Just intense enough to provide a much-needed diversion, just lightweight enough to make you forget about it soon after it’s over. It’s not exactly “good,” per se, but it does what it sets out to do in terms of putting us on edge, which makes it … successful?

It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.

Yes, absolutely, there is fun to be had, as well as many, many things to go boom, all amid an atmospheric urban jungle.

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

I don't get why anyone would like this. The deep flaws in the film-making could not be overlooked by me, at all, to care about the topic at hand. Do not like the structure of multiple apparently-unrelated stories, and (without giving away spoilers) one key one was a long slog to find how it ties in. In a way that doesn't really help with the overall message of the film and was so poorly done some reviewers didn't even /notice/ it. I found it inconsistent. Some trying to be really filmic and lovely, but a lot of NBC Prime Time TV level photography and staging also. Acting is mostly awful, and casting is mismatched. JK Simmons is awesome, but he always is. Many others felt like the second table read instead. But, that may be partly as the roles are written oddly. I never bought Gyllenhaal's character at all, and his acting was less torn than disaffected. Meryl Streep was arch, and nothing else. Omar Metwally was never really believable when he's one of the people we needed to latch onto as he's the one the horrible things are happening to. I guess having Reese Witherspoon as the wife is supposed to be our other Western anchor, but she acts like a Lifetime Movie wife. Too supervillainy. Not a political statement that it paints the US in a bad light, but that very, very high up people personally handle individual cases, and skip the chain of command to micromanage while wearing their all white suits or ballgowns.

Totally agree with some of the reviews for this movie. about an hour into it I just asked myself "what am i watching?" i didn't continue the movie after that i was so bored and the dialog was so slow and had no meaning to it that i just couldn't watch any longer. i read the spoilers reviews and i am glad i didn't watch the rest of it. most of the acting was really dull too everyone trying to be dead eyed and serious especially the main character and it just seemed out of place with no real back round other than hes an analyst. also i did not really care what happened to the prisoner character even though he has a family because they never showed him with his family. so in all i just did not feel this movie other than being super bored.

From the first scene of the movie, it captures the interest. The main theme, the torture of a human being , innocent or not, is presented to the audience with sensitivity and, fortunately, with no unnecessary violence scenes, as the idea is getting through without that. The stories of the different characters are connected with each other by family or work relationships, like another 'Babel' , only this time in the political field. Strong performances, that match the whole atmosphere of the film. In addition the twist that was reveled in the end, the trick with the time of the accident was nice unexpected, proving the amazing technique of the director. All in all, a good political movie.

WOW having seen the movie recently I was amazed throughout the movie, it had emotions, thrills, drama and characters you care for.Was that really Reese Witherspoon?? She acted brilliantly and so did every actor in the movie, ensemble was really good and had good chemistry between them. I was shocked with the ending, the flow of the movie was nonlinear but not for 1 second did I felt it was nonlinear, great editing.Final Analysis:1. Story - 8/102. Acting - 8/103. Thrill - 9/104. Score - 7/105. Direction and Cinematography - 8/10