 In a Hollywood scene overblown with action films and plots that do little more than link car chases and daring escapes, it’s pretty rare to find a spy movie that represents what spying is all about - being secretive, and not getting caught. So in the same year that the latest Bond film, Casino Royale, came out and during which we were also graced with Mission: Impossible III, it’s nice to see a spy film that features almost no action at all and yet remains thrilling. That movie is The Good Shepherd.
Going into the intricacies of a story that is 100% plot would be a disservice, both to the readers of this review and any potential viewers of this film. I will attempt brevity as much as possible. Basically, the story follows Edward Wilson (Matt Damon), a spy for the OSS, a foreign intelligence agency that lasted through WWII. Edward is called to serve his country immediately after knocking up a woman he met named Clover (Angelina Jolie). After marrying her more out of the expectations of his culture and his friends than out of love, he is relocated to London for a very long five-year stint, during which he never once sees or meets his own son or his wife.
Returning home after such a long absence creates quite a toll on the family. His son naturally doesn’t know how to act around him, and his wife doesn’t know how much she can trust him, seeing as how his job is to maintain the world’s biggest secrets. To complicate matters even further, General Bill Sullivan (Robert De Niro) one of the founders of the OSS, announces to Edward that soon the US government plans to create a new intelligence agency, the CIA, to do in peacetime what the OSS did during the war. General Sullivan wants Edward by his side, and with a family that can only be seen as one by outward appearances, and an overbearing desire to serve his country, it’s an opportunity that Edward can’t say no to. As Edward soon finds out, "no" definitely would have been an easier option. Soon he will be knee deep in Cold War espionage, unable to trust anyone at all, and the faceless enemy that he is hunting for just might be closer to home than he thinks.
I first would like to say that, while I do recommend The Good Shepherd to anyone interested in seeing it, make damn sure you have no distractions for its near three-hour running time. While thin on any action, the plot is beautifully woven through the film. Things insignificant when first seen will come into play later on. Acting subtleties and character behavior are all on display for the viewer to either discover or to be explained in a later scene. In essence, you play a part in the experience of The Good Shepherd. You are the viewer going through and examining the characters to decide just whose side they are on. The film flows like a good read, but it has the pacing that a novel would have as well. To properly enjoy the movie takes patience
 When I first started watching the film, I was getting bothered by Damon in the lead role. I like Damon as an actor, and I’m a big fan of the Bourne series as well as some of his comedic work. But here Damon plays Edward in a way that only a store mannequin could emulate. He’s unflinching, and not reactive to anything going on. But as the film progressed and I learned about the character and his background, I began to realize just how perfect a fit that is. He plays Edward exactly how the character is meant. On the flipside of this is the voluptuous Angelina Jolie, who now years into her career, has still not learned how to act her way out of a wet paper bag. Clover’s initial attraction to Edward, and indeed their first sexual encounter, is so non-emotive and non-erotic that I can’t buy even alcohol as an excuse for how it happened. Neither party seemed interested in each other at all. However, given the troubled nature of these characters I can somewhat forgive the lack of chemistry from either entertainer.
One flaw that I can’t look past, though, is the actor that plays Edward, Jr. (Eddie Redmayne) when he is grown up. For one, I can’t buy the fact that he wants to follow his father into the world of espionage, and two, I don’t buy his lack of emotion at his own wedding when he’s already demonstrated that he’s an overly emotional guy. Whatever it is that Redmayne is trying to deliver, he didn’t use enough postage and it was halted at customs. He nearly ruined the film outright for me, and that’s pretty sad considering how much work was put into getting people to follow the path of the story.
 I’m somewhat ashamed to say I’ve never seen A Bronx Tale, Robert De Niro’s only prior film credit as sole director. Regardless, for someone who hasn’t directed a film in 16 years you aren’t likely to notice that. But the imagery of The Good Shepherd does grow stale after a while. You can only see so many heads with dark backgrounds in a row before your eyes tear up for a little change. Thankfully, the sets are well done, and the camera jumps to different locations (often with dialogue still continuing) frequently enough to keep things interesting. The score by Bruce Fowler and Marcelo Zarvos is also quite beautiful. In fact, as I wrote this review, the “special features” menu was playing on a continuous loop, and the haunting melody never got old.
There are a great deal of complexities in The Good Shepherd that I am sure will hold up under repeat viewings, and this is exactly the type of film that you will want to come back to with some frequency. There are flaws in the film, but they are never distracting to the point that you get frustrated. I recommend the film; it’s a great ride.
 The DVD Presentation
In the entire length of the film, I didn’t notice a single blemish or flaw in the anamorphic widescreen presentation (a separate full-frame version is available). For a film that is quite dark most of the time and has a lot of brown tones, I thought the sharpness was well conveyed. Audio itself is suitable. There is quite a bit of ambient sound that makes for wonderful 5.1 surround effects, but there isn’t a lot of action to really rumble the foundation. It perfectly matches the film, though. In addition to the English surround track, there is also a French dub, and subtitles are included in English, French and Spanish. Overall, The Good Shepherd offers up a fine presentation that no one should complain about.
And the Extras Are?
Deleted Scenes – (15:57)
Seven deleted scenes are included here, presented in anamorphic widescreen. The quality of these is just as good as the film itself. Many of these scenes revolve around a sub-plot involving Edward’s brother-in-law. None of these scenes are necessarily frivolous, but the length of the film was still a bit on the long side for theatre comfort, so I can only assume they cut it for time. Regardless, fans of The Good Shepherd will find interest in these scenes.
 Previews – Non selectable, forced trailers are provided when you play the DVD. These include Smokin’ Aces, Children Of Men, the theatrical release Hot Fuzz, an ad for NBC’s Law & Order and a promo ad for HD-DVD.
I find myself asking, why aren’t I getting more here? This is a reasonably well received film. It has its fans, yet there aren’t a lot of features to be had. A De Niro commentary would be aces, but a featurette would have at least scratched the production itch. Is The Good Shepherd a likely candidate for a double dip in the future? Honestly, I can’t really tell. The lack of extras is a pretty big disappointment.
The Bottom Line
Despite some unrestrained major critics hyping The Good Shepherd as sharing the scope, awe and brilliance of The Godfather, I refuse to share that opinion. It’s a great film to be sure, and anyone that likes intelligent films should go out and rent this without hesitation. However, the film does have has some pretty noticeable flaws. As for the DVD, the somewhat incomplete packaging makes a twenty dollar investment uninviting.
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