Syriana [DVD] [2005]

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Editorial reviews

Amazon.co.uk Review
ISyriana/I is an oil-based soap opera set against the world of global oil cartels. It is to the oil industry as ITraffic/I was to the drug trade (no surprise, since writer/director Stephen Gaghan wrote the screenplay to ITraffic/I): a sprawling attempt to portray the vast political, business, social, and personal implications of a societal addiction, in this case, oil. A major merger between two of the world’s largest oil companies reveals ethical dilemmas for the lawyer charged with making the deal (Jeffrey Wright), and major global implications beyond the obvious; a CIA operative (George Clooney) discovers the truth about his work, and the people he works for; a young oil broker (Matt Damon) encounters personal tragedy, then partners with an idealistic Gulf prince (Alexander Siddig) attempting to build a new economy for his people, only to find he’s opposed by powers far beyond his control. Meanwhile, disenfranchised Pakistani youths are lured into terrorism by a radical Islamic cleric. And that’s just the start. As in ITraffic/I, in one way or another all of the characters’ fates are tied to each other, whether they realize it or not, though the connections are sometimes tenuous. While ISyriana/I is basically a good film with timely resonance, it can’t quite seem to measure up to Gaghan’s ambitious vision and it very nearly collapses under the weight of its many storylines. Fortunately they are resolved skilfully enough to keep the film from going under in the end. To some viewers, ISyriana/I will seem like an unfocused and over-loaded film that goes, all at once, everywhere and nowhere. Others will find it to be an important work earnestly exploring major issues. In either case, it’s a film that deserves to be taken seriously, and it’s likely to be one that will be talked about for a long time to come. --IDan Vancini/I

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Customer reviews

review by: date: 2008-11-12 rating:
I lasted 25 minutes then pressed the eject button...
I should have read more of the reviews on here before buying this... Trust me, I'm not the sort of person who needs to see lots of tanks exploding to enjoy a film; I can enjoy a "thoughtful" film as much as the next person. But it needs to be watchable; it needs to have a story that draws you in. This is just a sprawling, self-indulgent mess. Avoid.

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review by: date: 2008-11-08 rating:
Very, very boring
Stephen Gaghan's Syriana is a deliberately `worthy' attempt to confront issues in the Middle-East based around the Oil Industry, and is not only an incredibly boring `thriller', but also one which presents a hopelessly one-sided view of troubles that grow more and more worrying, and more and more intense, every day. It also kneecapps itself by not giving the majority of the audience a single character with which they can identify. Basically, this film goes out of its way to gain sympathy for dirt-poor Middle-Eastern young men who are seemingly inevitably drawn to becoming suicide bombers, whilst painting American big business and government as the epitome of earthly evil (take a bow Tim Blake Nelson as the `yee-ha' Texas Oil Baron). It has some effectively visceral scenes, like when George Clooney's CIA man is tortured by Mark Strong, but the film is so one-sided and anti-American it is amazing that a major Hollywood studio gave it the green light. Not so amazingly, it tanked at the US box office.

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review by: date: 2008-09-15 rating:
You have been warned
You know when you start watching a good movie and from the first few minutes it draws you in and you can relax and enjoy? You may not know much about the characters or understand where the film is going but you feel as though it will be worthwhile finding out. Some films start this way and end up disappointing. Occasionally you watch a film that you never really understand but they are enthralling to watch regardless (Mulholland Drive comes to mind). In the case of Syriana I was bored, confused and frustrated from start to finish. If you get frustrated by confusing films where it jumps between different plot lines endlessly then this will drive you nuts. I can't stress enough just how difficult to follow the plot of this movie is. I rented it mainly because I enjoyed Traffic, which had a similar structure but had interesting characters, good storylines and crucially a director who understands that the main purpose of a movie is to provide entertainment. I couldn't wait for it to end.

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review by: date: 2008-08-10 rating:
Even more stupid than Traffic!
First off I quite enjoyed this, much better than Gagans idiotic and unwatchable Traffic. But the question is who writes the scripts for Gagans films. The 'quotes' usually have absolutely no relevance to the scene,the plot or anything really.For example, 'Go easy on the memos','I live in the state of Maryland',etc,etc. Also if this is meant to expose the oil industry it fails there too and just shows how easy it is to brainwash young uneducated people to become suicide bombers. If you want to watch anti big business films try 'The constant gardener' , a bit more grown up than this fairytale.


review by: date: 2008-06-08 rating:
A Great Power has no friends, only interests
Syriana is one of those films that are not for the casual viewer since it deploys a lot of characters in a lot of threads that come together only at the last moment. A moment's inattention and Jack, you dead. This tendency to chop back and forth is made worse by bad attacks of mumbling on a pretty ropey soundtrack. Seldom have I wished more for Brian Blessed to have appeared in a film. br / br /The story line, once disassembled, is a cynical appreciation of the link between oil companies, their governments and their "marks" - the producer countries. In this case it is American oil companies (neatly a merger of two cultures, one tedious corporate and the other wildcatter), the American government, and an Arab emirate, but in truth it could be many other nations - the Americans just have better assassination means. The scenes in Beirut (where Hezbollah rescue the American agent) and the Gulf (with the young Pakistani workers) tell a much more complex story than the Press usually tell. Most of the self-serving characters survive (with a wee bit of collateral damage) but the two characters nearest to being selfless both get clipped. Ah well. br / br /It has THE KINGDOM beaten.

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