Review - Closed Circuit

Don’t Close the Door On This Conspiracy

It doesn’t seem like it’s been that long since the explosions in Boston and the ensuing manhunt that led to one captured suspect. Now a film goes into a fictitious explosion in another country and the

Closed Circuit, Opens 8/28/13

ongoing legal journey to bring the culprit to justice.

An explosion rocks Britain in a market and the bomber is in custody. Now it’s off to the legal systems and the complex weavings of what is ok, and not ok to make public.

In this film, we get a look behind the scenes at the British justice system. When matters of national security may be compromised by the revelation of secret information, two different lawyers work for the defendant. For this case one, Martin Rose (Eric Bana) is new on the case after an unfortunate accident befalls his predecessor. His job is to defend his client to the best of his ability in open court. The Second lawyere Claudia Simmons-Howe (Rebecca Hall) is there to hear the secret testimony that the government has that it doesn’t want revealed in open court. If she sees fit, it is her job to make sure that information is argued to be public, although she cannot speak with the other counselor.

Yep – confusing to say the least.

Why would a system not let the two lawyers representing a defendant talk to each other?

But I digress…

As the two lawyers independently investigate the facts, they find some secrets that should best be kept secret and some conspiracies that might change the dynamic of the whole case.

Will the legal system work or are the secrets too deep for even these two ambitious lawyers to overcome?

Let me say – up front – I have this fun fascination with conspiracy theories. Even the wackiest ones have some foundation in truth and that’s what makes them fun. The conspiracy plot in the film is well crafted and had me chomping at the bit for more.

I don’t understand this legal system though. To me the legal system being portrayed seems antiquated and truly unsatisfactory. That part of the film bothered me as the idea of two lawyers, both with the same objective, not being able to talk to each other played out onscreen.

I wish they would have played more with the Jim Broadbent character – I really dug him. And I believe they could have gotten more legs out of the closed circuit footage of the bombing, the opening sequence was extremely fascinating to see unfold before our very eyes with a number of camera angles.

That said, this was a tight 90-minute film that will have even the most die hard conspiracy fans enjoying. All good conspiracies allow for the viewer to interpret information, and Closed Circuitdoes not disappoint on that level.

B

Closed Circuit

Director: John Crowley

Starring: Eric Bana, Rebecca Hall, Jim Broadbent, Julia Stiles

Rating: R for language and brief violence

Runtime: 1 hour 36 minutes