Reading the Coens: "Burn After Reading" (2008)
-Some clown, or two clowns, have gotten a hold of my memoirs. -Your what? -My memoirs, the book I'm writing. -Well why in God's name would anyone think that's worth anything? In their most cynical comedy (and perhaps my least favorite of thier films), the Coens turn the infallible, omnipotent CIA into a farcical institution of bunglers and bureaucrats. The movie opens with a God’s-eye-view, something that underscores a theme of the movie. God looks down on the schemes of man and must marvel at our ineptitude… Two gym employees, Linda and Chad, are convinced a misplaced disc they’ve found holds explosive secrets. They decide they can blackmail it’s source: Ozzie Cox, a desk-bound CIA analyst who’s just quit the agency. Instead of high-stakes cloak-and-dagger intrigue, we get bungled threats, botched rendezvous, and tragicomic accidental shootings. Meanwhile, Treasury Agent, Harry Pfarrer scuttles between affairs and cover-ups with both Linda and Ozzie Cox’s ex, Ka...
