“Been meaning to see this one since it first came out, which was during the height of my “”OMG JAKE GYLLENHAAL *SWOOOON*”” fan girl-ing phase. Don’t know how/why I missed it then, but I continually passed on the DVD when I’d come across it. “”Some day I need to see that,”” I’d say as I’d move along. Before you ask, yes this was another recent sale purchase, I think it was Cyber Monday. I’m losing track, but all I know is the pile keeps growing faster than I can deplete it.
Given the subject matter, I sorta knew this was gonna be a bit preach-y. The main storyline has to do with an Egyptian citizen, who has lived in the US for the majority of his life, that is captured by the CIA on his way back into the states after a trip abroad. He’s suspected of terrorism, and shipped back to Egypt where he’s being tortured and questioned. We get some branching stories following his wife in the US trying to find him, the conflicted CIA analyst overseeing the case, the broken family life of the interrogator, and the interrogator’s daughter’s relationship with the local rebel boy.
I was def into it, but by the time we reached the unexpected twist at the end, I wished I had been paying closer attention to the other storylines. I had some confusion trying to piece the timeline together. Still, some incredibly dramatic moments throughout, and it’s kind of a real life scary movie. The fact that our government was able to do to this guy what they did should freak you out. In truth, I don’t know where I stand on the argument (as per usual). Certainly, it’s wrong to treat someone that way without sufficient evidence, but what about when there is more substantial proof. Is it worth stopping terrorists by stooping to their level. Who’s to say. I know I certainly can’t make that call, and I’m very much glad that I don’t have to.
For now, I’m just content to look at the pretty Gyllenhaal, and not think about such difficult moral dilemmas.”