REEL CRITIC:

The Coen brothers, Ethan and Joel, have been considered Hollywood darlings for many years due to their well-regarded and critically praised independent films. Although they have never produced a hugely successful picture in terms of box office receipts, the Coens have been among the most respected writers/producers/directors since their directorial debut “Blood Simple” in 1984.

A string of great films followed including “Raising Arizona,” “Miller’s Crossing,” “Barton Fink,” “Fargo,” for which they received the Best Original Screenplay Oscar, “The Big Lebowski,” and “O Brother Where Art Thou?” Again writing, producing and directing, the Coen brothers’ ascension to Hollywood royalty was complete as they won Best Directing, Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Picture Academy Awards earlier this year for “No Country for Old Men.”

The Coen brothers have chosen to follow up this rare “hat trick” with a dark comedy, “Burn After Reading.” It is testimony to the Coen brothers’ stature that they were able to cast Frances MacDormand, George Clooney, John Malkovich, Tilda Swinton and Brad Pitt in a 96-minute, entertaining but hardly significant picture.

Malkovich plays Osborne Cox, a CIA agent working the Balkans desk who is demoted for having a drinking problem. Rather than suffer this slight, Osborne quits altogether and decides to write his memoirs. He is married to Katie (Swinton), a coldhearted pediatrician who is having an affair with Harry Pfarrer (Clooney), a handsome but oafish U.S. Marshal who also arranges numerous trysts on the Internet. Katie wants Harry to leave his wife, Sandy, (Elizabeth Marvel), a writer of children’s books, but he is reluctant.

Katie decides to divorce Osborne and is told by her attorney to access his financial records. Unwittingly, Katie downloads Osborne’s innocuous memoir notes on a compact disc along with the financial records. A copy of the disc is left at a local gym by a legal secretary and is found by the facility’s janitor where it falls into the hands of two trainers, Chad (Brad Pitt) and Linda (Frances MacDormand).

Chad is a happy-go-lucky dimwit who has a techie friend access the digital signature on the disc in order to find the owner. Convinced the information on the disc is top secret, Chad at the very least hopes to collect a generous reward.

Linda has more ambitious plans as she is very desirous of multiple cosmetic surgeries, which the gym’s HMO refuses to pay. Linda has been “dating” a series of disappointing men whom she met online, including Pfarrer. Linda is convinced the disc can be ransomed to Osborne and convinces Chad to play hardball.

Since everyone in the film is an unredeemable rat, the double-dealing and underhanded shenanigans get completely out of hand especially when the CIA gets wind of things and goes into damage control mode. This is a dark film and is rated “R” for pervasive language, some sexual content and violence. Those familiar with the Coen Brothers’ sensibilities will not be shocked by the proceedings.

Obviously the cast is first-rate and outstanding performances are expected and delivered. Malkovich’s twitchy man-on-the-edge portrayal is convincing and a bit sad. MacDormand’s Linda is a delusional, self-absorbed, middle-aged failure who is grasping at straws to salvage a glamorous life before it is too late. Clooney plays Harry as a shallow preening lout who is more amoral than immoral. Swinton seems to have cornered the market on playing cold, calculating professional women, and her performance is somewhat reminiscent of her Oscar-winning role in “Michael Clayton.”

The real surprise here is Pitt, who provides comic relief as the empty-headed personal trainer who never realizes he is in over his head until it is too late.

Chad personifies the shallow narcissist who is all too common today. Thinking himself clever, his piteous attempts to outmaneuver Osborne are as comic as they are ineffective.

So, as summer ends, the Coen brothers mark the season with a truly adult comedy. Like all Coen brothers films, it will amuse and entertain their die-hard fans but will probably not resonate with the non-converted.

VAN NOVACK is the assistant vice president of institutional research and assessment at Cal State Long Beach and lives in Huntington Beach with his wife, Elizabeth.