THE GOOD SHEPHERD (2006) 31/2 stars out of 4. Starring Matt Damon, Angelina Jolie, William Hurt, Robert De Niro, Joe Pesci, John Turturro, Alex Baldwin, Michael Gambon, Timothy Hutton, Billy Crudup, Nyasha Hatendi, Liya Kebede and Gabriel Macht. Written by Eric Roth. Directed by Robert De Niro. Rated R. Running time: Approx: 165 mins.

        At one point during The Good Shepherd, Edward Wilson (Matt Damon) is told that his silences are deafening.

        The same can be said for Robert De Niro痴 entire movie.
De Niro痴 second directorial outing is one of the quietest movies you値l ever see. But don稚 let the quiet fool you because this saga about the birth of the CIA is as riveting and intense as a world championship round of high-stakes poker.

        Wilson is our guide through this history of the U.S. intelligence community, from its origins as the OSS during World War II to its transformation to the CIA during the Cold War.

        Through it all passes Wilson, mostly silent but always observing. He is a stiff man of few words, always in control, detached and vigilant.

        Damon gives a deceptively splendid performance. He is called upon to really do nothing. No emotional outbursts, no shouting. He must maintain an almost passive demeanor from beginning to end, always keeping his emotions and thoughts in check.

        His silence is a reflection of one of the last thing痴 his father told him before he committed suicide: If you can稚 tell the truth, don稚 speak at all.

        He is a man who cannot afford to allow anyone in. The cost is high, his wife, his son, his future, his happiness.

        De Niro痴 directorial style mirrors Wilson痴 persona. The director just uses his camera to observe the action. He does not bounce it around like a mechanical bull in some honky tonk. He eschews fancy angles or other cinematic distractions.

        Nor does he punctuate key scenes with music or editing cuts. Using mostly medium shots and close-ups, he keeps a steady pace to tell his story. Though it clocks in at about two hour and 45 minutes, the time passes quickly. De Niro痴 pacing and editing is so precise that you don稚 want the story to end.

        And that is another commendable aspect of Eric Roth痴 script. The movie does not tie up all the loose ends. Wilson痴 story has no ending. In fact, the movie really just stops in the wake of the fallout from the Bay of Pigs fiasco. No neat ribbons and bows.

        One of the sociological aspects touched upon in the story is the sense of arrogant entitlement exuded by Wilson and his WASP Yale colleagues who formed the backbone of the OSS and CIA. They look upon the United States as theirs with other ethnicities, religions and creeds as merely trespassers or interlopers who must be tolerated.

        If The Good Shepherd has one drawback, it is the misuse of Angelina Jolie as Wilson痴 wife, Margaret. Jolie is a larger than life personality who is straitjacketed into a thinly drawn sketch of a woman who is not allowed to share her husband痴 life.

        At the outset, she is a willful manhunter, seducing Edward into marriage. But she slowly deteriorates into bitterness and resentment as his job consumes his life, leaving him very little to bestow on his wife and son.

        De Niro gives Jolie few opportunities to vent her frustrations. Like everything else in the movie, she mostly stays within herself.

        The Good Shepherd is a morality tale of how one man痴 idealism is corrupted by a lack of trust and faith in his fellow human being. It is a story of betrayal of others as well as one痴 own principals.

        Moreover, it offers a lesson on how good intentions can be perverted in the name of patriotism.

        Bob Bloom is the film critic and DVD reviewer at the Journal & Courier in Lafayette, Ind. He can be reached by e-mail at bbloom@journalandcourier.com or at serialhero48@yahoo.com. Bloom's reviews also can be found at the Journal & Courier Web site: www.jconline.com
Other reviews by Bloom can be found at the Rottentomatoes Web site: www.rottentomatoes.com.