Tuesday, June 20, 2006

Spy game

Spy Game

I am a sucker for conspiracy theories and FBIs and the likes. You can get me watch any movie in the name of cospiracy theories. My fav ones in this type are (in the order I have seen them)
1)Conspiracy Theory
2) The Recruit
3) Spy Game

Myself and Senthil used to fantasize when we were kids that we would become agents for Indian intelligence service when we grew up. We even knew the meaning of RAW when we were kids in Kombai and running and playing in ohdais and in dry muds (puluthis). I even attended an interview to join military. I was too thin and was rejected. I failed pathetically in physical tests. but, but, BUT, I scored 10 out of 10 in a test that hypothetically simulated a war situation, I was left in a forest with my team and my task was to bring my team out of danger. yaay. It was a nice experience. I got to stay with the military guys for four days (interview was for four days!!). Senthil attempted NDA and failed too. I still believe that we would have got it if we knew anything about preparing for it. It was just that we lived in a village where absolutely no awareness or any coaching was available for us. Although I totally agree that I am unfit for military profession, my observation during the interview was that everyone there had went for coaching, prep and even knew who the interviewer was!! I was from kombai, straight inside a military barracks in Bhopal!! ok, ok, come back to movies, but, The Recruit brought all those memories back for me. Spy Game too.

Robert Redford recruits Brad Pit as a spy for secret operations. Tom Bishop (Brad Pit) gets caught in one of his operations. Nathan Muir (Robert Redford)'s last day in service. And to make things worse, an enquiry is arranged as the Agency suspects Nathan Muir of hiding things about Tom Bishop(Brad Pit). Very gripping.

Additional interest for me was that they show couple of remote sensing (satellite) picures in the movie!!

7 Comments:

Blogger மதி கந்தசாமி (Mathy Kandasamy) said...

Conspiracy Theory is one of my fav. movies too. I like the Brian Helgeland who wrote this. Have you watched his other movies? 'L.A. Confidential' - think i wrote abt it in maraththadi.

Mystic River - he wrote the screen play.

Havent watched Spy Game yet. imagine that. :)

Have you watched 'wag the dog'? that's another very good consipiracy movie.

there's also a movie with gene hackman and will smith. forgot the name. quite good.

1:42 PM  
Blogger மதி கந்தசாமி (Mathy Kandasamy) said...

Forgot something..

Brian Helgeland's 'Man of Fire' with Denzel washington sucked bigtime. Imagine having to sit 2.5 hours of a tamil remake? I did on one of my toronto trips. Arjun acted in thamiz.

1:44 PM  
Blogger Premalatha said...

aha, Mathy!

Welcome.

Will add all your suggestions to my list. Danku.

//there's also a movie with gene hackman and will smith. forgot the name. quite good//
Are you talking about Enemy of the State (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120660/)? It was good too. There was one with Sandra Bullock (The Net), and that was gripping too.

Haven't seen "Man on fire". They casted Arjun for Denzel? nuts!

4:17 AM  
Blogger Dadoji said...

Yes, Spy Game has a wonderfully taut end. You mean the satellite photo they show of Taiwan or something. I had to watch the whole movie with sound absent most of the time so I need to watch it again but I got the part where he spends all the money to get them out.

Watch Machurian Candidate.

The best thriller I have ever come across is Bourne Identity but you must read the book - throw away the movies.

12:36 AM  
Blogger Premalatha said...

Have seen both Mancurian Candidate and Bourne Identity. I loved them.
My brother tells me the same thing as well about the Bourne Identity that the book was much better.

1:50 AM  
Blogger Premalatha said...

>You mean the satellite photo they show of Taiwan or something.

They show two sets of satellite pictures.
1)where Nathan Muir claimed he was going to retire. Some island.

2)location of the prison where Tom Bishop was held.

Nathan Muir uses the 2) but claims he was having 1) from the begining and cheats the enquiry team.

>I got the part where he spends all the money to get them out

Nathan Muir did not spend money on satellite pictures. He spent it on bribing the Electricity comapny owners of China to arrange a blackout so that he could get Tom Bishop out of prison. Satellite pictures were freely available in the agency. It was just the acces was limited to authorised users, and he (Nathan Muir) was not one of them. So he lies to the incharge of satellite pictures to get his hands on them.

2:20 AM  
Blogger Dadoji said...

Right - two sets of photos that he uses cleverly. He picks up the first island photo from someone's desk and uses it to his advantage. In fact, he is shown to be quite good at this - using someone's info against them to serve his own purpose. He does the same with the enquiry team though I did not have the sound to know the details. He sees some word in reverse on a papers and uses it.

I got that he used the money to bribe. He uses his friend (US Amby?) as via-media for conducting those negotiations. Did not mean to say he used them on photos - sorry if I gave you that impression. :-)

2:30 AM  

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