Closed Circuit
There couldn't be a better time than right now for Closed Circuit to capture the public's attention, since the plot is a veritable scrapbook of recent newspaper headlines. Beyond the topical trappings, though, this is an unimaginative post-9/11 “legal thriller” in the John Grisham mold. Closed Circuit opens and closes on a mosaic of black-and-white security camera images, but in between, the themes of omnipresent surveillance are only used as hoary plot devices. Stars Rebecca Hall and Eric Bana lack the credibility to play trial lawyers, and even worse, they lack chemistry. Without competent leads, Closed Circuit relies on its supporting cast to supply the gravitas, including Jim Broadbent as an attorney general whose buttoned-down politeness conceals a passive-aggressive evil. Unfortunately, after a passable third act, the film goes 10 minutes too far in pursuit of a tidy ending.
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