THE GOOD SHEPHERD: Epic Tragedy?

THE GOOD SHEPHERD (Blu-ray)

2006 / 168 min

Alliance Entertainment

Review by Princess Pepper😺

Since he’s demonstrated a knack for it, I’m kind of surprised Robert De Niro has only directed two movies. His first, A Bronx Tale, was an agreeable slice of Scorsese-lite. It’s a reasonable facsimile of the types of films they frequently did together, but I personally think The Good Shepherd is the better of the two. It feels more like the work of a director confident enough to take the next step and create something outside of his comfort zone. 

Epic in length and scope, The Good Shepherd is a fictionalized account of the creation of the CIA, as seen through Edward Wilson (Matt Damon). As the film opens, it’s 1961 and he’s a high-level counterintelligence operative who learns of a mole within his own department, which undermines the Bay of Pigs invasion. As he’s conducting the investigation, he receives ominous warnings from various associates about the ramifications of this breach in security, as well as a mysterious photo & tape recording that might provide clues as to the identity of the mole. 

But that’s only half the story. Interspersed throughout the investigation are numerous flashbacks chronicling Wilson’s career in counterintelligence, from his initial recruitment to the present, where he’s a key figure in what would soon become the CIA. Though always somewhat aloof, Wilson grows increasingly secretive, cold and calculating over the years, learning to trust nobody and essentially forsaking his marriage and fatherhood for the sake of his job. In the end, it’s all that really defines him. As such, the entire film could be viewed as an epic tragedy.

The episodic narrative is often really fascinating…especially the sequences where he’s forced to reckon with post-WWII Russia and his uneasy relationship with certain informants. Wilson appears increasingly unconcerned over the moral and ethical ambiguities of his work, as well as its eventual impact on his family…most significantly, his son, Edward Jr. (Eddie Redmayne), who figures into the present-day plotline in a way I wouldn’t dream of spoiling.

"We've all got secrets, Ed. Mine is that I fall in love too easily."

However, I must grudgingly admit there were moments where I struggled to understand what the hell was going on. Both the flashbacks and current story are loaded with characters and complexities that are a challenge to keep track of (and sometimes I couldn’t). It also must be said that The Good Shepherd often feels as cold and distant as its main character, which might actually be by design. Wilson’s beleaguered wife, Clover (Angelina Jolie), being a notable exception, most of the characters are so secretive and lacking humanity that we know almost nothing about them. 

Hence, we don’t trust them any more than Wilson does, which is probably the point…and part of the fun. The Good Shepherd isn’t the type of film that grabs you emotionally. What makes it interesting are the significant events depicted over the course of two decades that not-only shaped the CIA, but compelled its protagonist to essentially sell his soul. 

The film is loaded with a huge cast, which also includes De Niro, Alec Baldwin, John Turturro, Joe Pesci, Michael Gambon, Billy Crudup, Lee Pace, Keir Dullea, William Hurt and Timothy Hutton. Some of them show up in glorified cameos, but all the performances are excellent. For a movie that’s dialogue-driven and light on action, The Good Shepherd is really long (probably too long for some), but it’s a story that director De Niro (working with a labyrinthine screenplay by Eric Roth) manages to pull off successfully.

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