'Rosewater': The mind games between interrogator and prisoner are mildly engrossing
'Rosewater' stars Gael Garc铆a Bernal as journalist Maziar Bahari, who was imprisoned in Iran and accused of being a spy. The movie is 'The Daily Show' host Jon Stewart's directorial debut.
Gael Garcia Bernal in a scene from the film 'Rosewater.'
Laith Al-Majali/Open Road Films/AP
鈥凌辞蝉别飞补迟别谤," Jon Stewart鈥檚 directorial debut, is about the incarceration聽of the London-based Iranian journalist Maziar Bahari (Gael Garc铆a Bernal), who was in Tehran for Newsweek covering the 2009 presidential election. Thrown into solitary confinement and accused of being a spy聽for the Central Intelligence Agency, the MI6, or the Israelis, he refuses to confess to a lie and,聽after 118 days of (by prison movie standards) relatively light punishment聽at the hands of his interrogator, nicknamed 鈥淩osewater鈥� (Kim Bodnia),聽he is released. Both before and after his imprisonment, Bahari appeared as聽a guest on 鈥�The Daily Show,鈥� hence the Stewart connection.
The mind games between these two are mildly engrossing, and at least聽half the film is essentially confined to their jailhouse duet. But we already聽know how this will all turn out. Stewart does a credible job of maintaining聽the story鈥檚 immediacy, but I must say I felt relieved that the film wasn鈥檛 a聽masterpiece. If it was, we鈥檇 have more reason to fear Stewart will leave "The聽Daily Show.鈥� Grade:聽B- (Rated R for language including some crude references, and violent content.)