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Traitor
Overture Films


8.4

based on 29 reviews
Read critic reviews
How did we calculate this?

based on 36 votes
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Rate this movie

MPAA RATING: PG-13 for intense violent sequences, thematic material and brief language

Starring Don Cheadle, Guy Pearce, Jeff Daniels, Neal McDonough, Archie Panjabi, Alyy Kahn, and Said Taghmaoui

When straight arrow FBI agent Roy Clayton heads up the investigation into a dangerous international conspiracy, all clues seem to lead back to former U.S. Special Operations officer, Samir Horn. A mysterious figure with a web of connections to terrorist organization, Horn has a knack for emerging on the scene just as a major operation goes down. The inter-agency task force looking into the case meets with Carter, a veteran CIA contractor who seemingly has his own agenda and Max Archer, a fellow FBI agent. The task force links Horn to a prison break in Yemen, a bombing in Nice and a raid in London, but a tangle of contradictory evidence emerges, forcing Clayton to question whether his quarry is a disaffected former military operative or something far more complicated. Obsessed with discovering the truth, Clayton tracks Horn across the globe as the elusive ex-soldier burrows deeper and deeper into a world of shadow and intrigue. (Overture Films)

GENRE(S):	Drama
WRITTEN BY:	Steve Martin (story) Jeffrey Nachmanoff
DIRECTED BY:	Jeffrey Nachmanoff
RELEASE DATE:	DVD: December 16, 2008 Theatrical: August 27, 2008
RUNNING TIME:	minutes, Color
ORIGIN:	USA

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

The Hollywood Reporter Kirk Honeycutt

The film is a genuinely gripping tale about international terrorism that hopscotches across three continents.

Austin Chronicle Josh Rosenblatt

If you're looking for a few hours of mindless, uncomplicated, air-conditioned escapism to get you through a hot late-summer's evening, I'd recommend you look some place other than Traitor.

The Onion (A.V. Club) Nathan Rabin

Without its mesmerizing lead performance, Traitor easily could have devolved into direct-to-DVD fodder.

TV Guide Maitland McDonagh

The film's greatest asset is its performances.

Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert

The movie proceeds quickly, seems to know its subject matter, is fascinating in its portrait of the inner politics and structure of the terrorist group, and comes uncomfortably close to reality. But what holds it together is the Cheadle character.

ReelViews James Berardinelli

An uncommonly intelligent espionage thriller that explores the moral and ethical dilemmas faced by agents who go deep undercover in the service of their country.

Seattle Post-Intelligencer William Arnold

A tough, taut, mostly well-executed morality parable and thriller that explores some of the bitter ironies of this strange religious vendetta in which America unwittingly finds itself.

Chicago Tribune Michael Phillips

Problems aside, this is a good, twisty, absorbing work.

Boston Globe Ty Burr

The film's a propulsive international espionage thriller, built on the hurry-scurry bones of the "Bourne" movies.

Charlotte Observer Lawrence Toppman

A thriller that's frequently implausible but almost always thoughtful. It asks us to rethink the way we see Muslims

New York Post Lou Lumenick

The best end-of-August movie I've seen in years.

The New York Times A.O. Scott

A somber, absorbing and only moderately preposterous new thriller.

Philadelphia Inquirer Carrie Rickey

Don Cheadle, wiry and wired, delivers an electrifying performance in Traitor.

Miami Herald Rene Rodriguez

Traitor is "Syriana" for dummies, a globe-hopping, multi-character look at the war between America and Islamic terrorists that keeps things as relatively simple as an episode of 24. Not that there's anything wrong with that: 24 is a really good show. But it doesn't pretend to be something it's not, either.

USA Today Claudia Puig

Can't seem to decide whether it wants to be an edge-of-the-seat action thriller or a more contemplative and intellectual drama about religion and terrorism. Somehow, in trying to have it both ways, it doesn't completely succeed at either.

Variety Todd McCarthy

Brandishes physical verisimilitude and intelligent seriousness but proves unable to really get inside its chameleon-like central character.

Salon.com Stephanie Zacharek

Pearce may be the other big star in Traitor, and while his performance is serviceable, it doesn't cut deeply. Taghmaoui, as a radical motivated by moral certainty, is the real actor to watch here.

New York Daily News Joe Neumaier

Nachmanoff fills the movie with a sense of gripping, '70s-style grittiness that helps undercut the web-of-evil tone.

Baltimore Sun Michael Sragow

It's Cheadle's rich emotionality and sense of humor that have gone seriously missing in Traitor.

Portland Oregonian M. E. Russell

Its easy to see why Don Cheadle wanted to play Samir Horn, the hero of the post-9/11 thriller Traitor. Cheadles face is basically a perfect delivery system for woe, sadness and internal conflict. And Samir a deep-cover operative trying to infiltrate a terrorist outfit has to make brutal Sophies Choices roughly three times a day.

Village Voice Chuck Wilson

The movie's first hour is well-done, but realism and insight go out the window as soon as Samir crosses the U.S. border.

San Francisco Chronicle Reyhan Harmanci

The film is stylishly shot, although the current action-movie look might be dated in a few years.

Washington Post Philip Kennicott

Traitor traffics in the cliches of the terrorist chase film -- including the usual stereotypes of Muslims -- while trying not to succumb to outright bigotry.

Wall Street Journal Joanne Kaufman

Ultimately, Traitor is a movie at war with itself.

The Globe and Mail (Toronto) Jennie Punter

Traitor becomes too busy, ultimately frustrating, and never delivers on its tantalizing promise of offering a little insight into terrorists' motives – and it's even got an inside man.

Christian Science Monitor Robert Koehler

Cheadle's innate goodness is the film's main dilemma, since the truth under the story's surface (which we won't reveal here) can be contained for only so long, and with ever-diminishing dramatic returns.

Entertainment Weekly Lisa Schwarzbaum

A slippery entertainment that's all feints and few punches thrown at a fight card of indistinguishable terrorists, Muslim and otherwise.

Chicago Reader J.R. Jones

Based on a story by Steve Martin of all people, the script seldom rises above formula (Guy Pearce and Neal McDonough are especially ill served as a pair of starchy FBI agents), but its respectful treatment of Islam is both unusual and welcome.

The New Yorker David Denby

The filmmakers, I think, got in over their heads and couldn't decide whether they were making an action thriller or a drama of conscience; they wound up flubbing both.

The average user rating for this movie is 8.4 (out of 10) based on 36 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Kevin M gave it a10:
Great film - as an Arabic student, it gave an accurate portrayal of what Yemen culture and prison life would have been like. Plus, Don Cheadle is amazing in this role - he encompasses it perfectly.

Lyle S. gave it a6:
Forgettable - not a must watch - I'm sure the Jihad portrait is the reason the critics lashed out at the film and I'm not comfortable with it either.

sid n. gave it a9:
Very good movie with similar suspense. plot is unwrapped flawlessly. keeps you hooked to the movie.

Cheryl N gave it a9:
Great Movie. Don Cheadle was very believable in his role, and I was genuinely surprised at the plot twists throughout the movie. One of the aspects of the movie that I really enjoyed was the music. It was phenomenal and I immediately came home and downloaded the soundtrack. I think it was just an all around well produced, well acted, and well executed film. One of the few movies that was worth my money so far this year.

Chuck V. gave it a9:
Edge of the seat action. Don Cheadle is superb. Felt like I was watching a reality show.

Trentt L. gave it a10:
Daring movie. We haven't really seen black men in roles like this before and Cheadle does this with a depth of character that many action films lack. It is not all one liners or cowboy attitude. The character is intelligent, conflicted, capable and at most times "cool" in a believable way. Critics are doing a good job of managing the expectations of viewers. Glad I saw this one before reading the reviews (which seem to contain more spoilers than usual).

Jae S. gave it a10:
I can't believe this movie isn't getting better reviews from the so called professional critics. They will probably rate bangcock nights higher. This might be the best movie in it's respective genre I have ever seen.

Traitor Overture Films

Traitor
Overture Films