Lawyer Martin Rose (Eric Bana) takes over the defense case of Farroukh Erdogan accused to be the ringleader of a bomb that went off in a crowded London market.  The previous defense lawyer fell off a roof and the way the court case complicates things further including lawyer Claudia Simmons-Howe (Rebecca Hall) is handling the secret evidence that is protected by national security (and she once had an affair with Martin.  Martin soon discovers that the former lawyer may have been murdered and his client was working for MI-5 as their mole into a terrorist group.  Martin and Claudia work to defend their client and keep themselves safe as MI-5 tries to cover up everything no matter what.

 

CLOSED CIRCUIT is an interesting legal thriller/ conspiracy thriller, but it would have been a classic if it wasn’t for the flaws on how MI-5 is written into the story and the chemistry between Bana and Hall to be a little lacking (despite each of them giving great performances separately in the movie).   CLOSED CIRCUIT does bring up some important issues on how national security and covering things up in the name of national security could result in a compromise of the legal system.   Even though CLOSED CIRCUIT takes place in the United Kingdom, the same issues could apply to the same type of story if it was set in the United States.   Should national security be put in front of justice or should the law apply to a murder case like this even if it involves national security issues?   The law is something we should uphold and not have different set of rules apply to those who seek to compromise it to protect intelligence instead of having justice go unanswered.   CLOSED CIRCUIT asks difficult questions and each of us may have different answers to those questions after we watch it.   The script may not be perfect, but it is a good enough conspiracy legal thriller to rent when it comes to DVD and blu-ray. 

 

This movie review is (c)9-3-2013 David Blackwell and cannot be reprinted without permission.  Send all comments to feedback@enterline-media.com

 

Like Enterline Media on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/enterlinemediaweb and follow on tumblr at http://enterlinemedia.tumblr.com