Strip Search

Sidney Lumet has made some historical movies: "12 Angry Men," "Serpico," "Dog Day Afternoon," "Network," and "Prince of the City," so it was a no-brainer for me about whether or not I was going to watch "Strip Search."

Out of deference to Sidney Lumet, I don't want to call it a fail, because it wasn't. I didn't like it as much as I wanted, but it's not a fail. I totally understood the point of it and the message behind it even if I didn't like the production.

"Strip Search" openly aims to make you understand that giving up your civil liberties, even in the name of fighting terrorism, can lead to a repressive government. There are two main characters, an American woman in China (Maggie Gyllenhaal) and an Arab man in the U.S (Bruno Lastra). The two have been grabbed by law enforcement officers of the respective countries and the two go through an identical interrogation process. There's no denying the fact the writer, Tom Fontana, chose one of the world's freest countries and one of the world's most repressive countries for comparison for a reason. In the name of fighting terror, America and China end up looking alike.

Before the two ex-patriates are taken we see a class going on in which the teacher asks: "If the U.S. government said they could eliminate terrorism forever, would you give up your civil liberties for a day?" All of the class answered yes. "A week?" Again, they all said yes. "A month? A year? Forever?" And with each extension of time the yesses were fewer and fewer until there were no more. It's a powerful question that requires more and more thought, but the point was made: there's definitely a point in which civil liberties outweigh "safety."

The tone of the movie was a bit muted which took away from any intensity. There was no musical score and the two "suspects" were, for the most part, acquiescent. Though they asked questions and showed a little defiance, there was no real resistance from either of them as you'd expect from an innocent person who's been falsely accused. The capitulating was probably because they were visitors trying to avoid the wrath of a foreign government, although I think even a Chinese citizen would be just as compliant. What you end of having with "Strip Search" is a movie with a poignant message and an anemic delivery.

The format, writing and direction of this docudrama could be improved, but the premise is too important to ignore. Two people, in opposite parts of the world, seem cavalier about their rights and freedoms, until they are violated, then dumbfounded about what authorities do to them. We'd all like to feel safe in our home, community and Country. However, to what extent would we give up our rights and freedoms, to be more secure and safe? And... If our rights and freedoms are lost, how safe and secure would we be? You may find this film boring. It lacks gratuitous violence, obscenity and other things, one might proclaim, makes for entertainment, but the valuable message it portrays, makes it a, "Must See!". If this show peeks your interest, try a, "Star Trek", (The Next Generation), Episode called, "Drumhead", in which mankind has ventured hundreds of years, into the future, into space and evolution, yet still succumbs to fear, created by the potential for terrorism...

Absolutely stunning performance by Maggie gyllenhaal. To be on scren naked for so long must have taken hours to shoot I assume they would be shot on closed set unles she is absolutely comfortable in her own body.

The facial expression as she was having both cavities searched were amazing and there must have been a degree of reality in the performance Fantastic performance in a mediocre film with a powerful message.

I understand that the Film is available in Europe on DVD with Directors cuts and commentary by Diresct and by Miss Gyllenhaal.

Obviously it was very difficult to duplicate all scene relating to both students but I thought that her ordeal was exaggerated in relation to the male studen

And since when does a movie have to be factual, realistic or based on truth to be noteworthy? I don't care about the implications of this movie so much as the intriguingness of the way in which it is presented to the viewer. It in some way says "we all fear for our own security/safety". Maybe its a little over the top, blunt and not politically correct, but movies are meant to provoke us, to entertain us.. not to feed us facts - unless of course, we are watching a documentary :)

The first thing I thought after seeing this movie was "wow, that would make an awesome screen play for theater". I wasn't really committed to or concerned with factual events, presentation of ideas (political, social or otherwise), or what I would take away from it. I did, however enjoy the intent of the director to provoke the viewer to think for themselves a little. There was not enough information presented to draw factual conclusions regarding the character of either "victim". In fact, I am not certain the word victim is appropriate. Were they? Or are we? I liked that it left me with that thought. I think everyone has an opinion regarding the events of 9/11 and I think this movie draws those opinions out in the viewer and re-validates them a bit. Good or bad.

Very original presentation of a not so original plot.

When Adolf Hitler solidified his hold on Germany he asked Germans to give up little things so that he could make them stronger. He slowly took more and more freedoms away until there was no freedom at all. As Americans we believe that this could not happen here, we are too democratic. However, many totalitarian governments start slow. In this play, two suspects are being put through a degrading interrogation. One is an American woman being interrogated by a Chinese officer. The other is an Arab being interrogated by an American agent. As the interrogation takes place, the two interrogators become interchangable, saying the same lines. It is a not so subtle way of saying we in the US have become what we had always spoken against. Of course, we can use the argument that we are doing it to protect our way of life. But can't the Chinese use that same excuse? I thought the film was rather blunt, but the message effective. If we are truly the most humane and democratic country in the world, if due process is still alive, then we must show it, not just say it.