Loaded with a superb cast and all around excellent performances, Rendition doesn’t meet the standards of its cast. There’s a message here, which seems to be the focus as opposed to proper storytelling. Rendition isn’t a bad movie by any stretch, just one lost in the midst of political views.

The title refers to a US law that allows suspected terrorists to be held and tortured. In a post-9/11 world, it’s unsurprising that few chances are being taken, yet how far the government will go to secure information is the problem depicted here. Reese Witherspoon is spectacular as the pregnant wife of Anwar El-Ibrahimi (Omar Metwally), taken from a flight back home to the US and accused of terrorism.

The script branches into multiple paths which limits screen time for many of the premiere actors. Alan Arkin and Meryl Streep almost seem like afterthoughts. The same can be said for Witherspoon, who handles every scene she’s in flawlessly. With multiple paths, certain segments are more interesting than others, and the romance between a young couple closely involved in the terrorist bombing that begins the film is rather lifeless.

Pacing isn’t handled well, and as you’re gaining interest in one plot thread, another comes in to interrupt it abruptly. One segment of the story is actually told in flashback without the audience’s knowledge until the final moments. This slight, mild twist ending seems tacked on solely to offer something surprising at the end as there is nothing in the actual story that would be a shocker. It comes off as confusing and unnecessary, and could have eliminated one of the plot threads entirely.

Rendition also lays on its views on the subject thick. Reese Witherspoon’s character is of course pregnant for no other reason than to raise more sympathy for her husband. The Hollywood ending is rather abrupt, and more information could have easily followed it, such as how El-Ibrahimi adjusts after his torture. Politicians are dense and uncaring. It goes too far when its point is obvious from the start.