Review - Lions for Lambs

It’s easy to see why people didn’t like this movie. It’s preachy, didactic and there is little action; the entire movie really centers around two conversations. However, its message certainly cannot be ignored.
Robert Redford plays a college professor who has finally decided to confront one of his most gifted students, Todd, because he has been failing to come to class. The following argument debates the merits and the meaning of activism, finally resulting in that age-old question “what are you going to do?” Their conversation centers around two of the Professor’s former students who have enlisted in the army and are fighting and dying overseas in a controversial new military strategy in Afghanistan. This strategy is the subject of debate between an award-winning journalist (Meryl Streep) and a young congressman (Tom Cruise). The movie poses all of the big questions that Americans are asking today, broaching the subject of the Iraq War, journalistic integrity and next-generation apathy. It is a film that deserves to be watched, if not for its entertainment value then at least for its educational posturing.
Lions is adequately made although Redford doesn't so anything spectacularly memorable as director. His performance, like all of the others in the film is a knock out of the park. These are three veteran actors who prove that they are worth the hype.
Despite its pretentiousness, Lions for Lambs maintains some entertainment value. Mostly though, it is undeniably a call to activism- an issue movie, but its hard to fault Redford for making it such in the face of today's apathy.