Review by April Smallwood

What’s it about?

The Ghost Writer stars Ewan McGregor as a man hired to turn ex British PM (played by Pierce Brosnan) Adam Lang’s memoirs into a bestseller, after the guy initially chosen for the job is found dead and washed up on a beach. While unravelling Lang’s biography, the Ghost Writer stumbles on information that those involved wish he hadn’t.

April’s take

You don’t need an interest in politics or an affinity for Cluedo to be engulfed by the dark intrigue and murder mystery of this film. Director Roman Polanski has crafted a seriously creepy world, where almost everyone – bar the Ghost Writer – is cause for suspicion.

Picture a scene where the landscape is invariably some shade of grey, it’s almost always raining, and the players could, in many ways, be described as ghosts themselves. It’s in this way that Polanski’s greatest skill as a director is evident; creating eerie worlds that are arguably more interesting than their characters.

McGregor plays the nameless ghost writer in the same way a minimalist might decorate their home; simply and modestly, yet also very deliberately. As the story’s protagonist, he’s incredibly switched on and, though reluctant at first, carefully pieces together the real story behind Adam Lang’s sudden rise to the country’s top job and his suspected dealings with the CIA.

Should I watch it?

I think so. It’s an exciting political mystery that looks at how intricately deceitful those in power are (and who’s really tugging the strings). Right up until the final minutes of this film, my mind was busily trying to pinpoint who the real bad guys were. Keep in mind the only girlie thing about it is Sex And The City’s Kim Cattrall, who plays Lang’s assistant and mistress (with a seriously shoddy English accent, mind you). The story’s so enthralling and tense, you’re probably gonna want a Swedish neck massage afterwards.

Outta 10?

A haunting 8.


The Ghost Writer will be in cinemas from 12 August.