Leave it to those crafty Coen Brothers to follow up their Oscar winning No Country for Old Men with a dark comedy worthy of being called an instant Cult classic. Burn After Reading is their new film and it’s bound to leave you with plenty of laughs, gasps and mysterious questions. Like just what exactly was that big purple thing? I’d tell you myself, but as you know if you read these movie reviews, I try not to give to much away.
Frances McDormand and Brad Pitt are perfectly cast as two bumbling local gym employees who “accidentally” stumble across a disgruntled ex CIA worker’s (John Malkovich) private memoirs. Foolishly thinking they have uncovered some government secrets, these two newbie opportunist set in motion a chain of events that includes, blackmail, conspiracy, murder and mayhem. Let’s not forget about the other players including George Clooney, who gives us a happily married Federal Marshall, but an even happier philanderer. 2008’s Best supporting Actress winner Tilda Swinton also excels here as the coldest pediatrician/wife you may ever meet. Not to worry though, this is a comedy at heart and the laughs are plentiful.
The performances from everyone in the film are Top notch and in my personal opinion worth seeing twice. Especially that of Malkovich who somehow manges to make dropping the F bomb a scientifically calculated new art form. However, top kudos must go to Brad Pitt who hilariously scene steals the entire movie. I can’t recently remember any character who had me laughing just at the mere sight of him onscreen. It’s a wonder why he doesn’t do comedy more often, because as is proven here, he definitely has the chops for it.
Keep in mind though this is a Coen Brothers film, so it’s a safe bet that everything may not turn out sunshine and rainbows. But just as they did with Fargo, these quirky siblings manage to blend shocking sight gags and murderous violence quite well. Worth noting is that there isn’t a single brightly lit shot in the movie, but that suits the mood of this outstandingly grim comedy just fine.
So to sum things up, a few folks may comicaly die, bad things will happen to decent people, but as long as you make yourself happy, things will all work out in the end. Bravo, Coen Brothers, Bravo.
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