This plot has enough twists and turns to throw a Formula 1 racing champion off course. And the acting, indescribably great.

In this convoluted story of Leonardo DiCaprio as an anti-terrorism agent doing the wet work for the CIA in Jordan and elsewhere in the Middle East, the chief distinction is between DiCaprio on the one hand, getting his hands dirty among the dust and squalor of cities like Aman, Jordan, and Russel Crowe, the savvy and dispassionate controller back in Washington, playing with his kids in the backyard and doing the laundry while issuing orders over his phone headset. They're friends, in a frosty kind of way, but part company, so to speak, at the end. That's after Crowe's promise of protection fails, DiCaprio is kidnapped by the jihadists, has a couple of fingers turned into road kill with a ball peen hammer, and falls in love with a nurse in Jordan, Golshifteh Farahan.Now, first of all, it's easy to see how DiCaprio would be captivated by Golshifteh Farahani. She is very appealing. The actress was born in Iran and has lived in Paris. Her native Farsi is overlaid with French harmonies and it turns her euphonious English into a melody. It's not an inept trope since Farahani is also a practiced musician and has performed with professional bands. DiCaprio is like one of those anthropologists who has "gone native" and refuses to come home. He grows to like the Middle East, represented by his girl friend, but I would have been turned off by her once she began administering the traditional course of treatment for rabies -- shots right into the abdominal cavity. I'd rather have the rabies.There has been a spate of movies about gathering intelligence and operating against jihadists or war lords in the Middle East lately. Surprisingly, most of them are pretty good -- especially "Blackhawk Down" and the two directed by Katherine Bigelow, "The Hurt Locker" and "Zero Dark Thirty." This one is more cynical than most. It has a modicum of action and is filled with suspense.Worth seeing.

LEONARDO DICAPRIO was brilliant in this movie and he was ably supported by Russell Crowe.Mark Strong was strong(no pun intended) in the few scenes he was featured.The Thing that I like most about this film is its realism.The story was something i felt i have already seen before but quite interesting to follow. CIA tries to take down a terrorist leader.. action / drama and thriller moments mixed to a enjoyable movie. There are quite many things to keep track so pay extra attention to the story. Overall a well done movie.With fantastic editing and a well-structured story, Body of Lies is a dark, gritty, and complex spy thriller.Leonardo DiCaprio plays a CIA agent undercover in the Middle East, gathering intelligence on an Al-Qaida terrorist network, negotiating and double crossing with both the Jordanian security service and his CIA superior (a very snaky Russell Crowe). There's quite a lot to take in during the early stages of this movie and there's some well staged action scenes.

I watched "Body of Lies" the other night for the first time since having seen it in the theater. This is a well made film that just barely misses the mark of being outstanding.Russell Crowe is good in this movie, and it's arguably one of the few Crowe movies in which he transforms into his character rather than simply playing himself. DiCaprio is good enough, though he definitely suffers from his ongoing inability to play a character rather than being stuck in his same old mannerisms.The plot of this movie is quite intriguing. It's a film that revolves around post-9/11 terrorism in the mid-east, with most of the movie taking place in the very places that make the news the most some eight years later: Iraq, Syria, and Jordan. Sadly, the movie predicts the spread of terrorism to Europe (it was filmed after the 7/7 bus bombings in London, and references them, but shows an attack in Amsterdam that brings to mind recent attacks in Paris and Brussels). Its fictional drama mixed with real world terrorism makes for a compelling story. Unfortunately there's just something about the movie that makes it obvious that it misses the mark just a tad. It might be argued that the studio was trying a bit too hard to make an Oscar worthy picture, but didn't quite pull things together enough. The romantic element of the film feels a bit forced, and despite its strengths it comes across as being a bit more like a made-for-TV drama series than an award worthy feature film.All in all I'm going with 6/10 stars. It's certainly worth the time to see, but ultimately a good popcorn flick rather than a more substantive film.