Read User Reviews and Submit your own for Fair Game (2010)

6

nutterjrAug 25, 2011

Two of the finest actors alive, a true story with a real political subplot would make a great film under the hands of Clooney (or others with strong political sensitivities). However Liman who mostly deals with Hollywood entertainment,Two of the finest actors alive, a true story with a real political subplot would make a great film under the hands of Clooney (or others with strong political sensitivities). However Liman who mostly deals with Hollywood entertainment, misses the spot and brings a film without nerve.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

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6

jessof89Apr 7, 2011

I felt that the film had a lot to explain in a very little time scale, i would of felt more involved in the story if there would of been a proper explanation of what the purpose was in each of the countries instead of trying to guess whatI felt that the film had a lot to explain in a very little time scale, i would of felt more involved in the story if there would of been a proper explanation of what the purpose was in each of the countries instead of trying to guess what they were there for.
I did however like that they kept to the true story of what happened to Valerie which i felt was completely apauling on the governments behalf, it also showed me that the government only look out for themselves and not there people.
I did like it i just felt the story could of been explained better to get the audience more involved.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

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6

TVJerryNov 24, 2010

You probably remember the story of exposed CIA agent Valerie Flame, but if you're like most of us, don't really know the details. This film sets up her career before the scandal, dissects how it happened and shows how it affected herYou probably remember the story of exposed CIA agent Valerie Flame, but if you're like most of us, don't really know the details. This film sets up her career before the scandal, dissects how it happened and shows how it affected her marriage. This is a straightforward political drama that unfolds with lots of dialogue, strong performances (Naomi Watts, Sean Penn) and mild outrage at the political machinations. Director Doug Liman keeps the camera moving and the pace taut, but it's not really suspenseful or grippingâ… Expand

4 of 5 users found this helpful41

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9

emkadvDec 9, 2010

Unless you still believe that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction (something even G. W. Bush admits turned out to be untrue), you should like this movie. It is a fascinating portrayal of the difficulties of fighting a bureaucracyUnless you still believe that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction (something even G. W. Bush admits turned out to be untrue), you should like this movie. It is a fascinating portrayal of the difficulties of fighting a bureaucracy when all you have on your side are the facts.… Expand

2 of 3 users found this helpful21

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1

elandfill1Dec 9, 2010

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. When the liberal Washington post says the film is inaccurate, that must count for something: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/12/03/AR2010120306298.html
Remember this if nothing else, Richard Armitage at the State Department is the one that revealed Valerie Plame, not anyone from the white house.… Expand

1 of 2 users found this helpful11

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7

CitizenCharlieMay 5, 2011

Fair Game reminds me in 2011 that I am still upset about the events of 2003. A covert CIA operativeâ

1 of 2 users found this helpful11

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0

no1dudeNov 21, 2010

I am saddened by what passes for movies these days. Completely unengaging in all aspects. Nothing but a cluster of "scenes" that are thrown together with hand held, close-up camera work, which is used by directors that don't know how to makeI am saddened by what passes for movies these days. Completely unengaging in all aspects. Nothing but a cluster of "scenes" that are thrown together with hand held, close-up camera work, which is used by directors that don't know how to make movies. Utilizes the dreaded TV Drama "formula" most of the time. If I see one more scene that has three people walking down a hallway like they are "on a mission", spewing all important information one after the other, in place of actually developing a story and characters............... I will puke.
This movie, like most of the crap coming out these days, is an utter mess.… Expand

2 of 5 users found this helpful23

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3

RicardowttDec 9, 2010

Reposting, without the score of "10".

Potential viewers might be interested in Judith Miller's review "The Plame Affair, Hollywood Style" in the Wall Street Journal. (Don't diss it before you read it..) She is a journalist who was close toReposting, without the score of "10".

Potential viewers might be interested in Judith Miller's review "The Plame Affair, Hollywood Style" in the Wall Street Journal. (Don't diss it before you read it..) She is a journalist who was close to the subject, so close that she was "...the only person to have gone to jail in what became known as Plamegate." She cites multiple inaccuracies and untruths. Way to go Sean Penn. Her closing line is worth noting: "Asked about the film's accuracy by the Washington Post, Mr. Wilson gave this review: 'For people who have short memories or don't read, this is the only way they will remember the period.'" To which she says "Precisely." In other words, this is fiction, not factual.… Expand

2 of 5 users found this helpful23

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1

noachDec 6, 2010

Says more about Sean Penn and his "political commitments" than about either the original characters or Washington. Mostly filled with untruths, it's guilty of the same crime(s) it unjustly accuses others of.

2 of 6 users found this helpful24

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9

movieboyJan 29, 2011

It would seem that one's response to this excellent film is colored by political affiliation. I thought it was a superbly made political drama that highlighted one aspect of the Bush/Cheney administrations b.s. that got us into Iraq. As toIt would seem that one's response to this excellent film is colored by political affiliation. I thought it was a superbly made political drama that highlighted one aspect of the Bush/Cheney administrations b.s. that got us into Iraq. As to one user's reviewer complaining "this is fiction, not factual," based on Judith Miller's article in the Wall Street Journal, big deal. 1. she's bummed because she's not featured in the film, and 2. it's the right wing Journal, what do you expect. So some of the "facts" were altered, oh wow. That does not in anyway dismiss the primary issue that the Niger/Iraq uranium claim was not true, and Plame was outed because her husband tried to show Bush lied. Both Watts and Sean Penn are terrific in the film. One of the best of 2010. Essential viewing.… Expand

1 of 3 users found this helpful12

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7

JamesLNov 6, 2010

After watching the country vote back in the same bastards who sold us the Iraq war, I was enraged during the first three quarters of the film. However, it seems the movie really did not want to expose the real story in more gory detail. TheAfter watching the country vote back in the same bastards who sold us the Iraq war, I was enraged during the first three quarters of the film. However, it seems the movie really did not want to expose the real story in more gory detail. The film pulled its punches during that last part which left me disappointed. I also thought the ending tried to copy "All The President's Men"which was a mistake. Still, I thought Penn and Watts were convincing.… Expand

1 of 3 users found this helpful12

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10

BrooklynDec 9, 2010

Most know the story, or should, but it needed to be re-told. Can't remember the last time I left a theater more moved by a film, although in this case I was shaking in anger. It's a wonder that such a corrupt administration was elected . .Most know the story, or should, but it needed to be re-told. Can't remember the last time I left a theater more moved by a film, although in this case I was shaking in anger. It's a wonder that such a corrupt administration was elected . . . twice, but I guess people who can deny global warning, who imagine that tax cuts are constant with controlling budget deficits and that breaks for the wealthiest 1% somehow help the economy can similarly rationalize the outing of a true patriot who dedicated her life to serve her country in dangerous and important work.… Expand

1 of 3 users found this helpful12

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7

ShiiraDec 3, 2010

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. The American public is fair game for ridicule when it comes to the subject of how a good majority of us reacted towards the events leading up to our country's invasion of Iraq. Either we were asleep or misinformed, and Joe Wilson(Sean Penn), the husband of outed spy Valerie Plame who wrote an op-ed piece entitled "What I Didn't Find in Africa" shortly after the "shock and awe" of 2003, is employed by the filmmaker to make us feel stupid about our collective apathy and naivety. Watching the Penn-like Joe in "Fair Game"(after all, the Hollywood actor is also a committed political activist) is akin to being stuck in the company of the smartest man in the room. Make no mistake about it, Joe Wilson has an air of smugness about him, an honest-to-goodness blowhard, but when you consider the lives lost among our military personnel and the collateral damage they caused on the other side of the Atlantic, we probably do deserve a little cigar smoke blown in our faces, and be taken to task. When Joe calls his wife's friend's husband a "racist p*ssy", it's an indictment on many Americans who would have agreed with that man's expressed leeriness toward the prospects of being on a plane with an Arab, only to years after 9/11. For all intents and purposes, Joe just called us a bunch of racist p*ssies, especially if you share such a xenophobic viewpoint to this very day. At that pub, at the outset of "Fair Game", there's a brief shot of Joe glancing up at the television just before he returns to the small party of couples gathered at his table. It's a tight shot: just him, the bartender, and a seated customer nursing his beer at the bar, so it would be pure speculation to say that nobody else in that drinking institution shares his interest in current events. As it turns out, he probably was the only one. Later in the film, Joe stares up at the television again, but this time, the filmmaker goes wide, and reveals in that airport departure area, a microcosm of people's indifference toward all things political, as the true patriot finds himself surrounded by sleepers while our former president delivers "the sixteen words that led us to war" during his State of the Union address. Joe alone, seemingly, knew about the abuses of power carried out by the Bush administration, and granted, it took courage to write that piece on his visit to Niger(which contradicted Bush on the subject of those aluminum tubes which were purported to hold Sadaam's uranium), but he's no ordinary Joe, an arch-liberal who knew that Sadaam Hussein posed no imminent threat to the United States(another gathering, another wife's friend's husband gets blasted for being an ignoramus), so to some extent, Valerie Plame's husband must have known about the media firestorm he was concocting by defying the leader of the free world. Writing the letter to the New York Times was his opportunity to step out from under his wife's considerable shadow. "Fair Game" isn't afraid to show the real Joe Wilson, warts and all. Before Wilson becomes an envoy to Niger, he goes through an interview process conducted by some Pentagon higher-ups, and before they're seated, the somewhat emasculated man, perhaps feeling like a subordinate of his wildly intimidating wife, introduces himself as "Joe Wilson" with a slight manic edge to his voice and over-vigorous handshaking style that denotes an insecurity about being Valerie Plame's husband. Maybe, perhaps, a little hostility too, as evidenced by his use of the word "p*ssy", a derogatory term that implies the fairer gender as being the weaker sex, which certainly is not the case with this particular couple. When Valerie loses her job at the CIA, and becomes a target for spinning right-wing pundits on a daily basis, Joe finally gets to be her protector, the proverbial man of the house, as his one-man crusade against the political machinations of Scooter Libby and the other White House gorillas could be interpreted as an ego trip, albeit one SUffused with genuine love for his wife. But it counterbalances the scene where Joe is the chick, the woman who gets left behind, when he complains about Valerie's frequent disappearing acts, just before this real life Salt leaves home in the wee morning hours. "I never know where you are," says Joe. That's a chick's line.… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

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6

TonyDec 14, 2010

Fair Game tells a fascinating story and features a pair of stellar performances from Watts and Penn, but ultimately is not as successful as it could have been because of some horribly anticlimactic storytelling.

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

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6

BamaFalstaffMay 28, 2011

Going in the film knowing that the greatness of the movie begins after the lead character, Valerie Plame, is outed as a CIA agent, one feels an excited anticipation because the movie begins with great action sequences followed by greatGoing in the film knowing that the greatness of the movie begins after the lead character, Valerie Plame, is outed as a CIA agent, one feels an excited anticipation because the movie begins with great action sequences followed by great dramatic scenes. The setup is wonderfully executed, and shows promise of a fantastic picture. However, once the movie gets to the turning point of Plame's dealing with the leak, it greatly loses its steam and momentum. By the end of the picture, the batteries are completely dead save some great moments by Sean Penn.… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

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10

10sne1Jun 9, 2011

This is a geopolitical thriller. It would be widely entertaining were it not for the fact that it is based on real events in very recent global history in which a corrupt White House coddled officials who were guilty of treason in outing aThis is a geopolitical thriller. It would be widely entertaining were it not for the fact that it is based on real events in very recent global history in which a corrupt White House coddled officials who were guilty of treason in outing a CIA official, leaving valuable American assets around the world twisting in the wind, and then getting the media to Blame the Victim by painting Plame as a low-level insignificant paper pusher and not the high-level agent she actually was. Yes, of course that's a biased statement. But no one comes to this film unbiased. Ideologies dictate how one will respond to this powerful denoument of sleaze and connivance at the highest levels of power. If you like Bush-Cheaney you hate this vile besmirching of their unimpeachable character. Of course you do. I fear the degree to which voting Americans are handing over their birthright to the loudest shouter or the richest contributor. As a line in the film reminds us, Benjamin Franklin replied to a woman that "I have given you a republic, madam. Now it's your job to keep it." We are in danger of losing it. And oh, by the way, Naomi Watts embodies Valerie Plame so convincingly that you have to blink twice at the end to realize you're watching Plame testifying before the congressional committee, not Watts playing Plame.… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

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8

asthobaskoroMar 3, 2011

Smart and with integrity, blend fact-based biopic, documentary (with some actual footage), drama and politic. Sean Penn and Naomi Watts are good pairing, it will thrill you out!

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7

RoscoSep 2, 2011

Most know the story but for those who didn't (somehow?) they are in for a very rude awakening. Focusing on the events and lies that led to the war on Iraq. CIA Operative Valerie Plame's (Naomi Watts) identity is revealed after her husband JoMost know the story but for those who didn't (somehow?) they are in for a very rude awakening. Focusing on the events and lies that led to the war on Iraq. CIA Operative Valerie Plame's (Naomi Watts) identity is revealed after her husband Jo Wilson (Sean Penn) reveals the truth about the "source" of supposed evidence indicating Iraq was building a WMD programme that ultimately led to the war in Iraq. Its a stunning politcal thriller. The way the film is set up in ingtriguing and keeps you full of suspense and the depiction of Plume's life before and after the scandal is portrayed remarkably well. Its a fascinating watch and a real eye-opener to the true events that actually occurred and the cover-up/conspiracy that the Government fed us. Doug Liman is great in the directing chair and once again delivers another fantastic film but the performances od Watts and Penn, who in particular was outstanding, were superb. All in all a terrific politcal thriller that will have you angered, engaged and fascinated all the while.… Expand

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10

gpauwenAug 21, 2011

I really liked this movie. Great story, great acting, a very wise lesson, and a simple one: don't give up ! Sean Penn is pretty much awesome in every movie he is in, Naomi Watts was great, too !

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7

SpangleJun 13, 2016

Fair Game is a film that angered me so damn much. Incredibly passionate and well acted, Fair Game paints a bleak picture of the Bush administration and their irresponsible and downright despicable actions taken in the lead up to the War inFair Game is a film that angered me so damn much. Incredibly passionate and well acted, Fair Game paints a bleak picture of the Bush administration and their irresponsible and downright despicable actions taken in the lead up to the War in Iraq. Naomi Watts is very good in the lead role while Sean Penn is perfectly cast as her ambassador husband. Together, they have great chemistry that adds an air of authenticity to this film about a very important topic. Additionally, the film can be a truly entertaining political thriller that never gets too complicated, which can be a problem encountered by many a political thriller. Instead, this one showcases director Doug Liman's trademarks (using TV footage prominently) and mastery of the spy/political genre. Overall, Fair Game may be a bit heavy on the politics even if I agree with the film. For that, it is held back and certainly requires further research before assuming everything it said is true. That said, it is very well made and incredibly entertaining.… Expand

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6

Compi24May 22, 2020

Director Doug Liman relates the true-to-life story of Valerie Plame to the big screen in "Fair Game," a mostly dry political horror story that occasionally brings some important subjects to the proverbial table for discussion. Simply beingDirector Doug Liman relates the true-to-life story of Valerie Plame to the big screen in "Fair Game," a mostly dry political horror story that occasionally brings some important subjects to the proverbial table for discussion. Simply being alive during the events depicted in the film helped quite a bit in terms of conjuring up enjoyment. "Oh, yeah, I remember hearing about this." "So that's what she and her husband were really going through? Yeesh." The investment was present, sure, but there was more work happening on my part than I'm typically used to. There's also something to be said for the differences in either half of this movie's running time. It takes a minute to get into the actual intrigue, but once you're there, it's all good stuff. Yell-y Sean Penn. Crying Naomi Watts. The works. The first half, however, suffers from a sluggish pace and a minutely evident lack of narrative direction. Again, though, once stuff eventually goes down, everything ends up just slightly above water.… Expand

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7

NRNSWOct 4, 2015

Quite good performances from the lead actors, with a fairly believable plot. Seemed to be quite reminiscent of House of Cards - particular with the similar casting.

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8

tethysdustMar 12, 2017

It's a very interesting (and apparently fairly accurate in many respects) representation of the scandal surrounding the outing of an American CIA agent's identity and the events surrounding the invasion of Iraq. Most of us probably rememberIt's a very interesting (and apparently fairly accurate in many respects) representation of the scandal surrounding the outing of an American CIA agent's identity and the events surrounding the invasion of Iraq. Most of us probably remember a lot of the details from news at the time, but I think this neatly encapsulates the situation to preserve a sense of it for the future.… Expand

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7

BroyaxJan 17, 2017

Je n'attendais pas grand'chose de ce thriller politique, à part bien entendu le fait de voir ensemble une actrice et un acteur que j'apprécie beaucoup et à cet égard, ils forment décidément un beau couple à l'écran. Non, le plus étonnant dansJe n'attendais pas grand'chose de ce thriller politique, à part bien entendu le fait de voir ensemble une actrice et un acteur que j'apprécie beaucoup et à cet égard, ils forment décidément un beau couple à l'écran. Non, le plus étonnant dans cette busherie est le scénario lui-même, clair comme de l'eau de roche et solide comme un roc. On aurait certes aimé davantage de nerf dans la dénonciation de ce mensonge d'état mais l'ensemble n'en demeure pas moins très habilement mené.

Heureusement (!) l'absence de toute scène d'action limite drastiquement l'incompétence notoire du réalisateur Doug Liman qui ne peut se livrer au surdécoupage parkinsonien, ni au zoom exagéré permanent, ni au secouage de caméra. On le sent néanmoins frustré puisque de nombreux plans sont filmés à l'épaule et ne cessent de tourner (lentement) autour des comédiens comme un putain de manège.

On l'a donc échappé belle... d'autant que dans un autre registre, on aurait pu avoir sur ce genre de sujet à polémique l'un de ces tocards à chier debout comme Sidney Lumet... ou Sydney Pollack !… Expand

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10

mackcyr1965Nov 21, 2018

Thank God this film was made. I hadn't seen it before it was available on Netflix. It is a tragedy that it didn't get more attention when it was released in theaters. The film offers clarity to what was a remarkably confusing period, evenThank God this film was made. I hadn't seen it before it was available on Netflix. It is a tragedy that it didn't get more attention when it was released in theaters. The film offers clarity to what was a remarkably confusing period, even by today's standards, in America's history.… Expand

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