Movie Review (2): The Good Shepherd

By Brittany Sims Dec 19, 2006, 13:17 GMT

The untold story of the birth of the CIA viewed through the life of a man who believed in America and would sacrifice everything he loved to protect it- is told in The Good Shepherd, an epic drama starring Academy Award winners Matt Damon, Angelina Jolie and Robert De Niro and directed by Robert De Niro. Edward Wilson (Matt Damon) understands the value of secrecy-discretion and commitment to honor have ...more

Edward Wilson is experienced with keeping secrets from a young age.  From his early exposure to a tragic family event and his induction into the Skull and Bones Society while at Yale, Edward is soon lured to aid America by working for a new organization, the Central Intelligence Agency.   

Robert De Niro’s ‘The Good Shepherd’ spans the period from 1939 through 1961, with the onset and duration of WWII and into the Cold War and the Bay of Pigs. 

At home, Edward (Matt Damon) has confined himself to a shot-gun marriage with Margaret (Angelina Jolie), resulting in a son (Eddie Redmayne) that he truly loves, but distancing himself from the woman he should have been with (Tammy Blanchard).  As Edward commits to his career, his character and personal relationships are sacrificed.    

It is easy to see the initial seduction of a secretive life – power, knowledge, and the elitism of a selective, privileged circle. It is harder to admit the toll a secret takes, something that ‘The Good Shepherd’ bravely captures.

Many films about espionage bask in the James Bond gadgets, travel and thrills. ‘The Good Shepherd’ finds the loneliness of such a life and how an existence of whispers and “disinformation” becomes paranoid and gloomy.  We witness how discretion can be used in vastly different ways, first honorably, then selfishly.  

An impressive actor, Matt Damon brings Edward (who is partly based on actual CIA chief James Angleton) from a bright student to a hardened operative. 

The strong supporting cast features many recognizable faces - William Hurt, Michael Gambon, Timothy Hutton, Alec Baldwin, Billy Crudup, Gabriel Macht, Joe Pesci, and De Niro himself.

What begins as yet another sultry performance by Jolie actually ascends to a deeply poignant, understated level. In later scenes, Damon and Jolie are eerily believable as exhausted, resentful parents.

The always enjoyable John Turturro is fun as Edward's assistant, and in certain scenes, he seems to channel the De Niro of earlier years.

As a director, De Niro’s work is mainly strong. There is an excellent sense of place and era throughout the film, including the WASP suburbs of Washington D.C., the college town of New Haven, and wartime England and Germany. 

The film gets considerably more enjoyable as it goes along, but the pacing detracts at times, feeling much longer than its actual runtime.

‘The Good Shepherd’ contains more secrets and turns than it is willing to fully explain, though its primary revelation is the inner struggle of one man. It is amusing how many justifications we can find to make sense of the life we choose to lead.

Least we forget, we are doing this for the good of ourselves, our families, or our country.  Right?

Opens wide USA December 22. MPAA: Rated R for some violence, sexuality and language.