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Traitor
Overture Films


8.4

based on 29 reviews
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How did we calculate this?

based on 28 votes
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MPAA RATING: PG-13 for intense violent sequences, thematic material and brief language

Starring Don Cheadle, Guy Pearce, Jeff Daniels, Neal McDonough, Archie Panjabi, Alyy Kahn, and Said Taghmaoui

When straight arrow FBI agent Roy Clayton heads up the investigation into a dangerous international conspiracy, all clues seem to lead back to former U.S. Special Operations officer, Samir Horn. A mysterious figure with a web of connections to terrorist organization, Horn has a knack for emerging on the scene just as a major operation goes down. The inter-agency task force looking into the case meets with Carter, a veteran CIA contractor who seemingly has his own agenda and Max Archer, a fellow FBI agent. The task force links Horn to a prison break in Yemen, a bombing in Nice and a raid in London, but a tangle of contradictory evidence emerges, forcing Clayton to question whether his quarry is a disaffected former military operative or something far more complicated. Obsessed with discovering the truth, Clayton tracks Horn across the globe as the elusive ex-soldier burrows deeper and deeper into a world of shadow and intrigue. (Overture Films)

GENRE(S):	Drama
WRITTEN BY:	Steve Martin (story) Jeffrey Nachmanoff
DIRECTED BY:	Jeffrey Nachmanoff
RELEASE DATE:	Theatrical: August 27, 2008
RUNNING TIME:	minutes, Color
ORIGIN:	USA

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

The Hollywood Reporter Kirk Honeycutt

The film is a genuinely gripping tale about international terrorism that hopscotches across three continents.

Austin Chronicle Josh Rosenblatt

If you're looking for a few hours of mindless, uncomplicated, air-conditioned escapism to get you through a hot late-summer's evening, I'd recommend you look some place other than Traitor.

The Onion (A.V. Club) Nathan Rabin

Without its mesmerizing lead performance, Traitor easily could have devolved into direct-to-DVD fodder.

TV Guide Maitland McDonagh

The film's greatest asset is its performances.

Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert

The movie proceeds quickly, seems to know its subject matter, is fascinating in its portrait of the inner politics and structure of the terrorist group, and comes uncomfortably close to reality. But what holds it together is the Cheadle character.

ReelViews James Berardinelli

An uncommonly intelligent espionage thriller that explores the moral and ethical dilemmas faced by agents who go deep undercover in the service of their country.

Seattle Post-Intelligencer William Arnold

A tough, taut, mostly well-executed morality parable and thriller that explores some of the bitter ironies of this strange religious vendetta in which America unwittingly finds itself.

Chicago Tribune Michael Phillips

Problems aside, this is a good, twisty, absorbing work.

Boston Globe Ty Burr

The film's a propulsive international espionage thriller, built on the hurry-scurry bones of the "Bourne" movies.

Charlotte Observer Lawrence Toppman

A thriller that's frequently implausible but almost always thoughtful. It asks us to rethink the way we see Muslims

New York Post Lou Lumenick

The best end-of-August movie I've seen in years.

The New York Times A.O. Scott

A somber, absorbing and only moderately preposterous new thriller.

Philadelphia Inquirer Carrie Rickey

Don Cheadle, wiry and wired, delivers an electrifying performance in Traitor.

Miami Herald Rene Rodriguez

Traitor is "Syriana" for dummies, a globe-hopping, multi-character look at the war between America and Islamic terrorists that keeps things as relatively simple as an episode of 24. Not that there's anything wrong with that: 24 is a really good show. But it doesn't pretend to be something it's not, either.

USA Today Claudia Puig

Can't seem to decide whether it wants to be an edge-of-the-seat action thriller or a more contemplative and intellectual drama about religion and terrorism. Somehow, in trying to have it both ways, it doesn't completely succeed at either.

Variety Todd McCarthy

Brandishes physical verisimilitude and intelligent seriousness but proves unable to really get inside its chameleon-like central character.

Salon.com Stephanie Zacharek

Pearce may be the other big star in Traitor, and while his performance is serviceable, it doesn't cut deeply. Taghmaoui, as a radical motivated by moral certainty, is the real actor to watch here.

New York Daily News Joe Neumaier

Nachmanoff fills the movie with a sense of gripping, '70s-style grittiness that helps undercut the web-of-evil tone.

Baltimore Sun Michael Sragow

It's Cheadle's rich emotionality and sense of humor that have gone seriously missing in Traitor.

Portland Oregonian M. E. Russell

Its easy to see why Don Cheadle wanted to play Samir Horn, the hero of the post-9/11 thriller Traitor. Cheadles face is basically a perfect delivery system for woe, sadness and internal conflict. And Samir a deep-cover operative trying to infiltrate a terrorist outfit has to make brutal Sophies Choices roughly three times a day.

Village Voice Chuck Wilson

The movie's first hour is well-done, but realism and insight go out the window as soon as Samir crosses the U.S. border.

San Francisco Chronicle Reyhan Harmanci

The film is stylishly shot, although the current action-movie look might be dated in a few years.

Washington Post Philip Kennicott

Traitor traffics in the cliches of the terrorist chase film -- including the usual stereotypes of Muslims -- while trying not to succumb to outright bigotry.

Wall Street Journal Joanne Kaufman

Ultimately, Traitor is a movie at war with itself.

The Globe and Mail (Toronto) Jennie Punter

Traitor becomes too busy, ultimately frustrating, and never delivers on its tantalizing promise of offering a little insight into terrorists' motives – and it's even got an inside man.

Christian Science Monitor Robert Koehler

Cheadle's innate goodness is the film's main dilemma, since the truth under the story's surface (which we won't reveal here) can be contained for only so long, and with ever-diminishing dramatic returns.

Entertainment Weekly Lisa Schwarzbaum

A slippery entertainment that's all feints and few punches thrown at a fight card of indistinguishable terrorists, Muslim and otherwise.

Chicago Reader J.R. Jones

Based on a story by Steve Martin of all people, the script seldom rises above formula (Guy Pearce and Neal McDonough are especially ill served as a pair of starchy FBI agents), but its respectful treatment of Islam is both unusual and welcome.

The New Yorker David Denby

The filmmakers, I think, got in over their heads and couldn't decide whether they were making an action thriller or a drama of conscience; they wound up flubbing both.

The average user rating for this movie is 8.4 (out of 10) based on 28 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Trentt L. gave it a10:
Daring movie. We haven't really seen black men in roles like this before and Cheadle does this with a depth of character that many action films lack. It is not all one liners or cowboy attitude. The character is intelligent, conflicted, capable and at most times "cool" in a believable way. Critics are doing a good job of managing the expectations of viewers. Glad I saw this one before reading the reviews (which seem to contain more spoilers than usual).

Jae S. gave it a10:
I can't believe this movie isn't getting better reviews from the so called professional critics. They will probably rate bangcock nights higher. This might be the best movie in it's respective genre I have ever seen.

shsch gave it a9:
The ending may be far-fetched, but I found the movie quite entertaining and the 2 leads, Cheadle & Pearce, very solid indeed. This movie would probably be a blockbuster if it starred Will Smith & Tom Cruise instead, although I can't believe they could do it any better. Go see it; I'll bet you'll enjoy the world of terrorism and the parts of the world you get to see.

jw gave it a7:
Clearly Don Cheadle is money in the bank. Cast him, and your movie is automatically ahead of the curve. Jeff Daniels has quietly become that same kind of actor in supporting roles and ensembles. So it makes sense that all of the best scenes in this movie happen when they're both on the screen. In many places, the "message" lines seem forced and awkward. But the story is always put back on track, and the movie is most "on message" when it returns to the Cheadle/Daniels interplay. Best line in the movie: "You know who you sound like, right?" This binds the clashing powers together by their rhetoric, and says gracefully what other parts of the movie say fitfully.

Patrick gave it an8:
Very good movie. In lieu of his prior work in Hotel Rwanda, Cheadle has already established himself as a top-notch actor, but elements of his performance in Traitor were truly impressive. His language capabilities were excellent as he flawlessly transitioned between dialects. Unlike other espionage flicks, Cheadle's character of Samir is not indestructible; rather he's highly adept in combat and other fields akin to the special forces, but nonetheless makes his mistakes and loses some battles. The vulnerability and intensity of Samir in both his personality and religiosity were superb, he came off as a human going through this test of spirit rather than an agent robotically decimating a terrorist organization from within. Universal morality is the crux of this film and I believe the intense focus on the cultural exchange and interaction between the peoples and faiths is the strength of this film. These guys did their homework, no doubt, but as many have said this isn't a perfect movie. Definitely worth the price of admission.

Doug N. gave it an8:
The film is much better than the critics "score"would have you believe. It really had me guessing until - well, almost the end. This is not an action film, more a psychological type thriller. I quite enjoyed it. Certainly more than the critic score would have yo believe.

Jeremy C gave it a6:
Disappointing. Isn't as insightful as Traffic or as compelling as Syriana or as entertaining as Blood Diamond. Steals elements from each of these films. If you want a powerful movie experience spend your money on the DVD of Traffic or Syriana. If you want a great movie that tackles terrorism and moralism with any kind of depth see The Siege. From a dragging beginning to an absurd "duh" ending this film doesn't add anything to American's understanding of Islam, terrorism, or morality.

Traitor Overture Films

Traitor
Overture Films