Civic Duty

2006
6.2| 1h38m| en
Details

An American accountant bombarded with cable news and the media's obsession with terrorist plots in the post 9-11 world, receives a jolt when an unattached Islamic graduate student moves in next door.

Director

Producted By

Splendid Film

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Reviews

WasAnnon Slow pace in the most part of the movie.
Titreenp SERIOUSLY. This is what the crap Hollywood still puts out?
Executscan Expected more
Freaktana A Major Disappointment
Roland E. Zwick "Civic Duty" is like "Rear Window" for the post-9/11 age. Terry Allen is a recently laid-off accountant who, thanks in large part to an ubiquitous, sensation-seeking news media, has become increasingly obsessed with the "terrorist threat" plaguing the Western world. When a young Middle Eastern man moves into an apartment across the way, Terry immediately goes into surveillance mode, spying on his every move, following him around town, breaking into his home, and even reporting him to what Terry quickly learns, much to his dismay, is a decidedly uninterested and unconcerned FBI. Soon, his life and marriage are falling apart as he plunges ever deeper into his paranoia-driven madness."Civic Duty" starts off as a reasonably compelling psychological thriller, but the longer the movie goes on the more far-fetched and heavy-handed it becomes. Peter Krause, who was so subtle and effective as the star of "Six Feet Under," is forced to go so over-the-top in his performance here that we begin to fear he'll burst a blood vessel long before the movie is over. The underlining doesn't stop there, however, for Jeff Renfroe"s direction is filled with any number of hokey touches, including panning wildly or having the camera do virtual somersaults anytime anything even remotely sinister or suspenseful is about to take place.The movie first points out how the media, obsessed with profits and ratings, finds it necessary to bombard us with a steady stream of potential terror threats, both real and manufactured, on an around-the-clock basis - and then questions what kind of effect such sensory overload might have on an already unstable personality. And, beyond that, might the media and the political class it serves be turning all of us, to some degree or another, into raging paranoiacs, ready to pry into our neighbors' private business in the cause of national security? Unfortunately, this provocative theme gets buried under a truckload of paranoid-thriller clichés.Kari Matchett, Khaled Abol Naga and Richard Schiff ("The West Wing") do well in their various roles, but the movie, well intentioned though it is, falls far short of its potential.
JoaoPovoaMarinheiro I saw this movie, and I was surprised. The performances were reasonable, not that bad, and the plot was a very interesting reflection. This movie sends a message and a social critic to America, about terrorism, and it reflects on the uncomfortable way of life, of an American, Terry Allen (played by Peter Krause, good performance here) that is certain that is neighbor, Gabe Hassan (Khaled Abol Naga, that is a revelation here), is a terrorist. This is an interesting film, because it reflects on a man that is disturbed and filled with plenty of media stuff in is head. This is an excellent critic to the American society, post 9/11, and also a movie that poses on the theory of conspiration. Get to see it if you can. Interesting - 7/10.
rob099 Honestly I started up this movie and though "ah man, my wife got another crappy movie from Netflix." I am surprised to say that, although this movie does have a lot of kinks in it as far as believability is concerned, it does manage to get the viewer wondering what will happen next...I guess. I usually don't have any patience for movies, so if you also have a short fuse when it comes to watching one, you'd better steer clear of this one. It might not grab your attention or make you care soon enough, if at all. I definitely wasn't extremely thrilled with it until the ending which really wasn't too bad. Definitely a good movie to watch if there's just nothing on TV. Did this review sound mediocre? Well, that's kind of how the movie was. Just not a lot to say about it I guess. It was a low budget film and this was a very low budget review.
Gram This movie is as good as you'd expect. You get slowly dragged into the world of anti-terrorist paranoia through the eyes of one character that creates a dillusion we can all empaphise with but he takes it to a level we would never pursue as a warning of what can and does happen. This movie cleverly takes you on a journey where you can choose to get off and the shock value is extremely thought provoking. People looking for a happy ending or a solid moral might not come away satisfied but anyone whos enjoys shocking surrealism like 'The Woodsman' will love this movie.8/10.

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