Body of Lies is a present-day anti-terrorist espionage thriller set in the Middle East and based on the novel by David Ignatius, a hack who is well-versed in the matters of the CIA.

The film begins explosively as a series of terrorist bombs going off causing a good deal of stress to CIA head Ed Hoffman (Russell Crowe), a smooth-talking plotter who is at the thick of the action even though he's doing it from the comfy confines of suburban USA. He's talking most of the time to Ferris (Leonardo DiCaprio), the main agent operating in the field Middle East.

Ferris is on the trail of Al-Saleem, an Al Qaeda member responsible for the bombings and Ferris spends his time talking to Hoffman, liaising with a Jordanian head of intelligence called Hani Salaam. (Mark Strong) and attempting to charm a young nurse called Aisha (love interest sub-plot, played by Golshifteh Farahani).

There's a cat and mouse maze where Ferris and Hoffman cook up a plot to trap Al-Saleem. Getting nowhere fast, Ferris, fresh from a barney with the Jordanians, starts to work with an even bigger cheese than Hoffman, a guy called Garland (Simon McBurney), another CIA type, who appears to be able to start-up espionage in far-flung places merely through the touch of a button on a laptop.

They plot to create a fictitious identity turning an innocent man into a possible rival terrorist in the hope that this will bring out Al-Saleem. The hard-working Ferret .. sorry Ferris, is doing this, whilst also keeping the Jordanian secret police happy and attempting to get into the knickers of wholesome Aisha.

Naturally there are more twists along the way and Ferris will have to keep his wits sharp if he is to stay alive.

This is a punchy thriller from Ridley Scott, the plot just about holding its own. I couldn't quite believe in Ferris, particularly his motivations in the unconvincing ending. The characters of Hoffman and Garland seem more believable. Reasonable.