Common Sense Note
Parents need to know that this heavy drama isn't for kids, even though it stars tween/teen favorites Reese Witherspoon and Jake Gyllenhaal. Not only does it deal with the many complicated political and cultural issues surrounding torture, but the dialogue -- which is focused on policy and intrigue -- will likely bore younger viewers. There's also plenty of violence, including explosions, shooting, and, yes, torture (there are difficult images of the victim's pain and the aggressor's visceral calculations). The torture victim appears naked in a small, dank cell, mostly in shadow. Other scenes show upset victims and negotiators; particularly wrenching is a young wife's anguished pleading that a CIA officer answer questions about her missing husband. Language includes some uses of "f--k" and other minor profanity.
Families can talk about how the movie portrays the practice of torture. As viewers sort out their own feelings about what he goes through, does it matter whether Anwar is guilty or innocent? How is watching torture different than seeing other types of media violence? Should anti-torture laws ever be sacrificed for security?
Common Sense Review
Reviewed By: Cynthia Fuchs
Anguished and well-meaning, RENDITION raises questions concerning American use of torture. While it represents the dire threat of jihadist terrorism (here, a suicide bomb in an unidentified North African city that kills civilians and a CIA agent), Gavin Hood's film also challenges the effectiveness of torture as a way to fight back. But the overly simplified story focuses solely on the moral agonies and stubborn heroism of white U.S. citizens.
Such struggles are very visible for significantly named CIA caseworker Douglas Freeman (Jake Gyllenhaal). Torn between ambition and idealism, Douglas knows that the CIA acts illicitly to achieve great goals, but he still believes he can behave honorably.
After he witnesses a colleague's bloody death after a suicide bombing in an unnamed North African city, Douglas is called on to oversee the interrogation of a suspect. The fact that Anwar El-Ibrahimi (Omar Metwally) appears to be what he says he is -- an Egyptian-born engineer traveling from a job in Cape Town to his home in Chicago -- leads Douglas to wonder about his own pursuit of the truth at all costs. Reporting to his superior back in D.C., the smug and creepy Corrinne (Meryl Streep), Douglas says he can't tell how it should be "going." "This is my first torture," he says, though Camille insists repeatedly that the United States doesn't torture.
Technically, this is true, for Anwar's primary abuser is an Egyptian, Abasi Fawel (Igal Naor). Anwar's name is deleted from all his flight manifests and, under the policy of "extraordinary rendition," he's sent to Abasi's secret prison (the film notes that this policy began during President Clinton's administration, though says that "after 9/11, it took on a whole new life"). Here he cries out, bleeds, and becomes groggy, all the while insisting on his innocence.
The film awkwardly cuts back and forth between these dire scenes and Anwar's wife back in the States. Gigantically pregnant, Isabella (Reese Witherspoon) makes her way to D.C., where an ex-boyfriend, Alan (Peter Sarsgaard), is now an aide to Senator Hawkins (Alan Arkin). Though Alan briefly wonders about Anwar (a friend from college), Isabella's anger and faith urge him to dig into the case -- and even confront the imperious Corrinne.
Throughout the film, as American officials keep getting their aims, motives, and methods dead wrong, Isabella embodies what's "right." At the same time, the film tracks a second, more compelling plot about Abasi's family. His rebellious daughter, Fatima (Zineb Oukach), is in love with Khalid El-Emin (Moa Khouas). At first she doesn't know he's a jihadist, but eventually she has to face the consequences of her dedication to him -- and his own dedication to a violent cause.
Viewers might prefer other similarly themed films, including the documentary The Ghosts of Abu Ghraib and the dramas A Mighty Heart, Syriana, and The Good Shepherd.
Rate It!
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Sexual ContentKhalid and Fatima kiss a couple of times. Anwar appears naked in several scenes, usually shadowed; his nakedness (which is non-sexual) is a sign of his vulnerability (his body is bloodied and bruised from torture). |
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ViolenceBrutal violence throughout, including torture, as well as explosions in crowded streets. An early scene shows a suicide bombing in North Africa in which a CIA agent dies in Douglas' lap (blood everywhere). Anwar is tortured repeatedly -- he's tied to a chair, beaten, choked, dragged, kicked, and electrified. Photos of martyrs show maimed bodies. In a tense, lengthy scene, Fatima runs to stop Khalid's suicide mission, with pounding percussion and fast cutting. A bombing near the end is catastrophic, killing multiple people and leaving others traumatized and bloody. |
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LanguageSeveral uses of "f--k," plus occasional other profanity, like "hell," "son of a bitch," and "goddammit." |
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Social BehaviorBoth "terrorists" and U.S. agents use underhanded tactics; parents and children are at odds. |
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CommercialismSony TV, Washington Post. |
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Drug/Alcohol/TobaccoSeveral characters smoke cigarettes and cigars. Douglas drinks hard liquor to show despair; he also goes to a bar where he smokes an opium-like drug from a water pipe. Douglas appears drunk and upset. |
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