Burn After Reading (2008, USA)

Burn Afer Reading is weird. Even by Coen brothers standards, it’s . . . weird. There’s an exuberant amount of plot here but virtually no story, as various leads chase each other across the screen for no real reason. As for the stellar cast, it’s as if the Coens simply told them to play everything THIS BIG, with mixed results. John Malkovich, as a pissed-off alcoholic ex-spy, and Brad Pitt, doing a slightly more active version of Floyd from True Romance, come off better than others. The normally flawless Frances McDormand never hits her stride, and George Clooney’s manic running about is more tiring than funny. Playing to the rafters doesn’t necessarily equal hilarity, and I was disappointed by the relatively small number of laughs I got out of Burn. However, for the time being I’ll give it the benefit of the doubt, as The Big Lebowski probably took at least three viewings before I realized its genius.