Slow pace in the most part of the movie.

Save your money for something good and enjoyable

Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

Story: It's very simple but honestly that is fine.

The film deals with the age old conflict of control of natural resources. In this case an international company called Clear-Bec runs water filtration systems. It makes deals with governments to take over the waterways used by the poor indigenous population, then turn around and sell them what has been free. Old progressives are familiar with this type of thing from Susan George's "How the Other Half Dies" (1976).In this particular case, the water in an Ecuadorian village becomes polluted with sewage and leads to a typhus epidemic which wipes out a village. Part of the damage control was to have the military ensure there were no witnesses. The incident is brought to the attention of Morgan Swinton (Deborah Kara Unger) part owner of the evil corporation. She has a conscience and wants to get to the bottom of the incident against the wishes of her brother and the rest of the company.She hires radio talk show host and former CIA agent Jack Begosian (Andy Garcia) who used to work on the other side of these types of issues. For him it is a chance for redemption and to bury those demons. His goal is to bring back the only witness, an activist who has the secret files of what happened, Francisco Francis (Forest Whitaker).The film is about a fictional corporation doing things that are not beyond the realm of reason, until they bring the fight home, then I had to scratch my head. Personally I would have liked to seen a dramatization of a certain soft drink company who we all know and love and their involvement with the assassination of union leaders in Columbia.Andy Garcia and Forest Whitaker are typically animated characters in stories. In this movie they are rather subdued and defined more by their philosophical ramblings than actions. The plot was fairly simple without any real twist. The final shoot out I found grossly unbelievable. I never got to experience the pain of the affected people, nor did I develop any type connection with the main character whose past, which was fundamental to understanding him, was not fully explained. Not as good as Sean Connery in the Amazon Rain Forest.Parental Guide: No F-bombs, sex, or nudity. Killing, some blood not overly graphic.

I enjoy a well-written, well-directed and well-acted movie. This is one.It takes us into a world that we are estranged much too often and it does it with grace and passion.Unfortunately, its lack of distribution and acknowledgment of its kind, speaks volumes for the world we live in.I gave it a ten and wonder why such good movies get such poor reviews and little distribution. Where are the small movie houses that were willing to show films of quality and substance? Now we have corporations, computers and data showing the safest and most agreeable propaganda.

The casting of the movie is incredible. Which is always the case when a message is being delivered. It's not too much on the nose here or at least it is incorporated into the story quite good. The actors you know do what they can. Eva Longoria might have the least to do (especially considering her name/weight). It's nice seeing some old familiar faces in a movie, where they try to build character.There is quite a bit of cliché in this, but you wouldn't/couldn't expect otherwise. Kevin Durand has a great little role in it and he makes his decision, no matter how small or big they are, actually work. Apart from that it's mostly the Andy Garcia show, with some added drama by Kara Unger and Forrest Whitacker. A nice little drama, with a lot of action in it.

Review: I did have high expectations about this movie, but once again, I got let down. As usual, the problem wasn't with the cast, who all put in good performances, but the storyline was boring in parts and it just seemed to drag. The concept was interesting but the film seemed a bit all over the place. I think that the director was trying to cover to much ground with the politics, thriller, drama and action. Disappointing!Round-Up: It's good to see Andy Garcia back on the big screen because he has been missing for ages. It's a shame that he didn't come back with a better movie, but the film must have seemed good on paper. Forest Whitaker is playing his usual moody self, which is becoming a bit repetitive, but its what he does best. Man, how much has Steven Bauer changed from playing Manny in Scarface? Anyway, the movie could have been much better with such a deep subject matter.