The Matt Damon Movie That Everyone Talked About, But Didn’t See

The big picture

• Green Zone
  was a controversial film that explored the aftermath of the Iraq War and depicted the US government's lies and lack of coherent intelligence.
• The film received backlash from right-wing pundits who saw it as anti-American, but it also had defenders who felt it accurately captured the truth of the military's experiences.
• Despite the controversy,
  Green Zone
  bombed at the box office and was one of the biggest mistakes of Matt Damon's career.

The film industry has always used recent events in American history to inspire some of its best films. In the 1970s, the events of the Vietnam War and the Nixon administration had a major influence on genre films that dealt with traumatic headlines. The same has become a reality in the 21st century. Filmmakers struggled to justify making “genre entertainment” in a post-9/11 world when the “War on Terror” was being waged. After his success along with the Jason Bourne movies, director Paul Greengrass i Matt Damon they channeled their efforts into the 2010 action film Green Zonewhich explored the aftermath of the 2003 Iraq War. Green Zone became a major controversy due to the film's strong political themes. However, not everyone had an opinion Green Zone I actually saw it, because the movie was converted one of the lowest performers of Damon's career.

What is the “green zone”?

Loosely based on the reporter Rajiv Chandrasekaran2006 non-fiction novel Imperial life in the emerald city, Green Zone follows US Army Chief Petty Officer Roy Miller (Damon) as he searches the Middle East for Iraqi military leader General Mohammed Al-Rawi (Yigal Naor). Miller's main mission is to find the supposed “weapons of mass destruction” he's heard so much about from the president. George W. Bushpublic addresses of. However, Miller discovers that the Department of Defense and the CIA are blocking his investigation at every turn. As Miller worries about the intelligence he is receiving, he begins to suspect whether these “weapons of mass destruction” really exist. He is consistently convinced that the term “weapons of mass destruction” has been used as a scapegoat by US political and military leaders to justify the invasion of Iraq.

Although this sounds like the subject of a conspiracy thriller, the nature of the US invasion of Iraq was on the public's mind in 2010. In the Bourne films, Greengrass and Damon had used the conspiracy angle to comment freely on the nature of the federal and military infrastructure, however Green Zone it was a completely different beast. There were no hints Green Zone The film depicted a real, ongoing invasion, and presented a (somewhat) fictionalized examination of the conflict. Using the vague premise of being an action thriller, Green Zone examines the systematic lies fed by the White House and casts the CIA (and whistleblowers like Miller) as the heroes who uncover this “evil plot.” This immediately drew the ire of many right-wing pundits who considered the film's themes to be “un-American”.

Why was Matt Damon's “Green Zone” so controversial?

As with any film dealing with overseas conflicts, Green Zone it was criticized by members of the military who saw it as slander. In a comment for The New York Postthe former US military Kyle Smith called the film “grossly un-American” for portraying the actions of the Bush administration in a negative light. However, the film also had its defenders, among them Monty Gonzalez, the real soldier Damon's character was based on. Gonzales felt that the film accurately captured the lack of coherent intelligence gathered by US military leaders before the invasion of Iraq.

While he didn't necessarily frame it as a conspiracy thriller, Gonzales felt it Green Zone was accurate to the truth of his experiences, citing it as a “thrilling Bourne in Baghdad” thriller. Both Damon and Greengrass were forced to go on the defensive as they faced pushback from political pundits and film critics alike. Damon argued that the film's examination of the White House's Iraq War policies was “a journey we all took and a fundamental question we all asked, and it's not partisan.” Filmmaker of opinion Michael Moorehe called Green Zone “the most honest Iraq War movie Hollywood has ever made” and felt it was “stupidly marketed as an action movie”.

'Green Zone' underperformed at the box office

Green Zone It was expected to be a hit based on the success of Damon and Greengrass in the Bourne trilogy, but failed to gross more than $95 million worldwide on a $100 million budget. When considering marketing costs and significant advertising campaign, Green Zone it's one of the biggest mistakes of Damon's career. A hard period began for the Bourne actor, in which he appeared in several critical and financial issues, incl From now on, The Adjustment Office, We bought a zoo, Elysiumi promised land. Damon's role as Mark Watney Ridley Scott's the martian it was essentially seen as his return.

Green Zone it was a box office disaster, but it inspired some interesting discourse within the filmmaking community. Reviews ranged from raves to complete pans, and the film's mixed Metascore rating reflects just how divisive it really was. Although some critics took issue with the film's plot and narrative clichés, Roger Ebert awarded the film four stars, citing it as “a thriller that doesn't pretend to be based on fact, but offers characters and situations that have uncanny real-life parallels.” Unfortunately for Damon and Greengrass, the film's divisive reviews may have alienated potential audiences. Perhaps the discourse on the film's political theme discouraged action movie lovers from watching Green Zone.

Compared to other films about the Iraq War, Green Zone it has aged very well. The film is able to explore the outrage that characters like Roy felt when they discovered that their government had lied to them. but never points the finger at any individual. Green Zone he suggests that the military-industrial system itself is to blame for the disaster in Iraq, but he never pushed the CIA's efforts to the point of absurdity. It's an unusually political blockbuster, but for those who simply want to see Damon in one of the most underrated performances, Green Zone it's still a great piece of entertainment.

Green Zone is available to rent or buy on Prime Video in the US

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