I saw Burn After Reading last night. I've been looking forward to this ever since I saw the first trailer. And while it was very funny I left a little unsatisfied. I know the Jordan simile has been used a ton, but it works so here goes. I've always viewed the Coen Bros. as the Michael Jordans of cinema. But even Jordan had an off night. Granted, an off night for him was the equivalent of a career high for many of his peers, but when you watched Jordan you expected magic every time his hands were on the ball.
This, I'm afraid, is the mindset I carried with me into the theater last night. I was expecting something on par with O' Brother Where Art Thou or The Big Lebowski. Instead I saw something that could have been called Intolerable Lebowski. Honestly, I think Intolerable Cruelty was funnier. To keep the Jordan analogy going here there were some telegraphed passes in this one. I began thinking, "I bet he accidentally shoots somebody in the face," after about the 3rd or 4th time Clooney's character mentioned he hadn't discharged his gun in 20 years. There were also a few bits that seemed more Farrely Bros. than Coen Bros. In particular Clooney's "secret project". I'll say no more.
Still, would I recommend you go see it? Absolutely. It's got some great performances (Malkovich's in particular) and despite being sub-par by Coen standards, is still way better than most everything else out there.
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