Mini-Review: Traitor

Traitor
Directed by Jeffrey Nachmanoff
Released August 27, 2008

I went into this film with expectations that were perhaps far too high. I was hoping for a gripping thriller akin to Showtime’s excellent series “Sleeper Cell” from a few years ago. Unfortunately, this movie never really manages to amp itself up to the point of being truly thrilling. It’s rather uninventive, and nothing seems quite as compelling because it’s really just not believable. Don Cheadle has done far better work in the past, and he doesn’t carry this film like he should (his performance in “Traffic” is a great model for what his acting should have been in this movie). The film’s surprise twist provides a nice bit of irony, but it offsets the tone of the film and doesn’t make up for a lackluster first seven eighths. Simply put, it’s very much missable.

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