Syriana (2005)

User Rating:

7.1/10   

Director:

Stephen Gaghan

Writers (WGA):

Robert Baer (book) (suggestion)
Stephen Gaghan (written by)

Release Date:

9 December 2005 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

Everything is connected

Plot:

A politically-charged epic about the state of the oil industry in the hands of those personally involved and affected by it.

Plot Keywords:

Oil | CIA | Oil Company | Pakistani | Immigrant

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 5 wins & 16 nominations

Cast

Kayvan Novak	...	Arash
George Clooney	...	Bob Barnes
Amr Waked	...	Mohammed Sheik Agiza
Christopher Plummer	...	Dean Whiting
Jeffrey Wright	...	Bennett Holiday
Chris Cooper	...	Jimmy Pope
Robert Foxworth	...	Tommy Barton
Nicky Henson	...	Sydney Hewitt
Nicholas Art	...	Riley Woodman
Matt Damon	...	Bryan Woodman
Amanda Peet	...	Julie Woodman
Steven Hinkle	...	Max Woodman
Daisy Tormé	...	Rebecca
Peter Gerety	...	Leland "Lee" Janus
Richard Lintern	...	Bryan's Boss

Also Known As:

See No Evil (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated R for violence and language.

Runtime:

126 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Urdu | Arabic | Persian | French | Mandarin

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Ireland:15A | Finland:K-15 | UK:15 | Singapore:NC-16 | Australia:MA | Norway:15 | Netherlands:16 | Argentina:16 | Switzerland:14 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:14 (canton of Vaud) | France:U | Germany:12 | Brazil:14 | Sweden:15 | India:UA | Philippines:R-13 | Hungary:16 | Canada:14A (Ontario) | Iceland:16 | New Zealand:R16 | Portugal:M/12 | South Korea:15 | Malaysia:U | Spain:18 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Annapolis, Maryland, USA

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

The scene where George Clooney is going to meet with his son where it says Princeton University is actually the area in front of Sellinger Hall at Loyola College in Maryland.

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: When Bob is in the hotel elevator in Beirut with Price Nasir, the camera's lens is reflected in the mirror edge of the elevator.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Arash: Bobby, where have you been?

Movie Connections:

References "Seinfeld" (1990)

Soundtrack:

Wasp Nest

See no evil

The interesting novel by Robert Baer seems to tell it all about "Syriana". It is a tale that is driven by the ambition of a few unscrupulous people who will stop at nothing to achieve their goal. In a way, Mr. Baer's novel as well as the film seems to be reaffirming Niccolo Machiavelli's "The ends justify the means"

Stephen Gaghan's first major directorial job presents the story in multiple settings running at the same time, which, for a great majority of the public will prove disorienting. Mr. Gaghan has adapted for the screen material like the one in "Syriana" before, so he wasn't a stranger working in that format.

What "Syriana" presents is a sort of rat race for the control of the oil in the Persian Golf, by whatever means necessary. Ultimately, the ones in control of that commodity will dominate the world. We are given about five different narratives in the film that interplay one another in the most unexpected ways. In fact, all these different subplots have a lot more in common than really meets the eye. One could almost recommend the viewing of the film a couple of times in order for all the different parts to come together in our minds and by doing so, the viewer will see the inner mechanisms of this intricate tale of corruption, greed and power.

The cast is enormous. There are a lot of different acting styles in the film. An almost unrecognizable George Clooney plays Bob Barnes, the CIA operative fallen from grace who is instrumental in set the story in motion and who reappears at the end at the climax of the action. Jeffrey Wright does a tremendous job as the lawyer who discovers the hidden mystery in a performance that is completely different from whatever he has done before in the screen. Matt Damon plays the ambitious young man who is at the top of his profession and can help Prince Nasir with his revolutionary views about changes in his country and the Arab world. Ultimately, Wasim, the poor Pakistani guest worker makes the case for the displaced youth of that world that is willing to go ahead and commit the ultimate sacrifice.

There are also good appearances by some seasoned actors that only appear shortly. Tim Blake Nelson, Chris Cooper, Jayne Atkinson, Akbar Kurtha, William Hurt, Christopher Plummer, Robert Foxworth and the rest are seen briefly.

Robert Elswit photographed the film in the different locations and makes it look better. The music score by Alexandre Desplat is heard in the background without interrupting the action. The editing by Tim Squires works well with the action. Stephen Gaghan shows he can do well working with Mr. Baer's material and made an interesting film that while it will irritate some viewers, on the whole he had the right idea in the way to tell this story.