Matt Damon reteams with his Bourne Supremacy director to create a thriller grounded in contemporary politics: the search for weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. Chief Warrant Officer Roy Miller (Damon) travels across war-torn Iraq, pursuing the intelligence he’s been given, but every site indicated comes up empty of WMDs. Investigating the source of the intelligence, he finds himself caught between CIA agent Martin Brown (Brendan Gleeson, 28 Days Later) and politician Clark Poundstone (Greg Kinnear, Little Miss Sunshine) over the identity of “Magellan,” the supposed source. As Miller tracks down an Iraqi general, he ends up further and further afield, facing danger from all sides. It’s hard to say which is the greater accomplishment–that Green Zone manages to turn a still-volatile political issue into a propulsive action movie, or that it manages to depict Iraqi people as individuals with a wide range of responses to what’s happened to their country. Damon’s performance is low-key but effective as Miller tries to maintain some semblance of moral clarity in a circumstance that muddies everything. Also featuring Amy Ryan (Gone Baby Gone) as a compromised journalist and Khalid Abdalla (The Kite Runner) as an Iraqi civilian who gets dragged into far more than he expected. –Bret Fetzer
Rating: 
(out of 33 reviews)
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June 1, 2010
#1
Review by G. Jennings
Rating:
When the credits rolled this afternoon, a gentlemen sitting behind me had to take a deep breath. “Man, I’m just worn out from watching the movie.” I agreed with him.
This movie has all the excitement of the Jason Bourne series: hot action scenes, great sound editing, a tight script, a stellar soundtrack and excellent acting by everyone in the film, and I mean everyone!
But I couldn’t handle all the camera shakes. In fact, half the movie is like this. I understand Hollywood is lately using hand-carried, un-dollyed camera techniques to create the sense of chaos and panic in a film, but this was just too much. It was like being on a roller coaster ride with the scene moving violently and not you. I regretted eating that pack of Skittles just before the film started. When I got home, I simply had to lie down for an hour.
It’s a shame because the story is brilliant, and I love Matt Damon’s strong acting style. If you’re a fan of the Jason Bourne films, this is right up your alley, but you might want to bring a vomit bag with you. Then again…maybe not.
I was puzzled why Green Zone didn’t do so well at the Box Office on its opening weekend; now, I understand why. It’s not the film…it’s the filming.
Wonderful, wonderful story, but it’s just nauseating to watch…literally. Too bad.
I’m glad the movie wasn’t in 3D. I wouldn’t be able to handle it.
June 1, 2010
#2
Review by Westley
Rating:
“Green Zone” stars Matt Damon as Warrant Officer Roy Miller, leader a battalion in 2003 Iraq charged with finding the elusive “weapons of mass destruction.” However, every time they are given intelligence, it turns out to be wrong. Extremely wrong. Toilet factory wrong. Miller starts to question his superiors about the source of the intel, which raises some hackles, but also attracts the interest of the CIA bureau chief in Baghdad, Martin Brown (played by Brendan Gleeson). Miller’s frustration mounts when his team is sent to what turns out to be a playground; however, his luck turns when a local resident approaches the team and informs them about a meeting of high-level Iraqis just down the street. Miller is skeptical but decides to investigate, and his team stumbles upon the number two man in Saddam Hussein’s toppled government. Unfortunately, not everyone in the allied forces is pleased, and Miller finds himself not knowing who to trust and at the center of a confusing web of intelligence.
At this point, quite a few movies have been made about the Iraqi war, all focusing on slightly different aspects of the war and with different political slants and agendas. The best of these movies (Stop-Loss, The Hurt Locker) have taken on very specific aspects of the war and informed the public. “Green Zone” attempts to take on a broader and more controversial issue – whether we should have been there in the first place and whether the intelligence that led us into Iraq was good. Unfortunately, the plot details regarding that issue are fictionalized. So what is the purpose? The movie cannot illuminate for us whether we should have engaged in this war, so it serves only to add fuel (fictionalized fuel!) to the fire for those who have argued that the war was started under false pretences.
Of course, war movies have long served as entertainment, and “Green Zone” was brought to us by the same team (Damon and director Paul Greengrass) who made “The Bourne Supremacy” and “The Bourne Ultimatum,” so one might expect a smashing good thriller. As such, “Green Zone” is fairly well done. There are some exciting segments where Miller slowly realizes what is happening as well as a few decent action scenes. However, it’s a much noisier and chaotic and therefore less enjoyable film than any of the Bourne series, and it never develops the tension those movies instill. Also, let’s face it – the superior Oscar-winning “The Hurt Locker” elevated the war genre; “Green Zone” feels surprisingly old-fashioned and pointless in contrast. “Green Zone” is ultimately a decent, above average thriller but don’t expect much else.
June 1, 2010
#3
Review by The Mad Bostonian
Rating:
This is an edge of your seat thriller, Damon plays Chief warrant officer Roy Miller, tasked in finding WMDs in Iraq, where his superiors give him Intel and he then follows and executes said orders, but the thing is, every site he goes to there are no WMDs… so what is going on? His only ally is CIA guy Martin Brown (Brendan Gleeson), who knows Middle Eastern Affairs better than anyone who always seems to be butting heads with Clark Poundstone (Greg Kinnear), and a reporter who wants the facts, the truth, (Amy Ryan), Pentagon weasel Clark Poundstone has a source code named Magellan, who is telling Poundstone of these alleged WMD sights, but Miller’s Team is always turning up nothing. Then it seems Miller’s task is to bring in an Iraqi General who may hold the key to what is going on before Poundstone does using a Special Ops Unit at his disposal. The Special Ops Unit is led by Jason Isaacs, a nice small/ cameo role (where the viewer recognizes him but can’t quit put a finger on who he is, but definitely seen him in other movies— played the baddie in The Patriot) His task is to silence Miller following orders from Poundstone. Poundstone’s big picture is political, show the people abroad what they want to hear and see… Gaining a Foot hold and winning the war on Terror, where as it’s not that easy for the soldiers on the ground actually doing the real work like Miller and his Team.
Paul Greengrass gives us a movie that touches on this hot topic of the Iraqi War. Where baddies aren’t just Insurgents, where good/bad is blurred, obviously I think Kinnear could be deemed the “bad guy”— or likes to think he’s just doing his job, going into a country thinking to himself it’s for the good but ultimately invading a country for all the wrong reasons (sorry to bring in my own beliefs) That’s what makes this movie so great. Greengrass portrays the Iraqis with a voice that ultimately once U.S Soldiers pull out it is up to them to forge a new country. There is a nice scene where Miller comes out of the streets into a posh Palace where reporters/ CIA/ top officials are staying, he’s all sweaty, dirty, and he looks around and sees a BBQ, sees blond women in the pool, guys in polos lounging, drinking beer, as if Miller just stepped into the Twilight Zone, wanting answers why his sites are turning up empty. These people don’t realize what is going on outside these walls.
Damon plays Miller as the usual in control, steady, soldier, wanting the real answers, the facts, no matter how dirty, or right or wrong the answer may be, he just doesn’t want to go around Baghdad blind where everything is in the Grey. He really does want to know is there a purpose on why we are here, where I remember a member of Miller’s team states, “The facts don’t matter we’re here to do a job that’s all”– it was something to that affect and Miller replies, “It matters to me.” sums up the whole movie right there.
And with any Paul Greengrass movie, we have to have the final show down with shaky camera and all, but as always as tired as it may be, the chase sequence is thrilling, almost heart-stopping…. this is a well made thriller, no matter what your views are on the current situation, check this out. Ridley Scott’s Body of Lies would be a nice companion piece to watch back to back.
June 1, 2010
#4
Review by Kris King
Rating:
“Green Zone” is excellent! This is how the story goes: During the U.S.-led occupation of Baghdad in 2003, Chief Warrant Officer Roy Miller and his team of Army inspectors were dispatched to find weapons of mass destruction believed to be stockpiled in the Iraqi desert. Rocketing from one bobby-trapped and treacherous site to the next, the men search for deadly chemical agents but stumble instead upon an elaborate cover-up that inverts the purpose of their mission. Spun by operatives with intersection agendas, Miller must hunt through covert and faulty intelligence hidden on foreign soil for answers that will either clear a rogue regime or escalate a war in an unstable region. And at this blistering time and in this combustible place, he will find the most elusive weapon of all is the truth.
The cast led by Matt Damon (as Roy Miller) is excellent! The directing by Paul Greengrass (who also directed “United 93″ (2006, also produced and wrote the story & screenplay), “The Bourne Supremacy” (2002, also starring Damon) & “The Bourne Ultimatum” (2007, also starring Damon) is excellent! The story and screenplay (based on part by the book “Imperial Life In The Emerald City: Inside Iraq’s Green Zone” by Rajiv Chandrasekaran) by Brian Helgeland (who also did the screenplay to “L.A. Confidential” (1997, also co-produced), “Conspiracy Theory” (1997, also wrote the story), “Payback” (1999, also directed), “A Knight’s Tale” (2001, also wrote the story, produced & directed), “Mystic River” (2003), “Man On Fire” (2004), “The Taking Of Pelham 1 2 3″ (2009), the upcoming “Robin Hood” (2010, also wrote the story) & “Salt” (2010) is excellent!
The music by John Powell (who also did the music to all 3 of the Bourne movies (2002, 2004 & 2007) & “United 93″, he also did the music to the upcoming “How To Train Your Dragon” (2010) & “Jonah Hex” (2010) is excellent! The cinematography by Barry Ackroyd (who also did the cinematography to “United 93″ & “The Hurt Locker” (2009) is excellent! The film editing by Christopher Rouse (who also co-produced) (who also did the film editing to “The Italian Job” (2003), “The Bourne Supremacy & Ultimatum”, he won the Oscar for his work on “Ultimatum” & “United 93″) is excellent! The casting by Daniel Hubbard, John Hubbard (both of them did the casting to “The Bourne Supremacy & Ultimatum”), Amanda Mackey Johnson & Cathy Sandrich (all 4 did the casting to “United 93″) is excellent! The production design by Dominic Watkins (who also did the production design to “The Bourne Supremacy” & “United 93″) is excellent! The art direction by Mark Bartholomew (who also did the art direction to “The Dark Knight” (2008), “Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets” (2002), “Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire” (2005), “Harry Potter And The Order Of The Phoenix” (2007) & the upcoming “Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows Part I” (2010), Jordan Crockett (who is a set designer on the upcoming “Prince Of Persia: The Sands Of Time” (2010), Frederic Evard (who was an assistant art director on “Harry Potter And The Prisoner Of Azkaban” (2004), Paul Kirby (supervising art director) (who also did the art direction to “Batman Begins” (2005) & Mark Swain (who also did the art direction to “Hellboy II: The Golden Army” (2008), the upcoming “Robin Hood” & “Prince Of Persia: The Sands Of Time”, he was also an assistant art director on “Man On Fire”) is excellent! The set decoration by Lee Sandales (who also did the set decoration to “Casino Royale” (2006) is excellent! The costume design by Sammy Sheldon (who also did the costume design to “Black Hawk Down” (2001), “V For Vendetta” (2006), “Hellboy II: The Golden Army”, the upcoming “Kick-Ass” (2010) & “Gulliver’s Travels” (2010) is excellent!
This is an excellent action-war-thriller that keeps you on the edge of your seat and your mind thinking at the same time. This is another hit for Matt Damon & Paul Greengrass. This is different than most war movies out there right now.
June 1, 2010
#5
Review by Compay
Rating:
Director Paul Greengrass made a name for himself with the Jason Bourne series, and doesn’t fail to deliver with this thrill ride. While Green Zone is a mostly fictional account of the hunt for WMDs in Iraq, the movie itself is an action-packed conspiracy flick that will appeal to fans of any political leaning.
Matt Damon does a great job as Chief Warrant Officer Miller, a unit commander responsible for searching alleged WMD sites. Whereas Jason Bourne is a one-man army, Miller is both brave and vulnerable, and offers a real human element to the film.
Much of the film’s suspense comes not only from tense action scenes, but the static between Pentagon officer Clark Poundstone and CIA Agent Martin Brown. Portrayed expertly by veteran actors Greg Kinnear and Brenan Gleeson, the duo play a dangerous game with different goals, and Miller caught in the middle.
While a few people dislike the “shaky cam” style of shooting used by Greengrass for action sequences, I didn’t find it the least bit distracting. Green Zone won’t win any Oscars, but it will absolutely keep you on the edge of your seat.