Closed Circuit (***1/4)

--> The specter of international terrorism has figured into many a movie plot, but not so much the revised legal framework that has arisen in parallel to the perceived threat. In Britain, we learn from this thriller, the mechanism for dealing with national security-related information involves providing two counselors to an accused terrorist. A Special Advocate, like the one played by Rebecca Hall, is allowed to see the secret evidence against the accused and argue for her fellow barrister’s (Eric Bana) right to use it. A judge decides. The twist here is that the two counselors, who are supposed to have no contact, had formerly been romantically involved. (Apparently, no one had time to investigate, as the predecessor of  Bana’s character had suddenly committed suicide. Hmm.) And there are twists that make both of their jobs difficult, and mysteries, like how the Turkish-born man said to have masterminded a bombing that killed 120 in London, managed to emigrate from Germany to England.
This is too brightly lit to be film noir. but has some of the things people like about noir — clandestine meetings, coded language, things being not what they seem. It also has some of the same tropes as typical thrillers — turncoats, hints of conspiracy, villain (or villains) with nearly unlimited power, etc. — that in this national-security context are more plausible than would otherwise be the case. It doesn’t have any car chases, but, as the title suggests, makes use of security camera footage to build tension. The sexual tension between the leads is expected, but it’s nicely understated, without deep exposition about the breakup or dramatic declarations. The past relationship of the two counselors also figures into the plot. Screenwriter Steve Knight, incidentally, also is credited with Eastern Promises and Dirty Pretty Things, two of the better thrillers of the last decade.

Closed Circuit is a notch behind those two. It doesn’t reveal a hidden subculture; nor does it shed on the proper way to fight terrorism. It does suggest that claims of national security can be a pretext to avoid disclosing information embarrassing to government agencies. But mostly it’s just a smart, entertaining thriller.

IMDb link

viewed 8/29/13 7:45 pm at Ritz 5; posted 9/3/13