Syriana (2005)

A politically-charged epic about the state of the oil industry in the hands of those personally involved and affected by it.

Director:

Stephen Gaghan

Writers:

Stephen Gaghan, Robert Baer (book)

Stars:

Kayvan Novak, George Clooney, Matt Damon

Won 1 Oscar. Another 9 wins & 20 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
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

Storyline

A missile disappears in Iran, but the CIA has other problems: the heir to an Emirate gives an oil contract to China, cutting out a US company that promptly fires its immigrant workers and merges with a small firm that has landed a Kazakhstani oil contract. The Department of Justice suspects bribery, and the oil company's law firm finds a scapegoat. The CIA also needs one when its plot to kill the Emir-apparent fails. Agent Bob Barnes, the fall guy, sorts out the double cross. An American economist parlays the death of his son into a contract to advise the sheik the CIA wants dead. The jobless Pakistanis join a fundamentalist group. All roads start and end in the oil fields.

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Plot Keywords:

oil | cia | oil company | immigrant | emirate | 

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Taglines:

Everything is connected

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Genres:

Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for violence and language

Details

Official Sites:

Warner Bros. [jp] Warner Bros. [uk]

Country:

USA

Language:

English Urdu Arabic Persian French Mandarin

Release Date:

9 December 2005 (USA)

Also Known As:

See No Evil

Filming Locations:

Annapolis, Maryland, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$50,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$75,781 (Hong Kong) (31 March 2006)

Gross:

$50,815,288 (USA) (14 April 2006)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros, Participant Productions, 4M

Technical Specs

Runtime:

128 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Syriana is a term used by Washington think-tanks to describe a hypothetical re-shaping of the Middle East.

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Goofs

Early in the film, a news reader with a British accent says "one hundred thirty". They should have said "one hundred and thirty." The "and" is usually omitted in non-British English.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Arash: Bobby, where have you been?

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Crazy Credits

There are no opening credits after the title is shown.

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Connections

Featured in Getaway: Episode #15.2 (2006)

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Soundtracks

"Chinatown"
(2002)
Written and Performed by Do Make Say Think
Courtesy of Constellation Records

User Reviews

A political slap in the face reality check

I walked out of this movie feeling pretty depressed. As a historian, I always knew there have been forces at work in our society that act against the best interest of the average citizen. This film does an excellent job of illustrating just how politics and big business conspire to preserve the status quo which also protects their power and profits. The global interaction depicted in this film shows how all actions have consequences. The thirst our nation has for oil drives the kind of political and business policies that cause anger and hatred towards our nation. This oil addiction has led to an unjust war that was started on lies and disinformation. The result has been the deaths of over 2000 US servicemen and women, thousands more injured and tens of thousands Iraqi dead and wounded. This act has been the best tool Islamic terrorist groups have ever had in attracting followers and money to their cause. Those that attack this film obviously buy into the fantasy that America is involved in Iraq and the Middle East due to our sincere desire to spread "democracy." Anyone who is willing to have an open mind will find this film to be chilling for the implications of the storyline. This film is a must see for those who care about how the behavior of our government and big business impacts us in our everyday lives and how it will contribute to further terrorist attacks for decades to come. A well researched story with excellent actors for the numerous roles. I will buy this as soon as it comes out on DVD.