Syriana (2005)
Coming Out at 23 November 2005 in theaters.
Drama, Thriller
Syriana is geopolitical thriller film written and directed by Stephen Gaghan, and executive produced by George Clooney, who also stars in the film with an ensemble cast. Gaghan’s screenplay is loosely adapted from ex CIA operative Robert Baer’s memoir See No Evil. The film focuses on petroleum politics and the global influence of the oil industry, whose political, economic, legal, and social effects are experienced by a Central Intelligence Agency operative (George Clooney), an energy analyst (Matt Damon), a Washington, D.C., attorney (Jeffrey Wright), and a young unemployed Pakistani migrant worker (Mazhar Munir) in an Arab state in the Persian Gulf. The film also features an extensive supporting cast including Amanda Peet, Tim Blake Nelson, Mark Strong, Alexander Siddig, Amr Waked, and Academy Award winners Christopher Plummer, Chris Cooper and William Hurt.
The film was shot in 200 locations in five continents, with large parts shot in the Middle East, Africa and Washington, DC. In an interview with Charlie Rose, Gaghan described incidents (including planned regime changes in Venezuela) from personal meetings and interviews with the most powerful oil owners, owners of media houses, lobbyists, lawyers and politicians which were included in the film. As with Gaghan’s screenplay for Traffic, Syriana uses multiple, parallel storylines, jumping between locations in Iran, Texas, Washington, D.C., Switzerland, Spain and Lebanon.
U.S. energy giant Connex Oil is losing control of key oil fields in a Persian Gulf kingdom ruled by the al-Subaai family. The emirate’s foreign minister, Prince Nasir, has granted natural gas drilling rights to a Chinese company, greatly upsetting the U.S. oil industry and the U.S. government. To compensate for its decreased production capacity, Connex initiates a shady merger with Killen, a smaller oil company that recently won the drilling rights to key petroleum fields in Kazakhstan. If Connex-Killen was a country it would rank as the world’s twenty-third largest economy, and antitrust regulators at the DOJ have concerns. A Washington, D.C.-based law firm headed by Dean Whiting is hired to smooth the way for the merger. Bennett Holiday is assigned to promote the impression of due diligence to the DOJ, deflecting any allegations of corruption.
Director: Stephen Gaghan
Writers: Stephen Gaghan, Robert Baer (book)
Stars: George Clooney, Matt Damon, Amanda Peet, Tim Blake Nelson, Mark Strong, Alexander Siddig, Amr Waked
Cast:
Kayvan Novak | … | Arash |
George Clooney | … | Bob Barnes |
Amr Waked | … | Mohammed Sheik Agiza |
Christopher Plummer | … | Dean Whiting |
Jeffrey Wright | … | Bennett Holiday |
Chris Cooper | … | Jimmy Pope |
Robert Foxworth | … | Tommy Barton |
Nicky Henson | … | Sydney Hewitt |
Nicholas Art | … | Riley Woodman |
Matt Damon | … | Bryan Woodman |
Amanda Peet | … | Julie Woodman |
Steven Hinkle | … | Max Woodman |
Daisy Tormé | … | Rebecca |
Peter Gerety | … | Leland Janus |
Richard Lintern | … | Bryan’s Boss |
Jocelyn Quivrin | … | Vincent |
Mazhar Munir | … | Wasim Khan |
Shahid Ahmed | … | Saleem Ahmed Khan |
Bikram Singh Bhamra | … | Pakistani Translator |
Roger Yuan | … | Chinese Engineer |
Jayne Atkinson | … | Division Chief |
Tom McCarthy | … | Fred Franks |
Jamey Sheridan | … | Terry |
Randall Boffman | … | Distinguished Gentleman #1 |
Tony French | … | Distinguished Gentleman #2 |
Max Minghella | … | Robby Barnes |
Katie Foster | … | Nervous Daughter |
Nadim Sawalha | … | Emir Hamed Al-Subaai |
Alexander Siddig | … | Prince Nasir Al-Subaai |
Ozzie Yue | … | Chinese Oil Executive |
Akbar Kurtha | … | Prince Meshal Al-Subaai |
Sonnell Dadral | … | Farooq |
Jon Lee Anderson | … | Self |
Othman Bin Hendi | … | Arab Businessman |
Bashar Atiyat | … | Nasir’s Aide |
Ali Al Amine | … | Older Kid at Pool |
William Charles Mitchell | … | Bennett Holiday Sr. |
Tim Blake Nelson | … | Danny Dalton |
Ahmed Aa Mohammed | … | Abu Khalifa |
Ahmed Ayoub | … | Pakistani Teenager #1 |
Mohammed Asad Khan | … | Pakistani Teenager #2 |
Atta Mohammed Saleh | … | Old Man |
Aziz Zacca | … | Policeman |
David Clennon | … | Donald |
Omar Mostafa | … | The Cleric |
Saïd Amadis | … | Reza Reyhani |
David J. Manners | … | Egypt Bureau Chief |
Jamil Jabbar | … | Supplicant |
Badria Timimi | … | Nasir’s Wife |
William Hurt | … | Stan |
Mohamed Majd | … | Said Hossein Hashimi |
Mark Strong | … | Mussawi |
Driss Roukhe | … | Guard |
Katherine Hoskins Mackey | … | Paralegal |
Linda E. Williams | … | Paralegal |
Susan Allenback | … | Paralegal #1 |
William L. Thomas | … | Paralegal #2 |
El Mahjoub Raji | … | Hashimi’s Man |
Michael Stone Forrest | … | CIA Security Officer #1 |
Robert Baer | … | CIA Security Officer #2 |
Fritz Michel | … | Hotel Security Guard |
Bob Fajkowski | … | Secretary of Defense |
Jeff Baker | … | Tommy’s Lawyer |
Tarik Tamzali | … | Nasir’s Secretary |
Mitesh Soni | … | Martyr |
Susan Duvall | … | Assistant at CIA |
Nabeel Noman | … | Bedouin Leader |
Ryan Murphy | … | Drone Tech |
Will McCormack | … | Willy |
Donna Mitchell | … | Pat Janus |
Jim Plannette | … | Connex Functionary |
Michael Allinson | … | Sir David |
Brian Eric Alexander | … | Waiter |
Tex Allen | … | CIA Division Supervisor |
Matt Cannon | … | Student |
Tom Cutler | … | Lawyer |
Viola Davis | … | CIA Chairwoman |
Bruce Allen Dawson | … | Oil Executive |
Jeff Elmore | … | CIA Bureau Chief |
Paul Fahrenkopf | … | Oil Baron |
Alan Gates | … | Bar Patron |
Tyler Gatton | … | Churchgoer |
Anna George | … | Reza’s Sister |
Donald Imm | … | Uniformed Secret Service Agent |
Wendy Kush | … | Witness |
Kirk Lambert | … | CIA Bureau Chief |
Charles McClelland | … | Oil Executive |
Kerry Meushaw | … | CIA Agent |
David Michie | … | Home Seal Security Guard (voice) |
Lauren Minite | … | Restaurant Girl |
Mike Monroe | … | Lawyer |
Andres Perez-Molina | … | Yacht Dinner Guest |
Vito Pietanza | … | Hotel Waiter |
Johnny Pitrelli | … | U.S. Marshal |
Elena Rosa | … | CIA Operations Specialist |
Susan Halsey Singer | … | Mother |
Bahar Soomekh | … | Yassi |
Sally Spaide | … | CIA Agent |
Alexander von Roon | … | Bloomberg Reporter |
Don Whatley | … | Bystander |
Sources: imdb & wikipedia