Though I normally will follow Naomi Watts wherever she wants to take me, her latest film — about outed CIA agent Valerie Plame from Bourne director Doug Liman — failed to fully ignite despite a committed performance from the actress.
The problem seemed to be in Liman’s turgid desire to turn the actress and the character into a real-life, female version of Bourne. There is unfortunately nothing new brought to the conversation from Liman and screenwriter Jez Butterworth (Birthday Girl), leaving Watts and co-star Sean Penn (who were so electric in 21 Grams together) grasping at cliches and regurgitated news from 2003.
Fair Game will be out in limited release November 5 and will expand throughout the month, but don’t beat yourself up if you can’t make it to the theater – this is a film that will play just fine on DVD, on the small screen. If you are looking for a dose of Watts that is far superior, check out her remarkable work in Rodrigo Garcia’s Mother and Child.