BODY OF LIES

9/26/08 Last night I saw a screening of Body of Lies, a wild ride drama set in the Middle East and starring Leo Di Caprio and Russell Crowe as CIA agents. Overall, I'd have to say it was…OK. Some of the stuff was simply unbelievable, and I mean that literally. Leo's character is the guy on the ground, here, there and everywhere in the Middle East. He's supposedly the VERY best in his field. Yet he allows himself to get involved with a beautiful local girl, putting his life and hers in jeopardy. Some of the action/chase scenes were well, unbelievable as well. It could have been a much cooler thriller but instead it turned out to be just a body of tries: it tried to be cool, it tried to be suspenseful, it tried to be edgy, it tried to be thrilling and it fell short in every way.

And earlier today at the press junket for the movie, many of us felt that Russell and Leo knew the movie was not as good as it could have been because both did not seem as enthusiastic about answering questions about the movie as they could have been. Both were cool, and Russell, despite his reputation as being a real pain in the ass – at least today – was pretty cool, often using humor to perhaps deflect tough questions about the holes in Body of Lies. Leo, on the other hand, was pretty quiet, not so outgoing, until he was asked about his own private political and social work. He was very happy to talk about his support of Sen. Barack Obama (and I was VERY happy to listen) and his many other social endeavors. So, the truth about Body of Lies: it's just OK!

Later tonight, I'm going to a very bittersweet affair: one of my radio mentors, George Taylor-Morris has throat cancer and has been given less than a year to live. Despite the dire diagnosis, George is NOT the type of guy that's going to sit around and feel sorry for himself. Instead, he's asked that a groups of his closest friends and associates join him for a party – that's right, a PARTY – to celebrate his life, and not worry about his impending death. That is one of the many reasons why I admire GTM so much. And for the record, when I'm gone, do the same – THROW A PARTY – I'll even provide the soundtrack!!

Peace!