The Good Shepherd

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The Good Shepherd ★★ 2006 (R)

The birth of the CIA was apparently accomplished by a bunch of gray-faced, unassuming men from the same social milieu, who wore dull suits and neglected their private lives for the good of their country. Edward Wilson (Damon) knocks up and then marries senator's daughter Clover (Jolie), but that is about the most human behavior he'll show in decades as he moves from WWII through the Cold War with paranoia as his distinguishing characteristic. De Niro's second directorial effort is a long slog through the spy biz where everyone lies and betrays. If you want to see a spymaster at work, watch Alec Guinness in any of his incarnations as George Smiley; at least he's more human than robotic. 160m/C DVD, HD DVD . US Matt Damon, Angelina Jolie, Alec Baldwin, Tammy Blanchard, Billy Crudup, Michael Gambon, William Hurt, Timothy Hutton, Keir Dullea, John Turturro, Joe Pesci, Gabriel Macht, Eddie Redmayne, Lee Pace, John Sessions, Robert De Niro, Martina Gedeck, Mark Ivanir; D: Robert De Niro; W: Eric Roth; C: Robert Richardson; M: Marcelo Zarvos, Bruce Fowler.