This afternoon I went to see Roman Polanksi's latest film The Ghost Writer, a political thriller. A ghost writer is someone who is paid to write a book or article for someone else (often a famous person). In this case the 'ghost' (Ewan McGregor) is hired to complete the memoirs of former British Prime Minister Adam Lang (Pierce Brosnan playing a character not a million miles from Tony Blair). His agent assures him it’s the opportunity of a lifetime, but the project seems doomed from the start—not least because his predecessor on the project, Lang’s long-term aide, died in an unfortunate accident. Or was it an accident ...
WHAT I THOUGHT
I read the book by Robert Harris a couple of years ago, but had forgotten large chunks of the plot, which was good because my enjoyment of the film was not spoiled by knowing what was going to happen. The only thing I didn't really like about the film was Ewan McGregor, who is not one of my favourite actors. Otherwise, it was fine. Plenty of atmosphere and suspense; great music; interesting characters (especially Lang's wife Ruth played by Olivia Williams); and a twisty, but not over-complicated, plot. I wish they made more intelligent thrillers like this.
REVIEWS
• Rotten Tomatoes (81%)
• New York Times
• The Guardian
• Slate
TRAILER
