GREEN ZONE 3.0*****

“Wherefore art thou Weapons of Mass Destruction”… that is the premise of this movie upon which a political thriller/action film was fused together by Director Paul Greengrass (famous as the director for “United 93” and the last 2 “Bourne” movies..all excellent films) He, as in the Bourne” movies, uses his signature technique of documentary- styled, shaky camera-work to elicit a sense of reality, and brings us back to the first four weeks of the 2003 Iraq War. The movie begins with the US army frantically searching for weapons of mass destruction (WMDs) to prove to a jittery world that the decision to invade was the right call. Matt Damon plays Chief Warrant Officer Miller, an honest soldier who soon realizes that after several dangerous but fruitless search missions, the search for WMD in Iraq is futile…the reason being that the intel ( intelligence info) is completely false and, therefore, there are none. When he challenges his commanding officer on the intel that they've been given, he is told to "button it up" in no uncertain terms.

But his integrity won't allow him to roll over and play dumb. He smells a rat and so he ends up playing a dangerous game of cat and mouse with Uncle Sam. This is very brave and maybe even somewhat stupid career-wise as Uncle Sam is represented by a stop-at-nothing powerful Bush Admin Aide, Clark Poundstone (Greg Kinnear) who apparently has the full support of the Administration. So, the film pitches the two men against each other. One man, honest and wholesome, and the other, a politician with a self-glorifying mission….a David meets Goliath.. They are two sides of the same coin: sharp, tenacious and convinced they are doing the right thing - but with diametrically opposed beliefs… a classic good versus evil..

The credits tell us that the film is fictitious. But then again, maybe not altogether. It's now common knowledge that were no WMDs in Iraq when the West invaded so this film plays tribute to the real-life troops who risked and lost their lives there. All because, as it now seems, a misguided Bush Administration needed an excuse to invade Iraq and depose it’s dictator…at least, so it is said. It may be a difficult film to watch if you've been directly affected by the Iraqi war but it may also be a comfort that someone has bothered to present this side of it, albeit from a fictitious soldier's viewpoint.

The movie is a “Jason Bourne” meets “Black Hawk Down” (Ridley Scott’s brilliant 2001 war film) but here Bourne is now in army uniform, but still very much the maverick in that he is willing to defy authority in pursuit of the truth. He is still Bourne-like in being fleet of foot, brilliant of mind and almost a one-man army, but not altogether because here he does have some very loyal men in his Unit who have his back.


NOTE: There was, in fact, a “Green Zone” located within the city of Baghdad that was heavily guarded and inaccessible except to the only the highest ranking military and civilian personnel and special guests… along with a lot of pretty women…it was like a super resort area with Sadam’s palaces and fine hotels…even swimming pools and fine food, wine and beer. After all “to victors belong the spoils” !?!?


Clark`