Leonardo DiCaprio’s 2008 thriller Body of Lies has recently been added to Netflix’s UK and Ireland catalogue. The film, helmed by Gladiator director Ridley Scott, features a stellar cast including Russell Crowe, Mark Strong, and Golshifteh Farahani, with DiCaprio in the lead. It even includes a pre-Star Wars Oscar Isaac.
Body of Lies tells the tale of CIA operative Roger Ferris, portrayed by DiCaprio, who hatches an audacious plan to apprehend Al-Saleem, the head of a Jordan-based terrorist organisation linked to Al-Qaeda. To carry out his scheme, Ferris enlists the help of Ed Hoffman (Crowe), while keeping it secret from Jordanian intelligence chief Hani (Strong), as discovery could put his life in jeopardy.
Upon its release in 2008, the film was praised as “a gripping if uncomfortable watch,” with critics noting: “It trades in the sheen, glamour, and established conventions of the spy genre in favour of chasing something closer to the truth.” On Rotten Tomatoes, Body of Lies holds a 55% rating from critics and a 62% rating from users, reports the Mirror US.
In other DiCaprio news, the actor is set to star next in Paul Thomas Anderson’s comedy One Battle After Another. Inspired by Thomas Pynchon’s 1990 novel Vineland, the film marks another adaptation for the director, who previously brought us 2014’s Inherent Vice.
The eagerly awaited trailer for the film made its debut last month, showcasing DiCaprio’s daring new character – a former revolutionary forced to reunite his band of rebels in a desperate bid to rescue his daughter from their resurfaced arch-nemesis.
This gripping drama boasts a stellar cast, including Sean Penn, Benicio del Toro, Teyana Taylor, Regina Hall, and songstress Alana Haim.
In a heart-stopping scene, DiCaprio’s character Bob Ferguson utters an unforgettable line: “This is Bob Ferguson. I was a part of the French ’75. I cannot remember, for the life of my only child, the answer to your question. I need to find my daughter.”
During a Warner Bros. presentation, DiCaprio shared his thoughts on collaborating with Paul Thomas, revealing: “I’ve been wanting to work for Paul for over 20 years now. He’s one of the most unique talents of our time. With this film, he has tapped into something politically and culturally that is brimming beneath our psyche.”
The cast, according to DiCaprio, were grateful to be given the creative freedom “to improvise and become our own characters.” He lauded the director’s exceptional collaborative spirit, saying: “His ability to work with actors is so unique and bar none.”