Burn After Reading

Urban's Take: “Burn After Reading” is one of those rare films where it’s almost impossible to describe the plot. The best I can give you is that the Coen brothers present a satire about intelligence gathering and information trading in the U.S., complete with some jabs at internet dating and exercise facilities.

The film mainly focuses on a former CIA analyst played by John Malkovich and his frigid wife, played by Tilda Swinton, who’s having an affair with a neurotic State Marshall played by George Clooney. Add two bumbling personal trainers played by Francis McDormand and Brad Pitt into the mix and you’ve got comedy gold. The film plays on the interweaving relationships between all of these characters and the chaos that ensues gives new meaning to the famous phrase, “Oh, what tangled webs we weave, when first we practice to deceive.”

I thought this movie was really clever and funny. The audience I saw it with was laughing for a majority of the movie. And of course, since it’s a Coen Brothers product, it’s extremely well made, although I’ll admit that the film has some problems with pacing. Sometimes it moves too slowly, and other times it moves at a break-neck speed. Overall, it doesn’t quite live up to “Fargo” or “The Big Lebowski” in terms of classic Coen comedies… but it could gain that status over a few years, just like those movies did.

John Malkovich is brilliant here, as are Tilda Swinton and Francis McDormand. But the real standouts are Clooney and Pitt. Clooney is no stranger to Coen comedy and the brothers always get a great performance out of him. “Burn After Reading” is no different as Clooney twitches and jogs his way through the portrayal of a seriously messed-up government worker.


Pitt is a newcomer to the Coen canon and he hits it out of the park from the first moment we see him to the very last. There’s no question that he’ll be audiences’ favorite character- he was certainly mine. He plays a bonehead gym employee named Chad, who’s one of those guys that thinks he knows a lot about government workings, but is actually completely clueless. From the skunk-like blond streaks in his hair to his idiot savant manner of conversation, Pitt embodies this character without thinking- which is perfect.

Now, it must be said… “Burn After Reading” is no “No Country for Old Men.” The Coens have a much higher profile now that they’ve won the Oscar and people will check this out just to see what they’ve done with themselves since last year. But comparing the two films is more ridiculous than comparing apples and oranges- it’s like comparing kites and staplers. As a Coen comedy, it doesn’t quite live up to high expectations. But even a slightly less amazing film from the Coens is better than what the majority of writers and directors out there can do. This movie is hilarious and worth every cent that overpriced movie theaters will charge you to see it.

Urban's Rating: Sooo good

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