The Ghost Writer Reviews

I really loved this film. The suspense was built up from start right up until the shocking ending, which is not surprising for a Roman Polanski film, but this shows the director at the top of his game. The cast, which includes Ewan McGregor, Pierce Brosnan and Olivia Williams, all give top performances and the script is very clever and keeps the pulse racing. I was completely taken away by the complexity and entertainment value of this film, and it certainly would place in my 'Top 5 films list' of 2010.

The Ghost Writer directed by Roman Polanski starts out with the apparent suicide of a writer who was writing the autobiographical memoirs for a former British Prime Minister, played effectively by Pierce Brosnan. Right away with an indication from the tone of the score we know it probably wasn't a suicide and that the main character is going to spend a good part of the movie trying to figure out what happened to him. That main character is played by Ewan McGregor and he is hired to replace the dead writer to also "ghost" a book for the now troubled politician. I don't want to give too much away but it does build quite a lot of suspense as it goes along as our main character finds out more about what really happened and why. There is also a remarkably clever use of technology (encroaching into so many mainstream movies now as it is) to move the story along. Much more clever than when it was used in The Departed which in that film seemed intrusive and gimmicky. There is also an incredible extended shot of a note being passed around that reminded me of the best of Hitchcock or De Palma. Also, near the end something is revealed and Polanski doesn't dumb it down by showing flashback images of the movie to reveal to us the truth about what has just happened. I've seen that in so many movies before, like the audience isn't smart enough to figure it out. An excellent film and my pick for the best film of 2010.

A fantastically tense thriller. Does amazing work building up tension without any real action and is a great showcase for Ewan McGreggor, Pierce Brosnan and Olivia Williams. It's nice seeing McGreggor with a decent script again and it's probably one of his finest roles since his work with Boyle. Brosnan meanwhile brings a frustrated tension to his character, portraying Lang like a trapped animal.

With an amazing score, some beautiful cinematography and a fantastic final fifteen minutes this is probably one of the best thrillers in a while.

Ewan has shown ass. I think he must request Polanski for it. But so like it.

I already saw this movie but since it was a while back, I was quite eager to watch it again. The funny thing about this flick is that, the first time I watched it, I wasn't really planning to see it but since there was not much else to see, I thought I might as well check it out. Eventually, it turned out to be a pretty good flick, much better than I expected. On the other hand, Roman Polanski has always been one of my favorite directors so I should have known better and he didn't disappoint me here. First of all, the directing was really neat and the cast was also very good (Ewan McGregor, Pierce Brosnan, Olivia Williams, Kim Cattrall, Timothy Hutton, James Belushi, Eli Wallach). Above all, I thought the mood created by Polanski was just great and the whole thing was pretty spellbinding to watch . Unfortunately, pretty much like 'Shutter Island' which was also released in 2010, the ending was rather disappointing as it was a a little bit too far-fetched for my taste but, just like 'Shutter Island', we deal here with a movie which was more about the mood than the actual plot which was never meant to be really realistic. Eventually, this movie turned out to be another interesting addition to an already impressive career, the critics loved it, I thought it was pretty good too and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you are interested in Polanski's work.

Bello, affascinante. Storia con colpo di scena. Alcuni attori fuori forma ma solo per un cameo (Belushi), altri in piena forma (McGregor), altri ancora improbabili (scegliete voi). La storia funziona, azione in un film dove non dovrebbe essercene ma ci sta benissimo. Bei panorami, belle case, bei luoghi, bella vita, ma ne vale la pena? Da un regista "travagliato".

A Ghost Writer (Ewan McGregor) is hired to help former British Prime Minister Adam Lang(Pierce Brosnan) finish his memoirs. The Ghost begins to realize that there is more to the story then what he originally is aware of. Adam Lang is accused of giving up suspected terrorists to the US so that they could be tortured. The Ghost also uncovers that there may be a few facts in Lang’s memoirs that may have not happened exactly the way he says it does. As the Ghost learns the secrets of Adam Lang he begins to see that his predecessor may not have committed suicide at all.

I had really high expectations from this film going in, these films are the ones that I usually really enjoy watching because of how in depth they go with the plot and how well the actors portray their characters. This film met all my expectations and even went further by adding the simplistic feel to the tense scenes. What was really enjoyable about this film was that as soon as you thought the film was going to go the route of action it quickly slowed itself down and went back to the pace which it set from the beginning. I appreciate that Roman Polanski dialled this film down from possibly being a film that tried to answer to many questions to a film that was engaging and character driven.

Perhaps the best part of the film came when a 94 year old Eli Wallach made a small but pivotal appearance in this film. Such a small but chilling performance and at 94 years old that is something. All these tiny characters like the part that Wallach played helped answer the questions of the Ghost. All though we knew there was more to it then what people were willing to tell the Ghost we still wanted to see how it played out and see all these interactions between the Ghost and those who hold the answers he is looking for.

The Character of Adam Lang draws many comparisons to real life former British PM Tony Blair. In the film Adam Lang had many affiliations with the American Government and basically did what they told him making him a puppet on a string. The title of the book “My Life” is the same as Bill Clintons in real life, and the book in the film which heavily criticizing some politicians draws many comparisons as well to the book that was published by Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto. In the end Polanski is simply trying to say that all Politicians have skeletons in their closets, and they will go to any lengths to keep these secrets from reaching the news channels and blowing their reputation sky high. Lang being the puppet on the string was brilliantly noted in a scene where he is being scrutinized on national television and his workers think that making a statement would be the best idea, and they toss around ideas and ultimately Ruth looks at the Ghost Writer and says “Why doesn’t he do it, he is the writer” which means that over the years when Lang had to make these tough calls he never made them based on what he wanted to say.

The War crimes allegations were not the focal point of this film, they were the initial reason as to why the Ghost Writer thought Lang might have something to hide, but it is only once he begins to dig into the past of Adam Lang he begins to realize that the timeline of events that Lang said took place cannot in fact be what truly happened.

Easily one of the best films I have seen for far in 2010, because it keeps you engaged in the story as the secrets and the layers of hidden agendas begin to peel back and become exposed. The tension is in the story, how a cover-up can affect so many and how far people are willing to go to keep themselves covered up from the ugliness of a scandal that rips through the headlines. A film that relies on its actors to play simple parts, to appear as fake individuals while we know that is exactly what they are trying to do. This film is a film that relies on its message, its story and its characters to help us realize exactly what it is trying to say. Out of the 128 min runtime it builds itself up for about 120 and then finally reveals exactly what we have wanted to hear the whole time. I would say skip this film to most people, but to those of you who like a build up with no shocking edge of your seat action then this film is perfect for you. One of those films that says what needs to be said with no fluffy white happy resolution. This could easily make a top 10 films of the year list. Top notch effort from everyone involved.