Crowe literally phones it in

MOVIE REVIEW

Where'd you go, Russell Crowe? Ridley Scott's new thriller "Body of Lies" features a great actor so muted he's barely there. As shifty CIA veteran Ed Hoffman, Crowe drawls and ambles through his role as if he's sketching it out in rehearsal. A suburban dad who's connected to the movie's action by a cellphone as he ferries his kids to school and attends soccer games (wolfing down Goldfish crackers), he's alone for most of the movie, with just that ever-present earpiece for company. He gets virtually no chance to spark off other actors, as Crowe can do so brilliantly; as a scene partner, that cellphone doesn't pull its weight.

Meanwhile, in various locations in the Middle East, field operative Roger Ferris (Leonardo DiCaprio) dodges bullets and takes meetings as he tries to snare an elusive terrorist bomber. He's perpetually getting injured ("Bone fragments. Not yours," grunts a doctor, when Ferris asks what's just been removed from his arm after a shooting), changing his identity, racing to and from danger as he tries to figure out whom he can trust. Can he rely on Hoffman, a man whose fondness for power can make him use colleagues as pawns? Can he trust Hani Salaam (Mark Strong), the slyly smiling head of Jordanian intelligence? Is he in over his head when he falls for a lovely Jordanian/Iranian nurse, Aisha (Golshifteh Farahani)? Is this even the kind of movie where there's room for a love interest?

Based on the novel by journalist David Ignatius and adapted by "The Departed" scribe William Monahan, "Body of Lies" unfolds its complicated (at times convoluted) plot with workmanlike efficiency. Scott knows how to stage a sudden shootout to jolt us just so, with bullets ripping toward the screen, and he's a pro at keeping the pace taut. He's cast the film well, particularly in the supporting roles: Strong brings a silky menace to Salaam, who has the poise of a cat who knows the mouse can't escape; Simon McBurney, a cigarette seemingly growing from his lip, has a nice oddball turn as a tech whiz; Farahani is both luminous and wry as a woman who knows she's making a mistake.

But it feels like a cheat to see the names of Crowe and Di-

Caprio over a title and yet rarely see the two actors together. They're sharp in the couple of scenes they share; DiCaprio's passionate, hotheaded performance blends nicely with Crowe's cool. At one point, Hoffman eyes Ferris and drawls, "Ten years ago I could have beat the crap out of you." You sense he probably could now, if he felt like it — but he doesn't, and that's part of the problem.

With its blue-lit torture scenes and dusty desert menace, "Body of Lies" is perfectly competent yet never succeeds in making itself distinct from any other big-budget international spy movie. Next time, let's hope Crowe doesn't have to phone it in.

Moira Macdonald: 206-464-2725

or mmacdonald@seattletimes.com