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Movie Review: Traitor
‘Traitor’ a non-stop action ride
By Patrick Rills
Special to 2theadvocate.com
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PLAY OFFICIAL TRAILER
out of 4 stars.
"Traitor,” starring Don Cheadle and Guy Pearce, aims to pick up where last year’s “Bourne Supremacy” left off. It’s the summer action movie everyone has been waiting for -- no mystical, ancient kings, treasure filled temples, or psychologically scarred vigilantes. Instead, “Traitor” offers a quintessentially concise action movie with better than average intelligence that, although not mind-blowing, will fulfill the average moviegoer’s hankering for guns, explosions, and espionage.
The focal point of “Traitor” is the deadly cat-and-mouse chase between the U.S. government and Islamic terrorists. Samir Horn (Cheadle) is a devout American Muslim who is caught in the middle of the struggle between modernization and traditionalism. Horn, a former U.S. operative, is trapped in the web of a fundamentalist terrorist organization, and his presence in the aftermath of several of the group’s major attacks puts him on the radar of F.B.I. agent, Roy Clayton (Pearce). Clayton’s obsession with finding Horn leads him to search for clues all over the world, and the sophistication of the terrorist cell makes their chase a bit more even-handed.
Just as the title suggests, Samir Horn’s loyalties are questionable, but Cheadle is able to portray a sense of higher moral purpose even as his character is passing out bricks of C4 to jihadists. His working relationship with C.I.A. Agent Carter (Jeff Daniels) and close personal relationship with fellow terrorist Omar (Saïd Taghmaoui) only complicates the character and his motives further. However, Cheadle never leaves the viewer feeling nervous about what path Samir will choose despite the overwhelming weight of moral ambiguity his character faces.
“Traitor” opens with an intensity that doesn’t let up until the credits roll. The story is in a constant state of motion hopping nonstop from city to city, hitting the accelerator on the action and the brakes on the G-Man government-speak that slows down most films of this genre. The film never rests and doesn’t want the viewer to either. However, it’s constant jumping around leaves little time to establish settings and no time for anything remotely artistic.
The intrigue of this action thriller comes from its in-depth look at both sides of the conflict and how it affects the participants emotionally. The terrorists, despite their confident declarations of faith, still seem in need of numerous pep talks from their jihadist brethren on the “righteousness” of their cause. Their endless yearning for reassurance alludes to their uneasiness with their mission and how it aligns with the teachings of Islam.
The players on the side of the United States also need constant reminders of how some of their unsavory ways will justify the ultimate means of peace. When Daniel’s C.IA. agent character explains to Cheadle’s Horn how the deaths of innocents are evitable in war, Horn quips back, “You know who you sound like, right?” If anything, “Traitor” reminds us that war is the most complicated of matters for both sides especially when intertwined with religion. Fortunately, this film can present these serious issues in an entertaining way.
