Full Movie Reviews
Rating of
3/4
"The Good Shepherd" by Yojimbo
Yojimbo - wrote on 10/29/2015
Recruited out of his college fraternity into the US counter intelligence service of World War II, a major player in the early days of the CIA recalls the events leading up to the Bay Of Pigs fiasco. The Good Shepherd is an examination of the role of espionage in the United States and its dealings with the world during the Cold War period and the toll it takes on the life of a once moral and idealistic young man. Robert DeNiro's direction owes an obvious debt to Martin Scorsese and the cinematography is excellent, making for a very visually appealing film. What it does lack is a real sense of edginess or menace in what should be an atmosphere of suspicion and paranoia and its dour protagonist makes it difficult to engage with the characters. But the fantastic cast is always watchable and …
Rating of
3/4
The Good Shepherd review
Daniel Corleone - wrote on 07/28/2012
Edward Wilson (Matt Damon) invited to join Skull and Bones, a secret society and eventually becomes s Senior CIA Officer. He becomes romantically involvved with deaf student named Laura (Tammy Blanchard) while being seduced by 'Clover' Russell (Angelina Jolie). FBI agent Sam Murach (Alec Baldwin) approaches Edward and also meets General Bill Sullivan (Robert De Niro) asks Edward to join the OSS, offering him a post in London. Damon and Jolie were solid but both were unlikable characters. Baldwin and John Turturro were fantastic supporting casts, and a back-story or better character development would have been interesting. In emotional scenes Damon was just stone cold and insensitive. The numerous characters kept the story moving and the Skull and Bones moments were a waste of time. …
Rating of
3/4
Different kind of spy movie
Josh C - wrote on 03/23/2007
The CIA has all the answers to everything except how to be human. In the height of the Cold War, the CIA is formed to save the American way of life from the communists. One man, Edward Wilson (Matt Damon) sacrifices everything for his love of the USA. This movie depicts a depressing story about happiness and how it is never found by this man who Russia calls "Mother".
Trust no one. This is the premises of the whole movie, and directory Robert De Niro does a good job of showing how this lack of trust makes being happy impossible. It is refreshing to see a movie about a secret government agency that didn't involve high-tech inventions and crazy action sequences. Instead, the film is more about the drama of loosing everything that is important in a game where there are no winners. The …
