Fair Game

David vs. Goliath. An honest individual vs. the corrupt powers that be. Premises that will probably never lose their appeal. Add two of the best actors of their generation and, surely, we have one of the best movies of the year? Well, not quite. Watts and Penn deliver, often in spite of the (occasionally preachy) writing. Liman's film is never more nor less than moderately entertaining but it provides neither the depth of a history lesson nor the excitement and suspense of a regular thriller.

Yet another "based on a true WhatTheFuck-moment from the Bush-era" movie, and as such, bound to make your blood boil at least once or twice. For me, it gets a little too longhaired towards the end, when the focus switches to "the heavy price of principles" family drama, letting the two (great) main actors roam free in overly melodramatic/intense discussions, that quite frankly borders on overacting, and feel out of place next to the big story.

Not only paints an engaging family portrait on the brink of collapsing, but exposes the moral implications of governmental austerity in light of righteous accusations. Liman's direction hit the skids with his last 2 films yet restores it with this slick, well-paced drama, surprisingly devoid of gratuitous action and caricatural characters as he has complete trust in his script/actors.

Why can't more political thrillers be like this? Smart, taut, well-informed, and it doesn't throw logic out the window. The acting is impressive with Watts almost carrying the whole thing. It's okay for a story to take sides as long as it is told well. And this film is that kind of story. I loved it. I hope to see more of its kind.

Whether or not you're familiar with the Plame/Libby CIA leak story, the film serves as an important reminder of the deceit of the Bush administration in the lead-up to (and during) the 2003 Iraq invasion, as well as shedding a broader light (at times, heavy-handedly) on the spread of misinformation in this new age of media. The pace is tight, as if it were a fictional political/spy thriller, and Penn and Watts bring their A-game as we're shown the tragic personal consequences this leak had.

Naomi Watts is a wonderful actress, she portrays convincing woman, wife and mother but she just doesn't talk like a CIA agent and the first hour suffers for it; I'm pretty sure 30 of the first 60 minutes could have easily been cut. More of Sean Penn's incredible monologues and shouting sessions would have benefited this film a great deal. Barely good before it takes off but absolutely excellent once it does - unfortunately it takes just a little too long for me to give a hearty recommendation.

Had it not been for a slow and somewhat confusing opening hour, Fair Game would have been an excellent film. Apart from that, the acting performances are great, the story is interesting once it gets going, and you will begin to care about the characters. The set-up does its job, establishing the characters and setting, but it isn't engaging enough to keep the audience's attention. Push past it though, and you'll get a great final act, with tension, suspense and, most importantly, entertainment.

Sean Penn is good in this. The story is great. A good reminder of the dirty underhanded behavior of the Bush administration and the things they'd do to convince Americans that the debacle in Iraq was necessary.

Engrossing thanks to Naomi Watts and Sean Penn, but many elements don't elevate beyond adequate.

I was mixed on the "marriage in turmoil" portion of the story, but as an anger-stoking piece against arguably the most corrupt administration in American history, it's one of the most effective non-documentaries I've seen.

A very interesting subject with a great cast, though not above average due to Liman's weak realization.

This was an unbelievable story at the time, and watching it re-told a couple years later really underlines how vindictive and evil the GWB administration was. Sean Penn makes a great Joe Wilson -- a vain, but admirable figure. I hope Rove and Co. hate the fact that they'll be used as the most easily caricatured villains for the next few generations.

So interesting to get an insight into behind the curtain of Operation Iraq Freedom and get acquainted with new untold truths. As usual I enjoyed Penn's performance and was rather delighted by Naomi also.

Fine political drama is perhaps a little too slavishly faithful to the 'truth' and dry to be always compelling as drama, but it succeeds mightily well on the strengths of its performers; Watts and Penn are both equally terrific in as the leads and surrounded by well-chosen supporting actors. It's a shame that the queasy-cam approach is used a little too frequently and unnecessarily, but this doesn't hurt the overall impact of the film.

It's still mind-blowing that this all happened and Bush/Cheney got away with it. Movie itself is okay but could have been a lot better; Sean Penn is obviously on a rage-orgasm the whole time.

Another true story Journalism CIA movie. It told an interesting story this one, and I can't help but feel bad for them all.

#14#, liked, Naomi.W!/10a5, rewatch(2) }*{ #11#, story, ratings, Naomi.W

I was on board with this. Sean Penn and Naomi Watts are both great, and they're both doing their thing. Good. It's one of those movies where everybody should know the story. That doesn't always mean that there should be a big Hollywood movie about it, but this story is unusual and compelling enough to warrant a proper narrative film, so fine. I liked it. But I didn't understand why Sean Penn had to get on his soapbox for the last several minutes. We all got it. We just saw it all happen.

Being a true story it lacks jeopardy, moments of real drama are a bit lacking. More Penn would've helped. Message wise it was too simplistic and completely ignored atrocities going on with some '... hearts in the right place' guff.

Frightening.

Great acting, and an interesting story to tell in the second half. The first hour definitely could’ve been trimmed however, as it takes a while for the plot to truly start.

The subject matter is intriguing. However, as far as being a movie goes this is all over the place. It half-heartedly addresses the marital issue while trying to be a thriller and almost a documentary as well. It wasn't terrible, it was actually interesting, but just not a compelling stand alone film.

I'm not a fan of these political thrillers - how can they be called as "thrillers" if we know what's going to happen to the letter, well, I don't even like All The President's Men. Watts was good, Penn was OK, but the real footage mixed things up for the worse.

unique scenario

This is what Greengrass' Green Zone tried to be. Though it's not a thrilling action vehicle, the punch of the film comes from the sheer injustice of the Bush Administration. Fair Game acknowledges that Saddam is a horrible person, he is, but at the same time it draws attention that the war on Iraq was based on a lie which was based on cherry picked "evidence" that can only loosely be called evidence. Great performances from Penn and Watts seal this one as a winner.

Weak script with a weak actress in the lead role. The entire film is extremely repetitive, with loads of pointless scenes. The second half in particular drags horribly. If you are looking for a decent spy flick, look elsewhere.

73.500

I thought the start of the film was a bit slow but at some point it started to move me. Great performance by Naomi Watts in particular and overall just a well made film, with a very important message. The ending speech by Sean Penn was quite nice as well.

Confused pseudo-ethical message of the film is 'sometimes you have to lie, but always remember the truth'. One is tempted to ask if the torture is part of the full package...

I'm totally gay for Sean Penn. He is one of the greatests.. I never like Watts and didn't like her here either, I always find her acting bad and nothing changed in this one except in a few scenes. Other aspects of the movie where also quite good witch made this a really fine watch, not a single boring minute.

"Fair Game" is a slick, well made and engaging political drama. It raises several interesting questions, not just about the reasons behind the war in Iraq, but also about the mechanisms and reliability of those within the inner sanctums of government. Admittedly these questions would have been more effective if we didn't already know the answers! Penn and Watts are excellent though, with the film at its most successful during the scenes that explore the strain on their marriage. Pretty good.

"A somewhat hoked-up, intermittently satisfying recent-history tale that nearly limits the Plame-Wilson affair to a crucible in its principals' marriage." - Bill Weber

Great film.

This insufferable mixture of partisan principle and exploitation-movie gimcrack is part of the contemporary political and cultural carelessness now rampant in movies, TV, the press and the Internet.

I'm not sure Sean Penn has ever been better. (I wish I could say the same about Doug Liman.)

The movie depicts a very interesting and important. The movie attempts to tackle two different subjects act the same time, the Plamegate and the marital issues as result of it. It just manages to scratch the surface of the former and barely makes anything of the later. Actors do a decent job, nothing out of the extraordinary. Its an average movie at best.

Naomi Watts is always off the hook. Sean Penn was surprisingly good also. The story is exciting and interesting up to about half way, then it becomes a history lesson and looses all its pizazz. The last half is a chore to sit through. I was a little surprised by this true story. It helps to put a lot of old news into perspective. But as an action movie, it falls down at about the half way point.

A lot of talking

I love conspiracy theories movies, the best being JFK, but somehow Liman failed at delivering an intense plot, which could stand on it' own without the bland love story getting in the way. Penn and Watts are good, and the first hour is fairly entertaining, but the film drags on and on - and ends up being a somewhat indifferent film experience.

Fair Game is definitely not as good of a film as I would have originally thought. Watts and Penn failed to renew the chemistry they had from 21 Grams and ultimately the message of Fair Game is like every other political thriller out there. It is the same old same old of American political thrillers. Based on a true story, Fair Game did little to gain my interest and get me hooked. Watts did a fair job in her role, as did Penn but there just seemed to be a spark missing somewhere.

super boring 40 minutes in, couldn't finish...

Slow as a movie, but portrays the awful truth about Bush administration.

"Respectable but rather soggy."