Release: March 11                                                                                                                       Running time: 114 minutes                                                                                                                                           Rating: M (mature themes, violence and coarse language)

The problem with Green Zone is apparent in its tagline, “Chief Warrant Officer Roy Miller is done following orders.” Wait a second! Who is Roy Miller? And why do I care? Although you would think that the film might just answer that question, but you would be wrong.

Framed by the American occupation of Iraq and the hunt for WMDs, Green Zone seems perfect material for the leftist Greengrass, especially since United 93 managed to be one of, if not the, greatest films of the last ten years. Billed as a fusion of the high-tension, pulse-pounding action of director Paul Greengrass’ two Bourne sequels with the incendiary political filmmaking of Bloody Sunday and United 93, unfortunately Green Zone fails to deliver on both levels. Instead, Green Zone eschews any kind of seriousness and thoughtfulness for a ludicrous action film.

It’s not the cast’s fault, an impressive line-up boasting Damon whose stoic, minimalist work in the Bourne franchise helped redefine the action genre, as well as accomplished thesps as Brendan Gleeson, Greg Kinnear, Amy Ryan, Khalid Abdalla and a moustachioed Jason Isaacs. It’s not a technical issue, either- The Hurt Locker’s Barry Ackroyd’s cinematography is accomplished, and Greengrass directs with his inquisitive, questing vision.

The problem lies in the writing. Penned by Brian Helegand- who wrote L.A. Confidential (great), Mystic River (great) and the recent remake of The Taking of Pelham 123 (?)- Green Zone boasts decent plotting and perhaps even a good story (it is based on the non-fiction book Imperial Life in the Emerald City by Rajiv Chandrasekaran), but there are no characters in this film, only types which aren’t fleshed-out. Damon’s character, Roy Miller, cannot be defined save for the fact that he’s inquisitive and morally forthright. Brendan Gleeson’s character… no idea. Amy Ryan’s character is a reporter and… female. Greg Kinnear’s character, the baddie, is a suit-wearing conservative, kinda like the one played by David Strathairn in The Bourne Ultimatum, except Strathairn’s character actually developed (or rather, deteriorated). Kinnear’s on the other hand… well, he’s American you see, and even worse, he’s conservative. And he has a cell-phone, and he uses buzz-words. Ooh. Nasty.

The other antagonist is Jason Isaacs. Now, if you are even vaguely familiar with the work of Jason Isaacs, you will know that he is a legend, and a complete and utter badass. The guy devours scenery and has a proclivity for playing the most loathsome villainous types, as he demonstrated in The Patriot and the Harry Potter flicks. Here, he demonstrates ever-so-briefly, that he’s the new Gary Oldman, disguising his voice and face beautifully. So he breezes in, and punches Matt Damon for no good reason other than the fact that he’s a bad guy, saunters off, gets about three lines for the rest of the film and then spends the last half-hour running around with a gun. Silent. Damon’s doing the same thing at the same time, for what it’s worth. What the hell? You don’t hire Jason Isaacs to run around like Buster Keaton in A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum. You hire him to do stuff. He doesn’t here. No one does.

No one has any idea of what to do at any given moment, and as much as it’s Helegand’s fault for writing this dross, it’s Greengrass’ fault for not flogging some quality out of it. That being said, the film is not without its high points. The opening scene, before the main title, is wonderful – it really gives us a sense that Iraq is starting to spawn its own mythology, and it directly recalls, I feel, the suspenseful evacuation of Atlanta in Gone With the Wind. It’s arresting filmmaking, but then it disappears as soon as the words Green Zone have vanished from the screen.

I suppose I should say something about Green Zone’s political message, but since I can’t bring myself to care about anyone involved within the fictional construction, why should I care about what the filmmakers have to say? It’s a sad state of affairs when Grant Heslov’s underrated madcap farce, The Men Who Stare at Goats, makes a more concise, graceful and powerful message about the American occupation of Iraq than the big, expensive, “message” film. The Men Who Stare at Goats, despite being built on rampant silliness, can be taken far more seriously – if anyone decides to actually go to Green Zone, I defy you not to roar with laughter at the ending, which directly- and quite accidentally- recalls Billy Madison.

So, in the space of 2 hours, Greengrass goes from Gone With the Wind to Billy Madison. Look, the action is well staged and shot, and, if you’re willing to undergo a lobotomy before entering the theatre, Green Zone might just be your cup of tea. If you want to see a good film, then I have no solution for you, apart from The Men Who Stare at Goats.

Timothy Maddocks