Release Date: March 12, 2004
MPAA Rating: R for violence and language
Written and Directed by: David Mamet
Starring: Val Kilmer, Derek Luke, William H. Macy, Johnny Messner, Alexandra Kerry, Tia Texada, Kristen Bell

Plot:
Robert Scott is a career military officer working in a highly secretive special operations force. A man hardened by years of brutal service, he is respected by his peers and elders in the world of espionage. When Scott is recruited to find Laura Newton, the daughter of a high-ranking government official, he is paired with novice Curtis, who becomes his protégé. Working with a special task force comprised of Presidential Advisors, the Secret Service, FBI and CIA, Scott and Derek stumble upon a white slavery ring, which may have some connection to Laura's disappearance. As the story unfolds, the straightforward search-and-rescue mission becomes complicated by the political ambitions of those in high places--like Stoddard, a political operative who may know more than he's telling about the clandestine circumstances surrounding Laura's abduction. Scott and Curtis are at the brink of tracking Laura's whereabouts when the mission comes to an abrupt conclusion, with the m! edia issuing reports of the girl's death. Scott returns to the quiet life of landowner in a rural location and awaits his next assignment in relative peace. But Curtis can't rest. In his naiveté, he seeks out Scott to confide his belief that Laura is in fact alive. If she is, their continued unofficial investigation will put them as well as Laura at the center of a dangerous conspiracy that reaches the highest levels.

Review:
Spartan surrounds itself within the kidnapping of a young girl. A terrible experience it is for anyone to have to go through the mental and physical suffering of a criminal. Unfortunately, cruelty is an everyday routine for some people throughout the world. Indeed, this is why there are many secret services and organizations to bring these wrongdoings to an end.

There are many signs of originality in Spartan and that's what makes it something much more interesting than your everyday film. Writer and Director David Mamet takes this film and makes it happen. He combines many great elements of filmmaking that he is known for. He has become a creative filmmaker for the genre of thriller. A thriller is defined by keeping you glued to your seat and wanting to see what occurs with all these characters and Spartan fills the likes of all of those.

Spartan is definitely a film that keeps you on your toes so to speak. It doesn't stop for one second and moves quickly along never losing the audiences attention. At the same time of keeping up with the entertainment, it is showing us a great story and a good style that takes the film to the dark true side.

Val Kilmer is the lead in this film and he gives an outstanding performance. He took his role and delivered the goods. He gives the film a sense of leadership that if you don't do as he says, then it will be the end of your life. Along with Kilmer, the film has its share of good supporting actors and actresses. Only to name a few, William H. Macy, Derek Luke, Tia Texada and Bob Jennings. More than enough strong performances are delivered to give it a big nod in the acting department.

The film whether you want to believe it or not is honest about how the secret service works. Not every agent or officer are as they seem. Traitors and liars are among the companies and much false news gets to the media for the simple fact of having it their way.

With a subject such as kidnapping someone related to the government, it is always a risk to see how it turns out. However, there is not one second that the cast and crew exaggerate or stop working their hardest to make such a film come to life. Spartan doesn't try to be something spectacular, but in its own it does end up being more than it was entitling it to be.

A film about betrayal and brutality can summarize Spartan. When I speak about brutality, its simply the nature we live in, where one goes through all the odds and breaks laws to fulfill a mission. Many of the characters in Spartan are rough towards innocent people which of course is sad, but true. With stakes so high and trust so high towards one man, there is not one ounce of surrender in the person's blood even though some innocent people as well as the deserved guilty will die.

Its not often a film such as Spartan, a smart and clever thriller works and works solidly. This film had a solid script, a solid direction and a very good cast at that. To add to that, Spartan was solid entertainment the entire way through and it plays out very wisely and doesn't let itself get out of hand. This is an enjoyable and very true dark side of the brutal world we live in.