War Inc.

Cynical isn't the word for this movie.

In fact, I am hard pressed to come up with the best word. Despondent? Realistic? Overly pessimistic? I just don't know. It's been a while since a movie affected me in a meaningful way, and I'm not sure I like how War, Inc. treated me.

Having become cynical myself over the years, I was looking forward to watching this unofficial sequel to Grosse Point Blank, one of the best movies looking back at the romantic 80s flicks and both paying homage and poking fun at them. Expecting something of the same vein, I went into this movie with a light heart and waited to be wowed like the first time around.

The premise: Assassin trying to quit the job takes on a cover in the war-torn country of Turaqistan, and along the way discovers that he isn't wanting to do the job he has been paid to do. Sound familiar? The general plot of the movie follows that of it's predecessor Grosse Point Blank, but there is where the movies part company.

War, Inc. takes place in the near future, when corporations have taken over the world and fight their wars for profit. Tamerlane, a mega-corp, has invaded Turaqistan in the first fully private army venture in history. The other corporations such as McDonalds and Popeyes Chicken have followed Tamerlane and are in the process of democratizing the middle eastern nation. John Cusack, playing Brand Hauser, is supposed to kill the leader of the small nation, Omar Sharif (no relation), for having the temerity of building a pipeline across his own country.

The plot consists of the Turaqi pop star Yonica Babyyeah (played to the hilt, and with extreme conviction, by Hillary Duff, who I had to look up to figure out who was playing the part) being set to wed Ooq-Mi-Fay Taqnufmini, whose role is somewhat obscure but seems to be the son of a prominent Turaqi bad guy. A western reporter, Natalie Hegalhuzen (played by Marisa Tomei) is trying to expose all the corruption and evil of what Tamerlane is doing to the hapless country.

The main problem, if problem you want to call it, that I have with this movie is the fine line between satire and just plain depressing reality that it skirts. It is supposed to be poking fun at the situation currently going on in Iraq, but it seems to cross the line more often than not and strays into a very realistic view of the occupation as it stands in the real world. Distorted and perhaps stretched, but the concepts are very real and very sad.

The characters have all given up in some way, giving in to the roles they play in the tragedy that is Turaqistan, forgoing the inner voices that tell them to be good and becoming the parts instead of becoming themselves. They begin to find some small comfort in each other as the occupation continues, and the trade expo to convince the Turaqis that Tamerlane is their friend draws them further into the despair.

Throw in some flashbacks showing how Cusack got to be so cynical, and a lot of really good personal interaction between the main stars, and you have a movie that strays too often into grim reality and away from what could never have been a true heir to the Grosse Point Legacy. After all, when you are satirizing something that can be held to be so terrible, it is hard to find the comedy in it.

A fantastic and very candid view of the rape of nations by the mega corporations of the world, this is definitely not a comedy. There are some brief moments of 80s style Cusack that come through, but don't come looking for a feel good movie. Come for an eye opening view and a different take on current world events than you will see in the typical media broadcasts that pervade our airwaves these days. A definite recommend for a thoughtful movie, a definite thumbs down for a comedy.

War, Inc. at IMDB
Rating: 5 stars