SYNOPSIS: An elite FBI investigator crosses three continents in search of a renegade U.S. military operative who holds the secret to a shocking conspiracy in Traitor, a taut international thriller set in the treacherous world of covert counter-espionage operations.

When FBI agent Roy Clayton (Guy Pearce) heads up the investigation into a dangerous international conspiracy, all clues seem to lead back to former U.S. Special Operations officer Samir Horn (Don Cheadle). A mysterious figure with a complex web of international connections, Horn has a knack for emerging on the scene just as a major operation goes down and disappearing before the authorities can question him.

REVIEW: “We answer to God.” It’s a scary thought to realize what motivates terrorists. This movie provokes many scary thoughts. Most terrorists are driven by their cultural background, commitment to their country and people, and strong religious convictions. They truly believe that they are doing their God’s will and are more than willing to die for it. They are well funded and their network spans the globe, literally. They also have infiltrated into a lot more than we care to imagine . . . or at least that’s how the movie presents it. How far is this from reality? You tell me. All I know is that this profound, realistic, nail-biter will make you reflect about the world we live in today and it left me a lot more paranoid than I was before. I’m not sure if that’s good or bad, but it is good for the movie’s sake because a movie that can do this has got to be good.

Some of you may wonder if Don Cheadle can carry a movie like this as the main star. He plays Samir, a man born in Sudan with a past that drives his future. I’ve enjoyed all his work. I believe he is a talented, underrated actor. Heck, I even enjoyed those NFL commercials he did once upon a time. So if you ask me, yes he did carry the movie quite well. It’s no Oscar winning performance, but he did a compelling job. The storyline, though, helped him a lot. Many times it’s the actor that makes the movie but in this case the story helps the actor make the movie. The story of this film captures your attention as much as Don’s performance. Don wasn’t alone either. Guy Pearce as FBI agent Roy Clayton and Saïd Taghmaoui as Omar, Samir’s recruiter, both deliver sharp performances. Jeff Daniels as CIA contractor Carter and Neal McDonough as Roy’s partner are solid as usual with their small but meaningful supporting roles. The dialogue was right on too. Even with the use of a lot of foreign language in the film, it doesn’t lose you. It is not too elevated and not boring either. It’s at just the right down to earth level that helps keep you involved in the film. If there is one thing I’ve learned somewhat recently it’s that many movie goers are turned off by hand held camera work or what I like to call the “dizzy camera”. This became more apparent to me after reading comments for movies such as Bourne Ultimatum, The Kingdom, and Cloverfield (especially Cloverfield). For some reason it just doesn’t affect me as much; on the contrary, I enjoy it because it gives me more sense of realism as if I were there and taking part of the action. But because I know it bothers many of you I will have to warn you that this movie uses that technique for some scenes. I don’t think it was as bad or as much as the other movies I mentioned, but I figured I should warn you.

Writer/Director Jeffrey Nachmanoff might be best attributed as a writer for The Day After Tomorrow. With only a couple of works under his belt in both the writing and directing categories, kudos to him for this well made piece. This film is truly insightful. As I watched this movie, for some reason the movie Rendition kept popping in my head. The stories are different but the subject matter is similar. If you saw that one and liked it, this one is even better. This movie makes a good connection between summer time action and dramas of the fall.

Review By Cine Marcos 
cinemarcos@smartcine.com

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