THE GHOST WRITER (UK/France/Germany 2010) ****
Directed by Roman Polanski

Hand it to master Roman Polanski.  This is his other closest Hitchcockian thriller after FRANTIC that is sinister delight!

Consider the film’s opening sequence.  His stationary camera is placed in front of the ferry as the cars drive off.  A BMW hatchback is focused as cars drive around it.  It is clear that the car has been abandoned and the cops tow it off the ferry.  The camera cuts to a body washed off shore.  The same BMW is re-visited later on in the film.  The 5 minute sequence is done without any opening credits except for the title GHOST WRITER written over it so that the audience can fully concentrate on the proceedings with anticipation. 

The film centres on a ghostwriter (Ewan McGregor) hired to finish the memoirs of former British Prime Minister Adam Lang (Pierce Brosnan) after the first author apparently committed suicide.  But Lang is up for a tough time as a scandal revealing his involvement in the torture of terrorists is exposed.  At the same time, it turns out that his marriage to wife Ruth (Olivia Williams last seen as the unforgettable Miss Stubbs in AN EDUCATION) is on the rocks.  Suicide turns out to be murder with the ghostwriter entwined in the mystery with his life at stake.

Polanksi relies on old fashioned cinematics to invoke suspense and audience anticipation.  From the musical score by Alexandre Desplat to the sets and art direction, Polanksi creates an atmosphere of impending danger.  The famous Hitchcock technique of dialogue unheard but seen through a glass window, in this case of the former Prime Minister losing it on his mobile creates more anticipation and curiosity from the audience.  As for dialogue, the confrontational conversation between McGregor and Tom Wilkinson (as Tom Emmett) is both sinister and precise in information portrayed.

McGregor is excellent as the ghostwriter, a strong character necessary to hold the narrative together.  The supporting cast could not be more impressive.  But it is Polanski’s touch that makes what is just a typical novel mystery something terribly exciting on screen.  And not to be missed and bitingly funny is his take on the world courts and justice, in reflection of his recent arrest by Swiss police.