Closed Circuit wants to be a smart political thriller, but frankly it lacks the smarts. The premise is there, but it's executed so poorly that it lacks tension and intrigue, which are the two most important ingredients of any thriller. There's an attempt by the filmmakers to try and throw in some action, but that never really works either. The end result is a rather dull affair that limps to an unsatisfying ending.
There are reportedly nearly 2 million CCTV cameras in the UK, although some reports place that number even higher, claiming that there is one camera for every 14 Britons. From the title of this film and its opening scene, which features CCTV coverage of an explosion in a public London marketplace, you would assume those cameras and the protection from crime or the invasion of privacy they represent, depending upon which side of the argument you land on, would play a major part in the story, but you'd be wrong. They barely enter into the plot and the ethics of using them is never discussed.
The plot that at first seems dense and complicated, turns out to be quite simple. A middle-eastern man is arrested for the bombing that takes place in that opening scene. His trial is to be held in two stages, one public and one private. Due to the nature of the evidence to be used against him it has been decided that it can not be revealed in open court. Two different lawyers are to be used for his defense. One for the public portion of the trial and another for the private sections. The two lawyers are to have no contact with each other.
Eric Bana stars as Martin Rose, the lawyer who is assigned to the public portion of the trial after the previous attorney commits suicide. He keeps it a secret from the judge that he was once in a relationship with Claudia, the defense attorney who will be handling the private portion of the trial. After the barest and simplest of investigations, which merely involves Martin checking the accused's spending habits and asking him a point blank question, Martin discovers that the accused was really working for MI-5 and the explosion was part of a botched sting operation. This is a fact that the government will do whatever it takes to cover up, including going on a murder spree of unbelievable proportions. The problem with this cover-up is that it only requires one murder, but the kill-happy government seems eager to kill everyone else except the one person who could actually reveal the truth.
The story unfolds predictably and by the book. Martin and Claudia's relationship develops on cue and the betrayal by a colleague happens right on schedule. There's not a surprise in the entire film despite an attempt to build tension and a sense of paranoia.
The British government is presented as evil and corrupt, willing to do whatever it takes to not look bad, including cold bloodily killing its own citizens. Even if you're a conspiracy theorist who believes that is true, you'll have trouble believing they would be so incompetent and blatant about it. Even harder to believe is the way Martin and Claudia shrug it all off by the film's end.
Bana, Hall and the rest of the cast all do good work and the film is shot stylishly. However, nothing they do can overcome the dull predictability of the script.
