Burn After Reading (***)

This goofy farce represents filmmakers Joel and Ethan Coen at their slightest. Something like Fargo without heft, and leaning more to comedy, it is the tale of adulterers crossing paths with a scheming pair of dim-bulb health-club employees. Or, put another way, it’s a tale of ignoble folk behaving foolishly in the nation’s capital. (The CIA figures in the plot.) If you like the the Coens’ brand of quirkiness, the behavior can often be amusing, and certain plot turns are worthy of an actual thriller rather than this parody. However, these fine actors—Brad Pitt, Tilda Swinton, George Clooney, Frances McDormand, and John Malkovich among them—come perilously close to becoming a collection of mannerisms rather than a group of characters. They are people you feel superior to rather than empathy for, making the movie a decent genre exercise, but not the Coens’ best work.

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viewed at Ritz East and reviewed 10/16/08