Closed Circuit (2013, Eric Bana, Rebecca Hall)

Closed Circuit is a slow burning thriller that builds into something with real pace and excitement. Eric Bana plays Martin Stone, a prominent defence lawyer who is asked to take on the case of defending a terrorist held to be responsible for a bombing in the heart of London that left over 100 dead. He is partnered with ex-lover Claudia Simmons-Howe (Rebecca Hall). The pair have to keep their previous relationship secret as it could jeopardise both their careers however it soon becomes obvious to them both that they are being monitored by MI5 and their is way more to the case than they first realised. Soon both their lives are in danger…

Ample use of closed circuit footage brings home the message just how much of our daily lives are recorded and while the plot turns are pretty well sign posted it still makes for a thought provoking film. Watch out for a blink and you’ll miss it appearance from young Isaac Hempstead-Wright (Bran Stark in Game of Thrones) as Bana’s son.

production details
UK | Working Title – Universal – Focus Features | 96 minutes | 2013

Director: John Crowley
Script: Steven Knight

cast
Eric Bana as Martin Rose
Kenneth Cranham as Cameron Fischer
Riz Ahmed as Nazrul Sharma
Neil D’Souza as Iqbal
Julia Stiles as Joanna Reece
Lee Nicholas Harris as Security Guard
Patrick Warner as Young Man on Cellphone
Jim Broadbent as Attorney General
Jemma Powell as Elizabeth
Rebecca Hall as Claudia Simmons-Howe
Ciarán Hinds as Devlin
Isaac Hempstead-Wright as Tom Rose
Anne-Marie Duff as Melissa
Denis Moschitto as Farroukh Erdogan
Doug Allen as Ryan
Barbora Bobuľová as Piccola
Kate Lock as Mother
Katherine Press as Pregnant Daughter
Ricky Nixon as Fish Trader
Pinar Ögün as Ilkay Erdogan
Hasancan Cifci as Emir Erdogan
James Lowe as Simon Fellowes