Starring George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Frances McDormand Directed by Joel and Ethan Cohen Focus… Starring George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Frances McDormand Directed by Joel and Ethan Cohen Focus Features We lie. We lie to random strangers, our best friends, our teachers, our students, our dogs and most often, ourselves. Normal people in normal situations fool each other constantly, but I suppose the Coen brothers think that deception should lead to paranoia, violence and some grade-A laughs along the way. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘Burn After Reading,’ the Coen brothers’ newest feature film, combines the peculiar character portrayal seen in 2004’s semi-flop ‘The Ladykillers,’ the shocking bloodshed of ‘Fargo’ and an unreasonably obsessive George Clooney to complete the definition of dark comedy. ‘ ‘ ‘ Linda Litzke, played by Frances McDormand (notable for her role as a police officer in the Coens’ ‘Fargo’), and Chad Feldheimer (an ecstatic Brad Pitt), find a disk with what they think are classified CIA files. ‘ ‘ ‘ In reality, they are the memoirs of CIA analyst Osbourne Cox (John Malkovich). Linda and Chad then attempt blackmail and espionage, mostly for money to advance Linda’s plastic surgeries to help her in the online dating world. ‘ ‘ ‘ That’s just the basic, back-of-the-DVD cover plot. But ‘Burn After’ isn’t about plot ‘mdash; it’s about the opposite of plot. The flow of the story is so rough and choppy that you’re not sure whether to be anxious about the web of romantic affairs, the naive threats or the so-called spying that eventually leads to gory deaths. ‘ ‘ ‘ Oh yes, this dark comedy has its tense points. I even shouted in astonishment at how easily the Coens can kill off characters. There’s absolutely no warning, no hesitation ‘mdash; just ‘bam’ and you’re dead. ‘ ‘ ‘ Not that I’m complaining ‘mdash; the film’s angst helped pull the various subplots along the road. Without tension, this film would have been a definite flop. And whom do we have to thank for the looming unease that persists throughout the movie? ‘ ‘ ‘ Why, the cast of characters, of course. The performances are absolutely phenomenal. Each actor seems perfectly suited for his persona, which makes great sense, considering the Coen brothers wrote ‘Burn After’ with five of the six main roles being modeled for specific people in mind. ‘ ‘ ‘ John Malkovich does what he does best in movies, playing a classy, intellectual success who goes into mental meltdown after that prosperity has flown away. ‘ ‘ ‘ Tilda Swinton plays the cold, stern ice-queen who reminded me of my high school principal. She is all business ‘mdash; even when she tries to produce emotion, she’s just there to get the job done. ‘ ‘ ‘ In one of his best roles in a Coen film, George Clooney mixes a good sense of humor with some extreme schizophrenic-like paranoia, just how Mom used to make it. ‘ ‘ ‘ Yet, do not forget about David Rasche and J.K. Simmons, who play CIA officers who truly exemplify the oxymoron of national intelligence. ‘ ‘ ‘ McDormand is love-hate ‘mdash; you want her to find love, but you hate her because she thinks she needs more surgeries than Michael Jackson has time for. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘Burn After’ is far from the standard view of spy thrillers. It is no James Bond or Jason Bourne film because super-spy characters with gadgets, cunning and suave don’t exist here. ‘ ‘ ‘ These characters are the stereotypes of espionage, and ‘Burn After Reading’ takes a look at the realism of surveillance ‘mdash; no one knows what’s going on, which turns out to be incredibly hilarious. ‘ ‘ ‘ Let’s just hope national security isn’t handled this way.