Parents' Guide to

Green Zone

By S. Jhoanna Robledo, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 17+

Gripping combat thriller with anti-war edge for older teens.

Movie R 2010 115 minutes
Green Zone Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Community Reviews

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age 16+

Based on 6 parent reviews

Cheezix
Cheezix Parent of 0 and 1-year-old
December 6, 2019
age 16+

Great movie with good war criticism!

This movie is a typical action filled Matt Damon movie with a thrilling story line and some strong lessons from our recent past. This movie shows what most people know by now: US wars are not fought for freedom, but for money, oil, power and hidden political agenda's. They lied about 9/11 and terrorism, then they lied about weapons of mass destruction in Iraq and then they lied about Afghanistan. All so they could dominate the Middle East and destabilize the region completely so they could easily take over the oil and opium fields. This movie shows us the tip of the iceberg of lies for what we normally call international conflict. And Matt Damon plays an excellent role model for someone who is not walking away from the truth, but instead desperately tries to expose the lies risking his life and career. Well done! Although this movie could only be made, because movies are usually classified as fiction and just entertainment. This film is one of the hidden gems of truth that are out there!

This title has:

Great messages
Great role models
Too much violence
Too much swearing
Chance M.
Chance M. Adult
February 20, 2017
age 16+

Only 4 stars because there isn't 4.5 stars

This was a very good movie. It is based on the true WMD problem in Iraq but you need to know this is NOT a historical fiction movie. Though it is based on thrue events that was simply because that would be a good plot. It is a very well done movie but the violence is frequent and awesome but is very bloody. Keep your young ones out of this one

This title has:

Too much violence
Too much swearing
See all 6 parent reviews

What's the Story?

Roy Miller (Matt Damon), a U.S. Army chief warrant officer, is in charge of a unit scouring Iraq for weapons of mass destruction. The United States of America is about to go to war primarily on the strength of this damning intelligence, which has been reported in the press by a journalist (Amy Ryan) who's now wondering if she's been had. After failing to find any WMDs at various sites he's been told to investigate, Miller realizes the information is bunk, especially after a local (Khalid Abdalla) tips him off to a clandestine meeting of powerful Iraqis. A CIA agent (Brendan Gleeson) encourages Miller to dig for a truth that might be buried in the highest levels of government, but a hawkish politico (Greg Kinnear) is on his trail.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (6):
Kids say (10):

GREEN ZONE is terrifically entertaining, a tension-filled ride that brings viewers right to the heart of the action. The movie was inspired by the bestselling nonfiction account by Rajiv Chandrasekaran, Imperial Life in the Emerald City: Inside Iraq's Green Zone. The listlessness, the confusion in those early days of the conflict in Iraq feels genuine, enhanced by director Paul Greengrass' kinetic, shaky-camera tableau.

Still, disbelief has to be firmly suspended, if only because it's hard to buy into the idea that one person -- a small group would've been more credible -- could manipulate an entire nation's decision to go to war and yet another lone wolf is the only one to figure it out. (Again, one man designated to save the country from war?) Greengrass might have helped make Damon the thinking man's action star with the Bourne movies, but placing a militarized Bourne facsimile into the middle of a geo-political situation of already monumental proportions, one that recalls real-life controversies like the media's WMD reporting (or misreporting, as it were), seems not only redundant but distracting.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the premise of the movie: How is it possible that a decision as important as whether a country should go to war hinges on false information? What happens afterward when the truth eventually is revealed? How does it affect the citizens of that country?

  • What is the film saying about war? About the men and women who are sent to war zones? Is it believable that someone like Miller would go rogue? How did all the violence affect you?

  • Does this movie make you reflect on real-life events that inspired it? Your thoughts?

Movie Details

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