Movie Review: Enemy of the State

I've seen Enemy of the State before, but I was younger then, and the movie's themes went over my head for the most part. Having given the movie a second viewing, I found it much more interesting now, and its message is just as applicable today as it was in 1998. I won't comment on the political issue here, but it is an issue, and so the movie is given an extra edge because of it. Yet, Enemy of the State is also not just a preachy liberal movie. It's smarter than that; it's a gripping, suspenseful spy thriller, where the people who are supposed to be the good guys are also the bad guys, and the action does not take place in another country, but in our own. The fact that the plot is based around a "this is happening today" concept makes it intriguing, but even the final scenes of the movie leave the question of national security versus civil rights unanswered. (I'm sure the movie's creators have an answer, and so this could just be my own opinion: that neither extreme, while being easy answers, is satisfying. But I leave that to you.)

Yet as I watched the movie near its climax, I became less concerned about the message, and more concerned about the characters. I was entertained by the tricky plot twists that spy thrillers always pull, although the ending was a bit much to swallow. I was gripped by the action, and pleased by the obligatory explosions. In some ways, the movie is just that: a simple spy thriller, with a plausible reality spun around it. The fact that the movie's reality is now a current issue in our nation is intriguing, and it is handled well - I found it an interesting thing to sit through after 9/11. Still, the movie does devolve into a standard thriller which, while enjoyable, is still nothing terribly new. I'm a stickler for thrillers, though, when they make sense, and this movie did do that.

Cinematography: Exceptional
Story: Exceptional
Rating: 8/10