Syriana (2005)

Syriana is a 2005 Academy Award-winning geopolitical thriller film written and directed by Stephen Gaghan and produced by George Clooney.

Gaghan's screenplay is loosely adapted from Robert Baer's memoir, See No Evil. As with Gaghan's screenplay for Traffic, Syriana uses multiple, parallel storylines, jumping from locations in Texas, Washington D.C., Switzerland, Spain, and the Middle East, leading film critic Roger Ebert to describe the film as hyperlink cinema.

The ensemble film focuses on petroleum politics, and the global influence of the oil industry, whose political, economic, legal, and social effects are experienced by a CIA operative (George Clooney), an energy analyst (Matt Damon), a Washington attorney (Jeffrey Wright), and a young unemployed Pakistani migrant worker in an Arab, Persian Gulf country (Mazhar Munir).

George Clooney won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role as Agent Bob Barnes, and Stephen Gaghan's script was nominated by the Academy for Best Original Screenplay. As of April 20, 2006, the film
grossed a total of $50.82 million in the U.S. box office and $42.9 million in the rest of the world, for a total of $93.73 million.

CAST

George Clooney as Bob Barnes: A veteran CIA field agent stationed in the middle east. Clooney injured himself filming the torture scene, requiring spinal tap surgery to stop fluid leaking from his spinal column.
Matt Damon as Bryan Woodman: An energy analyst living in Geneva with his wife and two sons.

Jeffrey Wright as Bennett Holiday: An attorney investigating the proposed merger of oil companies, Connex and Killen.

Chris Cooper as Jimmy Pope: Owner of the Killen oil company.

William Hurt as Stan Goff: Retired CIA agent and associate of Bob Barnes.

Mazhar Munir as Wasim Ahmed Khan: Pakistani migrant worker laid off from Connex.

Tim Blake Nelson as Danny Dalton: Oilman from Texas and member of Committee to Liberate Iran (CLI).

Amanda Peet as Julie Woodman: Bryan's wife.

Christopher Plummer as Dean Whiting: Managing partner of Sloan Whiting law firm. Member of the Committee to Liberate Iran (CLI). Employer of Sydney Hewitt and Bennett Holiday.

Alexander Siddig as Prince Nasir Al-Subaai: Gulf prince who is the first born successor to the Emir. Alexander Siddig's character is compared to the Hashemite King Faisal I of Iraq - a character Siddig actually played in the film, A Dangerous Man: Lawrence After Arabia (1990).

Text Source: www.wikipedia.org