Burn After Reading (2008)
This is comedic tale of espionage. An ousted CIA official's memoir accidentally falls into the hands of two unwise gym employees intent on exploiting their find.
Very funny until the end, the end just ruined it
Movie may not appeal to the masses. Burn after reading is smart and self-deficating. Loved it!
Coen brothers follow up to their award winning No Country for Old Men is no surprise for this left of center filmmaking duo - its complete opposite. A sort of Fargo on speed. Burn is a crazed crime caper about two dim witted gym employees (Pitt & McDormand) who try to extort a disgruntled CIA agent (Malkovich). When they come across a CD - Rom with important classified information on it.
All sorts of hijinks ensue in this dark comedy a modern day cat & mouse chase when intelligence meets absurd stupidity fueled by greed. Malkovich steals the show with severe anger managment issues dropping the F word every five minutes in the film. It's a nonstop laugh ride McDormand proves she can play comedy. Pitt out does himself in this role almost cartoon like with the dumbness.
This film is a nonstop ride you won't want to end but what would you expect from the Coen brothers, the masters of quirky storytelling.
Neal Damiano
Film Journalist
