Movie Review: The Good Shepherd

The Good Shepherd is a rare breed of movie: a spy movie with no action. Unlike Matt Damon’s previous ventures into the world of intelligence and counter-intelligence, (the excellent Bourne Identity and Bourne Supremecy), this spy movie focuses on the man behind the spies. Where he came from. What motivates him. The struggles he goes through and sacrifices he makes to protect his country.

The failed Bay of Pigs invasion provides the centerpiece for a fractured narrative, jumping back and forth between flashbacks and current day. Damon plays Edward Wilson, a semi-fictional CIA agent responsible for the agency’s counter-intelligence. He comes from a notable New England family, attends Yale, makes the right connections, and works his way through the intelligence community’s ranks. He plans the Bay of Pigs operation and is responsible for finding out why it failed. Along the way he faces difficult personal and professional choices and stoically faces them all. Damon’s portrayal of Wilson is exquisitely subtle. He brings the character’s stoicism and devotion to his country to life largely through things he does not say, movements he does not make. His performance is a clinic in minimalist acting.

Director Robert DeNiro made this movie brilliantly compelling. He and cinematographer Robert Richardson do an excellent job capturing the contrast between the cloak and dagger world of the spy game and the suburban normality of Wilson’s home life. DeNiro masterfully doles out almost enough information to definitively conclude why events happen and what characters’ motivations are. He wastes no time jumping into the spy world, with it’s unique cryptic language and veiled agendas. He introduces characters without explicitly revealing who they are or how they fit the plot. He does not coddle the viewer or slow down to explain things. Rather he expects you to pay attention if you want to keep up. This makes the 160 minute movie move along at a quick pace, never seeming dull.

In the end, I feel like I missed some things, but that only makes me want to go back and revisit it. I highly recommend this movie, but only if you enjoy movies that challenge you. If you watch The Good Shepherd passively I would have to imagine it’s terribly boring. If you make the effort however, you will be greatly rewarded.
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