Burn After Reading (2008) Guide

The story of , directed by the Coen Brothers, is a chaotic dark comedy about a group of self-absorbed individuals whose lives collide through a series of absurd misunderstandings . It is often described as a "nihilistic farce" where intelligence is remarkably scarce. The Setup: The "Classified" Disc

The disc is accidentally left at a Georgetown gym, where it is found by two dim-witted employees: (Frances McDormand) and Chad Feldheimer (Brad Pitt). The Escalation: Amateur Blackmail Burn After Reading (2008)

Osbourne Cox (John Malkovich), a CIA analyst with a short temper and a drinking problem, quits his job in a fit of rage. To keep busy, he begins writing his memoirs. Meanwhile, his wife, Katie (Tilda Swinton), who is having an affair with a philandering U.S. Marshal named Harry Pfarrer (George Clooney), copies Osbourne's financial records—including a draft of his memoirs—onto a disc as part of her divorce planning. The story of , directed by the Coen

Linda and Chad mistake the mundane memoirs for "top-secret" government intelligence. Linda, desperate to fund a series of expensive cosmetic surgeries, decides to use the disc to blackmail Osbourne. Burn After Reading (2008) Marshal named Harry Pfarrer (George Clooney)