Making ghostwriting thrilling

The title of Roman Polanski’s film says more than any tagline could. The ghost (Ewan McGregor) is hired to write the memoirs of former British Prime Minister Adam Lang (Pierce Brosnan) after the previous ghostwriter mysteriously drowns. It soon leaks that Lang is accused of torturing suspected terrorists, which leads the ghost on a search for truth.

If this sounds like Tony Blair and George W. Bush, it probably is.

Polanski brilliantly evokes the great Alfred Hitchcock to create an atmosphere of chilling suspense. The setting, a beach where the weather is terrible and the sky is always forebodingly gray, is the perfect contrast of idyllic and austere. Like classic noir, the music is wonderfully forlorn and it is difficult to know whom to trust.

Unlike most thrillers, “Ghost Writer” is patient in its approach. Quick edits are sacrificed in favor of in-depth character studies, and each shot is carefully revealing. Lest we forget, Polanski reminds us that even at 76 years old he is a master of visual storytelling.