), this is not your stop. But if you have appreciated the complexity of Syriana and are a M. Moore fan, then this could be another GREAT movie to add to that collection. I was not going to watch it, even though I am a Penn fan, because it is still very painful memory for me. The day Bush invaded Iraq, was the day I stopped believing in truthful government ... Still, I am very glad I did. The acting was impeccable, the directing superb and shilling.... It is difficult to re-live the magnitude of the power of a government set to serve its own business goals to the detriment of human lives. But it was worth the time, because it is a great reminder about what this country stands for. There isn't much I did not know about the hypocrisy behind the invasion of Iraq, but I am glad I saw the movie anyways because it reinforced that a government should be afraid of its people and not the other way around. So if you are up for a cup full of emotional discomfort that will leave you with more questions than answers, then this is for you.

skylinerj34 (18 April 2012)

Why are Rove, Chenney and Libby still out and about?

Great movie! It brings true light to events that should have been afull blown out scandal but turned out to be a blimp in the wholequagmire of the Iraq war. I think it did a very good job showing theimplications of the government's action not just on ongoing operationsbut on the personal lives of the the Wilsons. This movie is smart andrealistic. It's not a fast pace action movie with guns and muscles, butan intelligent developing drama based on real events. It sticks so muchto the facts that it would be a documentary if Valerie Plame and JosephWilson were not played by actors. Which brings me to this question: Whyare Rove, Chenney and Libby not in jail? I don't think the goal of thismovie was entertainment but depicting the facts and in that perspectiveit achieved its goals and that's why it gets a 10 from me. The superbacting by Sean Penn and Naomi Watts is a plus.

Henry Fitzherbert (15 April 2012)

Satisfying, grown-up entertainment.

Shawn Levy (15 April 2012)

Karl Rove infamously declared the marriage of Plame and Wilson to be "fair game" for political dirty tricks; this dull, forgettable picture may, ironically, be the ultimate proof of that pronouncement.

aharmas (14 April 2012)

Integrity, Passion, and Conviction

Now I can believe this girl can handle that giant gorilla! Watts hasalways been an actress able to portray strong emotions, even in momentsof turmoil and instability, there's something that compels us to watch.For years, she has appeared in a variety of films that have shown usher range. Somehow, her daring choices have kept her off the radar. Herlatest move is a remarkable entry, but this time, her role is acombination of intrigue, politics, and family drama, and we know wherethat is heading.Here is the story of a CIA agent whose identity is disclosed in aseries of political maneuvers. Before anyone can register therepercussions of that revelation, things get pretty ugly for ourprotagonist. When you pair a complex political issue with a familydrama, and her husband is played by Sean Penn, things can becomeintense, explosive, and this is effectively portrayed by Penn, a manwho is known not to hold much back. The fury of his performance isperfectly showcased in intimate scenes with his wife, as they see theirmarriage disintegrate, and later when he deals with public opinion, andhe puts a reporter's questionable methods in her place.The film requires a couple of viewings in order to comprehend some ofthe issues. What drives the film forward and gets our attention is thechemistry of the leads, as we see them deal with both the personal andthe professional matters, allowing us to see two intelligent anddedicated people see their existence destroyed, as public opinion andpolitical situations add to their personal drama.It is an intelligent film, and with Watts and Penn one that is notbound to disappoint.

Michael Fargo (14 April 2012)

Ghosts

Doug Liman's "Fair Game" succeeds on at least one count. It dramatizesthe testimony of various officials who have sworn testimony to backthem up. On the other "side," we have a list of claims that even at thetime were discredited and are still discredited, but there is no"version" of how and why this country went to war with Iraq. The filmleaves no argument because there is no other side. And to date, westill do not have a reason as to why the administration chose to standbefore the world and make claims they knew to be discredited.The events leading up to the declaration of war take up about half thefilm's running time. In the first half, we see what Valerie Plame doesat the CIA. It's surprisingly detailed and candid and more than alittle frightening. Watching Plame putting the squeeze on people whoare in a position to react in various ways made me squirm. While thesevarious operatives are fiction, we assume they are close to the truth.And the outcome for them when the Bush Administration's cover is blownmakes one very ashamed of our leaders.The second half of the film omits the sensational allegationsconcerning journalists Judith Miller and Robert Novak since neither ofthe principles in the film ever had contact with them. Valarie Plameand Joe Wilson were only their victims. And as the heads begin to rollthe relationship of the Wilson's takes center stage. While that'sinteresting, it's not what concerns us the most in this story. JoeWilson, played by Sean Penn, is more gentle than the person we saw onmedia outlets. While Penn conveys the idealism of Wilson, the arroganceis somehow less obnoxious.Naomi Watts, as always, gives a terrific portrayal of a woman who livestwo lives. The Valerie Plame we saw at the Senate Hearings is in Watt'sperformance, but we also see the strength, intelligence and commitmentshe makes to a job that requires her to play many sides of the samefence. For instance, there's a domestic scene where Wilson complainsabout the danger of his wife's job and he never knows where she's goingor if he'll ever see her again. Plame patiently listens and then says,"I'm going to Cleveland." But then boards an airplane to Iraq to manageone of her operatives in a very tense drama that is used to demonstratewhat happens when you blow the cover of a CIA agent. So we're left toside with Joe Wilson in the marriage. He's married to a ghost who can'tlevel with him about much of anything, including why his wife broughthim into the Iraq debacle in the first place. It's a rich and likelyaccurate illustration of what it must be like to be married to someonewho works for the CIA.Yet in the end, we leave the theater hearing only one side of theargument, and that's because the Bush Administration has never beencalled to account for why they insisted on the war with Iraq. We do seewhy they needed to destroy the lives of these two people, and in doingso harmed much more than a married couple in Washington, DC. This iswell acted, tightly written and directed with straight-forward finessemaking it one of the finest films of the year.