NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Syriana

Syriana is a 2005 Academy Award-winning geopolitical thriller film written and directed by Stephen Gaghan. As with Gaghan's screenplay for Traffic, Syriana uses multiple storylines to portray global themes. Syriana focuses on the influence of the oil industry, whose political, economic, legal, and social effects are experienced respectively 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). Image File history File links Download high resolution version (511x755, 85 KB) Licensing File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... The Internet Movie Database (IMDb) is an online database of information about movies, actors, television shows, production crew personnel, and video games. ... Stephen Gaghan (born May 6, 1965, Louisville, Kentucky) is an American film writer and director. ... Steven Andrew Soderbergh (born January 14, 1963 in Atlanta, Georgia) is an American film producer, screenwriter, cinematographer, editor, and Oscar-winning director. ... George Clooney (born May 6, 1961) is an Academy Award- and two-time Golden Globe winning American actor, director, producer and screenwriter, known for his role in the first five seasons of the long-running television drama ER (1994â€“99), and his rise as an A-List movie star in... Stephen Gaghan (born May 6, 1965, Louisville, Kentucky) is an American film writer and director. ... George Clooney (born May 6, 1961) is an Academy Award- and two-time Golden Globe winning American actor, director, producer and screenwriter, known for his role in the first five seasons of the long-running television drama ER (1994â€“99), and his rise as an A-List movie star in... Matthew Paige Matt Damon (born October 8, 1970) is an American screenwriter and actor. ... Jeffrey Wright as Jean-Michel Basquiat in the 1996 film Basquiat. ... Christopher W. Cooper (born July 9, 1951) is an Academy Award-winning American film actor. ... Amanda Peet (born January 11, 1972) is an American actress. ... William Hurt in Lost in Space. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Tim Blake Nelson (born May 11, 1964) is an American character actor and film director. ... Alexander Siddig (Arabic: Ø£Ù„ÙƒØ³Ù†Ø¯Ø± ØµØ¯Ù‘ÙŠÙ‚) (born 21 November 1965) is a British actor, also known as Siddig El Fadil. ... Mazhar Munir is a television and film actor. ... Warner Bros. ... December 9 is the 343rd day (344th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... June 20 is the 171st day of the year (172nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 194 days remaining. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Academy Award The Academy Awards, popularly known as the Oscars, are the most prominent and most watched film awards ceremony in the world. ... Geopolitics is the study which analyses geography, history and social science with reference to international politics. ... Thriller films are movies that primarily use action and suspense to engage the audience. ... Stephen Gaghan (born May 6, 1965, Louisville, Kentucky) is an American film writer and director. ... Traffic is an award-winning 2000 crime/drama film directed by Steven Soderbergh. ... The oil industry is a type of industry which brings petroleum to a financial market. ... â€œCIAâ€ redirects here. ... George Clooney (born May 6, 1961) is an Academy Award- and two-time Golden Globe winning American actor, director, producer and screenwriter, known for his role in the first five seasons of the long-running television drama ER (1994â€“99), and his rise as an A-List movie star in... Matthew Paige Matt Damon (born October 8, 1970) is an American screenwriter and actor. ... Aerial photo (looking NW) of the Washington Monument and the White House in Washington, DC. Washington, D.C., officially the District of Columbia (also known as D.C.; Washington; the Nations Capital; the District; and, historically, the Federal City) is the capital city and administrative district of the United... Jeffrey Wright as Jean-Michel Basquiat in the 1996 film Basquiat. ... Mazhar Munir is a television and film actor. ...

Gaghan's screenplay is loosely adapted from Robert Baer's memoir, See No Evil. George Clooney was one of the film's executive producers. In his review, film critic Roger Ebert suggests that the film is an example of hyperlink cinema.^[1] 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.^[2] Film adaptation is the transfer of a written work to a feature film. ... Robert Baer, also known as Bob Baer (born July 1, 1952), is an author and former case officer at the CIA. Reared in Aspen, Colorado, Robert Baer aspired to become a professional skier. ... As a literary genre, a memoir (from the Latin memoria, meaning memory) forms a subclass of autobiography, although it is an older form of writing. ... See No Evil: The True Story of a Ground Soldier in the CIAs War Against Terrorism is a 2003 memoir by Robert Baer, a former CIA operative. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Roger Joseph Ebert (born June 18, 1942) is a Pulitzer Prize winning American film critic. ... Hyperlink cinema is a term which Roger Ebert used to describe the movie Syriana and, more generally, movies which jump between several different unrelated stories that gradually connect to each other. ... April 20 is the 110th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (111th in leap years). ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ...

Plot summary

The film is told through parallel stories and jumps from location to location, in Texas, Washington D.C., Switzerland, Spain, and the Middle East. Official language(s) No Official Language See languages of Texas Capital Austin Largest city Houston Area Ranked 2nd - Total 261,797 sq mi (678,051 kmÂ²) - Width 773 miles (1,244 km) - Length 790 miles (1,270 km) - % water 2. ... Aerial photo (looking NW) of the Washington Monument and the White House in Washington, DC. Washington, D.C., officially the District of Columbia (also known as D.C.; Washington; the Nations Capital; the District; and, historically, the Federal City) is the capital city and administrative district of the United... A map showing countries commonly considered to be part of the Middle East The Middle East is a region comprising the lands around the southern and eastern parts of the Mediterranean Sea, a territory that extends from the eastern Mediterranean Sea to the Persian Gulf. ...

Fictional American energy giant Connex, sharing a nominal resemblance with ExxonMobil, is losing control of key Middle-East oil fields in a fictional kingdom ruled by the al-Subaai family. The emirate's foreign minister, Prince Nasir (Alexander Siddig) has granted natural-gas drilling rights to a Chinese company, greatly upsetting the American oil industry and government. In order to compensate for its decreased production capacity, Connex initiates a shady merger with Killen, a smaller oil company which recently won the drilling rights to key oil fields in Kazakhstan. Connex-Killen ranks as the world's fifth largest economy, and American anti-trust regulators at the Department of Justice (DOJ) have misgivings. The Washington law firm headed by Dean Whiting (Christopher Plummer) is hired to smooth the way, and the taciturn Bennett Holiday (Jeffrey Wright) is assigned to promote the impression to the DOJ that due diligence occurred and any suspicions of bribing foreign officials have been confronted. Exxon Mobil Corporation or ExxonMobil (NYSE: XOM), headquartered in Irving, Texas, a suburb of Dallas, USA, is the largest publicly traded integrated oil and gas company in the world, formed on November 30, 1999, by the merger of Exxon and Mobil. ... Map of the Land of Oz, the fictional country in the book The Wonderful Wizard of Oz Map of the fictional island of Sodor used in the Thomas the Tank Engine stories Fictitious countries used in the novel Nineteen Eighty-Four A guidebook produced about the fictional country MolvanÃ®a... Etymologically an emirate or amirate (Arabic: Ø¥Ù…Ø§Ø±Ø© Imarah, plural: Ø¥Ù…Ø§Ø±Ø§Øª Imarat) is the quality, dignity, office or territorial competence of any Emir (prince, governor etc. ... A minister for foreign affairs, or foreign minister, is a cabinet minister who helps form the governmental foreign policy of a sovereign nation. ... Alexander Siddig (Arabic: Ø£Ù„ÙƒØ³Ù†Ø¯Ø± ØµØ¯Ù‘ÙŠÙ‚) (born 21 November 1965) is a British actor, also known as Siddig El Fadil. ... The phrase mergers and acquisitions or M&A refers to the aspect of corporate finance strategy and management dealing with the merging and acquiring of different companies as well as assets. ... Media:Example. ... DOJ headquarters in Washington, D.C. Justice Department redirects here. ... Nickname: Motto: Justitia Omnibus (Justice for All) Location of Washington, D.C., in relation to the states Maryland and Virginia Coordinates: Country United States Federal District District of Columbia Government - Mayor Adrian M. Fenty (D) - City Council Chairperson: Vincent C. Gray (D) Ward 1: Jim Graham (D) Ward 2: Jack... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Jeffrey Wright as Jean-Michel Basquiat in the 1996 film Basquiat. ... Due diligence is a term used for a number of concepts involving either the performance of an investigation of a business or person, or the performance of an act with a certain standard of care. ... Bribery is a crime implying a sum or gift given alters the behaviour of the person in ways not consistent with the duties of that person. ... For the American magazine, see Foreign Policy. ...

Bryan Woodman (Matt Damon) is an energy analyst based in Geneva, Switzerland. Woodman's supervisor directs him to attend a private party hosted by the emir at his estate in Marbella, Spain, to offer his company's analytical services. Woodman is unwilling, because it will be his son's birthday, but he is told to take his family with him. At the party, Woodman is prevented from speaking directly with the emir, who is busy showing off the estate's remotely controlled electronic systems to Chinese oil executives. They try to control the swimming pool's lighting system, but it is not working due to faulty wiring, which soon happens to electrocute Woodman's son. (Much later in the film, Woodman falls out with his wife, who leaves Switzerland as he focuses intensely on his work, until a near-death experience leads him to rejoin his family.) Image File history File links Marbella1. ... Image File history File links Marbella1. ... Coordinates: Emirate Dubai Government - Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Area [1] - Metro 4,114 kmÂ² (1,588. ... Street in Marbella, Spain 2005. ... Matthew Paige Matt Damon (born October 8, 1970) is an American screenwriter and actor. ... Life cycle energy analysis (LCEA) is an approach in which all energy inputs to a product are accounted for, not only direct energy inputs during manufacture, but also all energy inputs needed to produce components, materials and services needed for the manufacturing process. ... Coat of arms of the Canton of Geneva Coat of arms of the City of Geneva Geneva (French: Genève, German: Genf, Italian: Ginevra, Romansh Genevra, Spanish: Ginebra) is the second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zurich), located where Lake Geneva (French: Lac de Genève or Lac L... Chehel Sotouns Wall painting, that dates back to the Safavid era, depicts a Chaharshanbe Suri celebration. ... Entrance to the emirs palace in Bukhara. ... Location of Marbella Municipality MÃ¡laga Government - Mayor Without Mayor Area - City 114. ... A son is a male offspring; a boy, man, or male animal in relation to either or both of his parents. ... A childs first birthday party. ... A family in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso in 1997 A family consists of a domestic group of people (or a number of domestic groups), typically affiliated by birth or marriage, or by analogous or comparable relationships â€” including domestic partnership, cohabitation, adoption, surname and (in some cases) ownership (as occurred in the... A television remote control A DVD player remote control A remote control is an electronic device used for the remote operation of a machine. ... Look up Electronic in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... A swimming pool, sometimes also referred to in some countries as a swimming bath(German. ... Lighting refers to either artificial light sources such as lamps or to natural illumination of interiors from daylight. ... This article refers to metallic wire. ... The term electrocution can mean either: death by electric shock, usually by accident or deliberate execution by electric shock, in an electric chair See also: Capital punishment (death penalty) This is a disambiguation page â€” a navigational aid which lists pages that might otherwise share the same title. ...

In reparation and out of sympathy for the loss of his son, Prince Nasir grants Woodman's company oil interests worth 75 million USD, and invites Woodman to become his economic advisor. Prince Nasir confides in Woodman that all is not as it appears: the prince, recognising that oil dependency is not sustainable in the long term, desires to break away from American economic dependence and utilize his nation's oil profits to diversify the economy and introduce democratic reforms. In contrast to the reactionary, fundamentalist status quo of his father's government (which has been supported by American interests), Prince Nasir is dedicated to the idea of progressive reform. (He is compared to prominent leaders such as Mossadeq, Kemal Ataturk, and King Faisal.) As evidenced by the deal with the Chinese, this includes granting drilling rights to the highest bidder — but the U.S. stands in the way. Nasir hopes to succeed his father as emir, but his younger brother, happy with his playboy lifestyle and willing to continue the status quo (such as American military presence), is chosen. Nasir plans a military coup, but American officials kill him moments before via a missile attack on his Range Rover. In the philosophy of justice, reparation is the idea that a just sentence ought to compensate the victim of a crime appropriately. ... ... Look up company in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... The United States dollar is the official currency of the United States. ... Economy refers to the human activities related with the production, distribution, exchange, and consumption of goods and services. ... Profit, from Latin meaning to make progress, is defined in two different ways. ... Democratization is the transition from authoritarian or semi-authoritarian systems to democratic political systems, where democratic systems are taken to be those approximating to universal suffrage, regular free and fair elections, a civil society, the rule of law, and an independent judiciary. ... Reactionary (or reactionist) is a political epithet, generally used as a pejorative, originally applied in the context of the French Revolution to counter-revolutionaries who wished to restore the real or imagined conditions of the monarchical Ancien RÃ©gime. ... Status Quo are an English rock band whose music is characterised by a strong boogie line. ... Dr. Mohammad Mossadegh Mohammed Mossadegh ( )(Persian: â€Ž â€‹, also Mosaddegh or Mosaddeq) (19 May 1882 - 5 March 1967) was the democratically elected[1] prime minister of Iran from 1951 to 1953. ... This article or section needs copy editing for grammar, style, cohesion, tone and/or spelling. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Procurement is the acquisition of goods or services at the best possible total cost of ownership, in the right quantity, at the right time, in the right place for the direct benefit or use of the governments, corporations, or individuals generally via, but not limited to a contract. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Status Quo are an English rock band whose music is characterised by a strong boogie line. ... A coup détat, or simply a coup, is the sudden overthrow of a government, usually done by a small group that just replaces the top power figures. ... Type Air-To-Ground Missile Nationality United States Era Cold War Launch platform Helicopter, Unmanned aerial vehicle Target armored vehicles History Builder Lockheed Martin Date of design Production period Service duration Operators See main text Variants See main text Number built Specifications Type Diameter 17. ... The Land Rover Range Rover is a four-wheel drive / luxury SUV produced by Land Rover in the United Kingdom, and first introduced in 1970. ...

Robert Barnes (George Clooney) is a veteran CIA field operative trying to stop Middle Eastern illegal arms trafficking. While on assignment in Tehran to assassinate two Iranian arms dealers via an explosion, Barnes notices that an anti-aircraft missile intended to participate in the explosion was diverted to a blue-eyed Arab who did not speak Persian. Barnes makes his superiors nervous by writing memos about the missile theft, and is subsequently proposed for a desk job; however, unaccustomed to the political discretion required, he quickly embarrasses the wrong person by speaking his mind and is sent back to field work — specifically, arranging the assassination of Prince Nasir. Barnes travels to Lebanon and seeks safe passage from a Hezbollah leader. Barnes then hires a mercenary with whom he has worked before, named Mussawi/"Jimmy", to murder Nasir. But Mussawi turns out to be an Iranian agent, who has Barnes kidnapped. Mussawi tortures Barnes, seeking information about the Tehran explosion, and nearly kills him before being interrupted by the Hezbollah leader. George Clooney (born May 6, 1961) is an Academy Award- and two-time Golden Globe winning American actor, director, producer and screenwriter, known for his role in the first five seasons of the long-running television drama ER (1994â€“99), and his rise as an A-List movie star in... In espionage, a field agent is an agent who works on the field as opposed to one who works at the office or headquarters. ... Illegal, or unlawful, is either prohibitted or not authorized by law. ... Gunrunning, also known as arms trafficking, is trafficking in (smuggling) contraband weapons and ammunition. ... This article does not cite its references or sources. ... It has been suggested that Selective assassination be merged into this article or section. ... The arms industry is a massive global industry. ... American troops man an anti-aircraft gun near the Algerian coastline in 1943 Anti-aircraft, or air defense, is any method of combating military aircraft from the ground. ... Languages Arabic other languages (Arab minorities) Religions Predomiantly Sunni Islam as well as Shia Islam, Coptic Orthodox Church, Greek Orthodoxy, Greek Catholic, Maronite, Alawite Islam, Druze and Ibadi Islam An entry was temporarily removed here. ... Persian (Local names: ÙØ§Ø±Ø³ÛŒ FÃ¢rsi or Ù¾Ø§Ø±Ø³ÛŒ PÃ¢rsi)* is an Indo-European language spoken in Iran, Afghanistan and Tajikistan as well as by minorities in Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, India, Pakistan, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Southern Russia, neighboring countries, and elsewhere. ... A memorandum is an informal, or recorded, form of communication, usually used by businesses from executives to employees. ... Everyday instance of theft: the bike which fits on this wheel has disappeared. ... White-collar workers perform tasks which are less physically laborious yet often more highly paid than blue-collar workers, who do manual work. ... For other uses, see Hezbollah (disambiguation). ... A mercenary, is a person who takes part in an armed conflict and is motivated to take part in the hostilities essentially by the desire for private gain and, in fact, is promised, by or on behalf of a Party to the conflict, material compensation substantially in excess of that... Torture is defined by the United Nations Convention Against Torture as any act by which severe pain or suffering, whether physical or mental, is intentionally inflicted on a person for such purposes as obtaining from him or a third person information or a confession, punishing him for an act he...

When the CIA learns that Mussawi intends to broadcast its intention to kill Nasir, the agency seeks to distance itself by scapegoating Barnes and portraying him as a rogue agent. Whiting becomes worried, first about Robert talking about the Nasir assassination plan, second that the coup that Nasir is organizing would have a greater likelihood of success, and thirdly that the assassination of Nasir by Predator drone would be evident as an American hit. However, after being threatened, Whiting ensures the release of Barnes' passports through his powerful political connections. Barnes eventually learns why he was portrayed as a rogue agent, and approaches Prince Nasir to warn him of the assassination plan. It is too late and both men are killed in the explosion. The Scapegoat by William Holman Hunt, 1854. ... The MQ-1 Predator is an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) which the U.S. Air Force describes as a MALE (medium-altitude, long-endurance) UAV system. ... For other types of travel document, see Travel document. ...

Pakistani migrant workers Saleem Ahmed Khan (Shahid Ahmed) and his son Wasim (Mazhar Munir) board a bus to go to work at a Connex refinery. When they arrive, they find out that they have been laid off due to a Chinese company (China Gas and Electric) outbidding Connex for the rights to run that facility. Since the company has provided food and lodging, the workers face the threat of poverty and deportation due to their unemployed status. Wasim desperately searches for work. The migrant workers are ordered to report to the immigration bureau or face deportation and Saleem and Wasim wait in a long line, which is overseen by heavily armed guards. A public address system warns those waiting to keep silent. An elderly man complains about the heat, and when Saleem tries to warn him not to talk, it is Saleem and Wasim who are beaten with truncheons by the guards. Wasim and his friend join an Islamic school to learn Arabic in an effort to improve their employment prospects. While playing soccer, they meet a charismatic blue-eyed Muslim fundamentalist cleric (the same who took Robert Barnes' missile in Tehran) and start down a path that will eventually lead them into executing a suicide attack on a Connex-Killen LNG tanker (similar to the Limburg attack) using a shaped-charge explosive from Tehran missile. The individual or organization that is responsible for this attack remains unclear. However, it is falsely linked to the death of Barnes in a scene where Barnes' CIA office is being cleaned out. Foreign farm worker, New York A foreign worker (also: guest worker or economic migrant), is a person who works in a country other than the one of which he or she is a citizen. ... This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... Islam (Arabic: ) is a monotheistic religion based upon the teachings of Muhammad, a 7th century Arab religious and political figure. ... Students in Rome, Italy. ... Arabic can mean: From or related to Arabia From or related to the Arabs The Arabic language; see also Arabic grammar The Arabic alphabet, used for expressing the languages of Arabic, Persian, Malay ( Jawi), Kurdish, Panjabi, Pashto, Sindhi and Urdu, among others. ... Football is a ball game played between two teams of eleven players, each attempting to win by scoring more goals than their opponent. ... The word charisma (from the Greek word Ï‡Î¬ÏÎ¹ÏƒÎ¼Î± (kharisma), gift or divine favor, from kharizesthai, to favor, from kharis, favor: see also charism) refers to a rare trait found in certain human personalities usually including extreme charm and a magnetic quality of personality and/or appearance along with innate and powerfully... Fundamentalism is a movement to maintain strict adherence to founding principles. ... A cleric is a member of the clergy of a religion, especially one that has trained or ordained priests, preachers, or other religious professionals. ... A suicide attack is an attack in which the attacker (attacker being either an individual or a group) intends to kill others and intends to die in the process of doing so (see suicide). ... Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) is natural gas which has been artificially condensed into a liquid form by a combination of pressurisation and cryogenic cooling. ... The Limburg was a French-flagged oil tanker, chartered by a Malaysian oil firm. ... Sectioned HEAT round with the inner shaped charge visible A shaped charge is an explosive charge shaped to focus the effect of the explosives energy. ...

Bennett Holiday meets with U.S. Attorney Donald Farish III, who is convinced that Killen bribed someone to get the drilling rights in Kazakhstan. While investigating Connex-Killen's records, Holiday discovers a wire transfer of funds that is traced back to a transaction between Danny Dalton (Tim Blake Nelson) and Kazakhstani officials. Holiday tells Connex-Killen of his discovery, and they pretend not to have known about it. Holiday advises Dalton that he will likely be charged with corruption in order to serve as a "body" to get the DOJ off the back of the rest of Connex-Killen. Farish then strong-arms Holiday into giving the DOJ information about illegal activities he has discovered. Holiday gives up Dalton, but Farish says this is not enough. Holiday meets with ex-Killen chief Jimmy Pope (Chris Cooper), and informs him that the DOJ needs a second body to drop the investigation. Pope asks Holiday whether a person at Holiday's firm, above him, would be sufficient as the additional body. Holiday acknowledges that if the name were big enough, the DOJ would stop the investigation, and allow the merger. United States Attorneys represent the U.S. federal government in United States district court. ... A wire transfer is an electronic transfer of funds. ... Tim Blake Nelson (born May 11, 1964) is an American character actor and film director. ... Christopher W. Cooper (born July 9, 1951) is an Academy Award-winning American film actor. ...

Holiday brings his colleague and mentor Sydney Hewitt to meet with the CEO of Connex-Killen, Lee Janus. In a surprise move, Holiday reveals an under-the-table deal that Hewitt made while the Connex-Killen merger was being processed. Holiday has given Hewitt to the DOJ as the second body, thereby protecting the rest of Connex-Killen. Janus is able to attend the ceremony "oil industry man of the year" with a load taken off his shoulders. It has been suggested that MaÃ®tre Ã penser be merged into this article or section. ... Chief Executive Officer (CEO) is the job of having the ultimate executive responsibility or authority within an organization or corporation. ...

Themes

Oil addiction and dependence

The central theme is the dependence of the U.S. on oil. Dependency has a number of meanings: In project management, a dependency is a link amongst a projects terminal elements. ...

Father-son

Syriana revolves around a subtext of father-son relationships: Bryan Woodman and his two sons, the elder of whom is killed in the emir's swimming pool; the emir and his pair of sons competing for succession, the elder of whom is killed in an American air strike; Saleem Ahmed Khan and his son Wasim, who comes to embrace Muslim militants; the lawyer Bennett Holiday and his alcoholic father; and Robert Barnes and his high school-age son who wants a "normal" life. Subtext is content of a book, play, film or television series which is not announced explicitly by the characters (or author) but is implicit or becomes something understood by the reader / viewer as the production unfolds. ...

Family versus politics

There are many apparent conflicts in the movie between personal family lives and politics, mainly in terms of morality.

Clooney wanted to incorporate the character's family members into the story to show how tough this life is on them, and several scenes involving his character's wife (played by Greta Scacchi) were excised from the final cut. The role garnered Clooney an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor anyway, though an attempt was made to show the effect on family in many other characters, especially to Bryan Woodman's (played by Damon). Greta Scacchi (born February 18, 1960 in Milan, Italy) is an Emmy Award-winning film actress. ... Although he never won an Oscar for any of his movie performances, the comedian Bob Hope received two honorary Oscars for his contributions to cinema. ...

Title

The movie's title is suggested to derive from the hypothesized Pax Syriana, as an allusion to the necessary state of peace between Syria and the U.S. as it relates to the oil business. In a December 2005 interview, Baer told NPR that the title is a metaphor for foreign intervention in the Middle East, referring to post-World War II think tank strategic studies for the creation of an artificial state (such as Iraq, created from the elements of the former Ottoman Empire) that would ensure continued western access to crude oil. The movie's website states that "‘Syriana’ is a very real term used by Washington think-tanks to describe a hypothetical reshaping of the Middle East."^[3] Gaghan said he saw Syriana as "a great word that could stand for man's perpetual hope of remaking any geographic region to suit his own needs." ^[4] Pax Syriana (Latin for Syrian peace, modelled after Pax Romana and Pax Britannica) refers to a time of relative peace in Lebanon maintained by Syrian hegemony and enforced by the Syrian army. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... NPR logo For other meanings of NPR see NPR (disambiguation) National Public Radio (NPR) is a private, not-for-profit corporation that sells programming to member radio stations; together they are a loosely organized public radio network in the United States. ... Look up metaphor in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki TÅjÅ Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000... This article is about the institution. ... Motto Ø¯ÙˆÙ„Øª Ø§Ø¨Ø¯ Ù…Ø¯Øª Devlet-i Ebed-mÃ¼ddet (The Eternal State) Anthem Ottoman imperial anthem Borders in 1680, see: list of territories Capital SÃ¶ÄŸÃ¼t (1299â€“1326) Bursa (1326â€“65) Edirne (1365â€“1453) Constantinople (Ä°stanbul, 1453â€“1922) Language(s) Ottoman Turkish Government Monarchy Sultans - 1281â€“1326 Osman I - 1918â€“22 Mehmed VI...

The word Syriana derives from Syria + the Latin suffix -ana, a neuter plural form; it means, roughly, "things Syrian." Historically, Syria refers not to the state that since 1944 has borne the name, but to a more extensive land stretching from the eastern shores of the Mediterranean Sea to the middle Euphrates River and the western edge of the desert steppe, and from the Tauric system of mountains in the north to the edge of the Sinai desert in the south. This land was part of the Fertile Crescent, and has historically been a geopolitically crucial junction for trade routes from the east, from Asia Minor and the Aegean, and from Egypt, and has long been a focus of great power conflicts. The word Syria does not appear in the Hebrew original of the Scriptures, but appears in the Septuagint as the translation of Aram. Herodotus speaks of "Syrians" as identical with Assyrians, but the term's geographical significance was not well defined in pre-Greek and Greek times. As an ethnic term, "Syrian" came to refer in Antiquity to Semitic peoples living outside Mesopotamian and Arabian areas. Greco-Roman administrations were the first to apply the term to a definite district (Encyclopedia Britannica, 11th ed.). 1944 (MCMXLIV) was a leap year starting on Saturday. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... The Fertile Crescent is a historical crescent-shape region in the Middle East incorporating the Levant, Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt. ... The Septuagint: A page from Codex vaticanus, the basis of Sir Lancelot Charles Lee Brentons English translation. ... The term Aram can refer to: Aram (×Ö²×¨Ö¸× or ), the son of Shem, according to the Table of nations of Genesis 10 in the Hebrew Bible. ... 1913 advertisement for the 11th edition, with the slogan When in doubt â€” look it up in the EncyclopÃ¦dia Britannica The EncyclopÃ¦dia Britannica (properly spelled with Ã¦, the ae-ligature) was first published in 1768â€“1771 as The Britannica was an important early English-language general encyclopedia and is still...

Reviews

Syriana received generally very positive reviews. Film critic Roger Ebert named it the second best film of 2005, behind Crash, while his partner critic and co-host Richard Roeper named it the best film of the year. Peter Travers of Rolling Stone gave it his highest rating. Roger Joseph Ebert (born June 18, 1942) is a Pulitzer Prize winning American film critic. ... Crash is an Academy Award-winning drama film directed by Paul Haggis. ... Ebert & Roeper promotional image Ebert & Roeper at the Movies (more commonly known as Ebert & Roeper) is a movie review television program featuring film critics Roger Ebert and Richard Roeper, both of the Chicago Sun-Times. ... Richard Roeper (born October 17, 1959[1]) is a columnist/film critic for the Chicago Sun-Times and, since September of 2000, has co-hosted Ebert & Roeper with fellow film critic Roger Ebert. ... Peter Travers is the film critic and music critic for Rolling Stone. ... This article is about the magazine. ...

Criticism

As a motion picture, the main criticism, even among reviewers who praised the film, was the confusion created by following so many stories. Most critics stated that it was almost impossible to follow the plot, though some, notably Roger Ebert, praised precisely that quality of the film. The audience confusion mimics the confusion of the characters, who are enmeshed in the events around them without a clear understanding of what precisely is going on. Some people have suggested to watch two times in a row to fully comprehend whats going on. Roger Joseph Ebert (born June 18, 1942) is a Pulitzer Prize winning American film critic. ...

Syriana has also been criticized for political reasons. Baer's book describes his attempts to assassinate Saddam Hussein, but in the movie the figure whom Clooney is to assassinate is a benevolent, liberal prince. (This may have been changed for authenticity, as the capture of Saddam Hussein took place two years before the movie's release.) Many, though not all of its critics come from the political right. Charles Krauthammer criticized the film for "anti-American" views and moral equivalence, stating that "Osama bin Laden could not have scripted this film with more conviction." Fellow Post columnist Richard Cohen (a self-described liberal) calls its portrayals of terrorists, the CIA, oil companies, and the U.S. government "crude clichés"[1]. [2] Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti (Arabic: [1]; April 28, 1937[2] â€“ December 30, 2006[3]), was the President of Iraq from July 16, 1979, until April 9, 2003. ... Combatants United States Saddam Hussein Operation Red Dawn was a military operation conducted by the United States armed forces on December 13, 2003 in the small town of ad-Dawr in Iraq, near Tikrit. ... Charles Krauthammer Charles Krauthammer (born 13 March 1950), is a neoconservative, Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist, and commentator. ... Anti-American sentiment is a hostility towards or disapproval of the government, culture, history, and/or people of the United States of America. ... Richard Cohen, a syndicated columnist for the Washington Post, is a graduate of Far Rockaway High School and attended Hunter College, NYU and Columbia. ...

Awards and nominations

Awards

The Boston Society of Film Critics (BSFC) is organization of film reviewers from Boston, Massachusetts, United States, based publications. ... 63rd Golden Globe Awards January 16, 2006 Picture, Drama: Picture, Musical or Comedy: Series, Drama: Series, Musical or Comedy: The 63rd Golden Globe Awards, honoring the best in film and television for 2005, were presented on January 16, 2006 at the Beverly Hilton, in Los Angeles, California. ... George Clooney (born May 6, 1961) is an Academy Award- and two-time Golden Globe winning American actor, director, producer and screenwriter, known for his role in the first five seasons of the long-running television drama ER (1994â€“99), and his rise as an A-List movie star in... The National Board of Review of Motion Pictures was founded in 1909 in New York City, just 13 years after the birth of cinema, to protest New York City Mayor George McClennans revocation of moving-picture exhibition licenses on Christmas Eve 1908. ... Stephen Gaghan (born May 6, 1965, Louisville, Kentucky) is an American film writer and director. ... The 78th Academy Awards, honoring the best in film for 2005, were held on March 5, 2006 at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, California. ... George Clooney (born May 6, 1961) is an Academy Award- and two-time Golden Globe winning American actor, director, producer and screenwriter, known for his role in the first five seasons of the long-running television drama ER (1994â€“99), and his rise as an A-List movie star in... The Edgar Allan Poe Awards (popularly called the Edgars), named after Edgar Allan Poe, are presented every year by the Mystery Writers of America. ... Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Motion Picture Screenplay: 1990: Heathers - Daniel Waters 1991: The Grifters - Donald E. Westlake 1992: The Silence of the Lambs - Ted Tally 1993: The Player - Michael Tolkin 1994: Falling Down - Ebbe Roe Smith 1995: Pulp Fiction - Quentin Tarantino 1996: The Usual Suspects - Christopher McQuarrie 1997... Stephen Gaghan (born May 6, 1965, Louisville, Kentucky) is an American film writer and director. ...

Nominations

The 78th Academy Awards, honoring the best in film for 2005, were held on March 5, 2006 at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, California. ... Stephen Gaghan (born May 6, 1965, Louisville, Kentucky) is an American film writer and director. ... Art Directors Guild is the guild of the American Art Directors. ... 59th BAFTA Awards February 19, 2006 The 59th British Film Awards, given by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts on 19 February 2006, honored the best in film for 2005. ... George Clooney (born May 6, 1961) is an Academy Award- and two-time Golden Globe winning American actor, director, producer and screenwriter, known for his role in the first five seasons of the long-running television drama ER (1994â€“99), and his rise as an A-List movie star in... The Costume Designers Guild (CDG) was founded in 1953 by a group of 30 motion picture costume designers. ... The NAACP Image Award is an award presented annually by the NAACP to honor the top African-Americans in film, television, music and literature. ... The Screen Actors Guild (S.A.G.) is the labor union representing over 120,000 film actors in the United States. ... George Clooney (born May 6, 1961) is an Academy Award- and two-time Golden Globe winning American actor, director, producer and screenwriter, known for his role in the first five seasons of the long-running television drama ER (1994â€“99), and his rise as an A-List movie star in... The Writers Guild of America (WGA) is the collective bargaining representative, or labor union, for writers in the motion picture and television industries in the United States. ...

Trivia

Harrison Ford (born July 13, 1942) is an American actor. ... Traffic is an award-winning 2000 crime/drama film directed by Steven Soderbergh. ... For other people bearing this name, see Michael Douglas (disambiguation). ... Coordinates: Emirate Dubai Government - Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Area [1] - Metro 4,114 kmÂ² (1,588. ... UAE redirects here; for other uses of that term, see UAE (disambiguation) The United Arab Emirates is an oil-rich country situated in the south-east of the Arabian Peninsula in Southwest Asia, comprising seven emirates: Abu Dhabi, Ajman, Dubai, Fujairah, Ras al-Khaimah, Sharjah and Umm al-Quwain. ... A patient undergoes a lumbar puncture at the hands of a neurologist. ... The spinal cord is a part of the vertebrate nervous system that is enclosed in and protected by the vertebral column (it passes through the spinal canal). ... Princeton University is a coeducational private university located in Princeton, New Jersey, in the United States of America. ... Loyola College in Maryland, formerly Loyola College, is a private, coeducational university in Baltimore, Maryland, United States, affiliated with the Society of Jesus and the Roman Catholic Church. ... Nickname: Motto: The Greatest City in America,[3] Get in on it. ...

Contents

Plot summary

Themes

Oil addiction and dependence

Father-son

Family versus politics

Title

Reviews

Criticism

Awards and nominations

Awards

Nominations

Trivia

See also

References

External links

Contents

Plot summary GA_googleFillSlot("encyclopedia_square");

Themes

Oil addiction and dependence

Father-son

Family versus politics

Title

Reviews

Criticism

Awards and nominations

Awards

Nominations

Trivia

See also

References

External links

Plot summary