Secrets of State (2008)

Does anyone know if the dog death scene was live (actual) footage of a dog being gassed or was that dog an amazing actor? I cannot find any information on this, and it was suggested in a previous comment that the dog death scene was actual terrorist footage. It would upset me to think that animal cruelty / the portrayal of terrorists performing animal cruelty is something that Canadian film distribution companies find it okay to support even if the film isn't made in Canada. The film centers on a very touchy subject, but that scene is not one I am going to forget easily. I found this just another example of horrific things accomplished by terrorists in the world, and replaying it whether in a film or on television just amplifies the effect they wish to portray to us "infidels".

Secret défense is an interesting movie in that it combines the style of French thrillers with Hollywood mainstream elements. Even during the opening credits, the movie smacks of Tony Scott, right down to the music, which reminds of "Enemy of the State".I have not seen previous movies from director Philippe Haïm but I sensed he could never firmly put his print on this espionage thriller despite having the best of intentions. The story is cliché but interesting enough despite quite weak dialogs, the pace is appropriate so we get to know all the characters and the tension builds slowly as the "pieces" move in this chess game of terror.Unfortunately, there's just something missing to make us care about any of these people. Perhaps this movie could have felt more fresh had it come out in 2002 or 2003 but by now it all feels rehashed.What saves the movie from being sub par is the avoidance of over-the-top action sequences. The movie instead focuses on the cold, calculating work done by both national security agents and terrorists alike. Both sides thrive not due to super-heroic powers (think James Bond here) but rather by a total disregard for human life. The movers and shakers on both sides manipulate their gullible and vulnerable assets into doing their dirty work. Bonus points for the gritty tone which at times might not have been possible in a Hollywood movie. Food for thoughts: Secret Defense cost 11 million Euros. Considering a movie like "Spy Game" cost 92 million US dollars, it makes you consider Europeans still know how to get a bigger bang for the buck.Not the most spectacular entry in the genre but worthwhile. This is not classic French cinema. This is not a Hollywood blockbuster. But if you can appreciate an unambitious and entertaining movie somewhere between the two, this might be for you.

At last a GOOD French Film!! :) First, to introduce my opinion and place it in perspective, I must say that for more than two decades, I've been watching almost everything released both in the US and in Europe and the best of Asia, South America and the rest of the world. And among all topics, realistic spy/intelligence Films/Mini-Series/TV series has been in my favorites for half a decade. Thus I am a big fan of this genre and one can honestly say that my culture about it as well as about movies in general is quite large. My favorites lately being by far BBC's MI5:Spooks, I've watched all 7 seasons of it (about 100 episodes). Or for example, I'd also recommend The Company (Miniseries) or DeNiro's The Shepherd. Being French, I also watch a lot of our films and I must sadly admit that it is most often a boring torture, especially lately. But not today with Secret Defense. And I can at last happily share and say that SECRET DEFENSE is probably in the BEST entertaining spy French Films released for a long time. (I also rarely write reviews. Only mostly to praise and recommend a good film that might need attention or to sack the worst pretentious ones that attract crowds of sheep despite having been a torture to watch for me).Why is SECRET DEFENSE so worthy of our attention? First, the storyline is properly well written, simple and plausible rather than far fetched to exaggerated improbabilities for the sole objective of cinematic roller coasting attempts too often seen in this genre. That makes it more believable and interesting. The counseling from renowned French and Oriental experts on this topic was wise, mostly followed and thus effective. There are not that many features on our former DGSE and I praise the production for not going in the James Bond direction but more in the MI5 one. Although one true fan might ask when are we at last gonna see and show how intelligence work can mostly be truly boring or spooky and inhumane? But we're getting in that direction here, right from the beginning when Lanvin introduces himself in saying that an agent must be seen as a weapon only and never as a human.The final editing is properly paced with no unnecessary elements making the movie properly entertaining and interesting.Then, the visual directing is OK+ with some cinematographic effects worthy of a big screen release. That is becoming rare.The excellent beginning credits are Oscar worthy!!Then the actors directions is not questionable. Gérard Lanvin (lead actor) is perfect as always. Second & third characters are never playing out of tune. That is remarkable in France where even lead actors can sometimes, way too often, be left directed out of tune in the final editing. That is a torture to my hear as much as a bad singer. And I'm not even mentioning second characters that often sound worst than imaginable, worst that the worst liar. Not here.Vahina Giocante (lead actress) is also very well directed and surprising when she (quite often) manages to make us forget her exquisite beauty and discover her effective tormented face full of emotions that then becomes not only pretty but efficiently emotive, in the Charlize Theron direction. And like Charlize, she has the highly saluted courage of not fearing to not pass over the best primal parts of her, her very beautiful body in the nude and bare butt. And that makes sense to show them since the story uses her beauty as a "weapon, that only is an agent" (dixit Lanvin). A bit too rarely here but more could indeed unfortunately have affected the nature of her performance in the movie. Thanks Vahina.Overall, All this makes SECRET DEFENSE a very honorable or good French Film, one of its best made in the last decade in the entertaining with a substance spy action genre. So watch it and prove otherwise if you don't agree.

You can't of course copyright a title so if you are going to duplicate one a mere ten years old the least you can do is to be as different as possible. In the case of Secret Defense Jaques Rivette got their first in 1968 but there's not much chance of anyone turning out a film like Rivette so where that was a rambling discursive intellectual exercise this one is more a melange of John Le Carre and David Mamet involving cross and triple cross in the ongoing war against Islamic terrorists bent, as always, on making the rest of the world cry Allah. British television does much the same thing in its series Spooks', indeed one of your friendly neighbourhood terrorists here', Simon Akbarian, appeared in around 6 episodes of Spooks so presumably was able to phone it in for the big screen. Gerard Lanvin, more or less the only 'name' in the cast, is perfectly cast as the head honcho more than prepared to sacrifice his own personnel if and when required and it is, alas, required. Well worth catching.