Welcome to Reel People. It’s a place where, you guessed it, real people like yourselves spout off on new movie releases. It works best if you - yes, we mean you - jump into the forum link below and tell us what you think of the movie, too.

This week, we’re watching Rendition.

What I Liked: I liked Reese Witherspoon and Jake Gyllenhaal the most.  The two actors are great in this movie.  Jake Gyllenhaal seemed very real in his role and really made me feel his struggle of doing what’s right even though it could get you in trouble.  Reese Witherspoon rips your heart out in the few scenes she is in.  I must say the fact that she is an expectant mother in the film was a nice touch to her character and just made you want to cry more for her.  I also felt that Meryl Streep did an amazing job in her role.  It was easy to hate her.  The story lines were believable and made me think.  I love movies that make me think.

What I Disliked: The movie was too long.  It’s interesting to watch how the two separate story lines are connected, but I felt several things could have been taken out to make this movie go a little faster.  With movies like this it’s hard to watch someone be tortured for too long without thinking, okay when’s it going to be over?  Once you know where a movie is going, get on with it.  It was also predictable.  I knew the end of one of the story lines too quickly and the other story line didn’t shock me the way I hoped it would.

Would I Recommend?: Yes, I would recommend Rendition.  Ultimately it is a pretty decent film and is wonderful for conspiracy theorists.  There haven’t been that many great films out lately so it’s nice to see one poke its head through the rubbish that has been on the big screen in the past few months.

Score: 7 out of 10

- Ashley Grant

What I Liked: Complex, thought provoking, and intense, this movie demanded my full attention. Reese Witherspoon is mesmerizing as the distraught, pregnant wife of the missing husband. As is to be expected, Meryl Streep plays ruthless and despicable to perfection.  Neither can exist without the other, and they are together in only one heart breaking scene.

What I Disliked: This is a painful movie to watch and think about: gut wrenching torture scenes; extremist zealots spouting love of God to excuse their violence; zealous politicians spouting love of country to excuse their disregard for one citizen’s rights to protect thousands of innocents.  This isn’t mind diverting entertainment; this is maddening reality occurring daily.

Would I Recommend?: If you are looking for a movie that engages your brain, and preys on raw emotions, see this movie.  It is educationally stimulating, and challenges all of us to question our beliefs about our country’s “war on terror.”

Score: 7 out of 10

- Courtenay O’Connell

What I Liked: As usual, I loved Peter Sarsgaard’s perfect face; but even he, my favorite actor of all time, could not save this movie for me.

What I Disliked: What a major let down! “Rendition” is slow, boring, and an unbelievable waste of talent. I never could have imagined that a movie with so many big names – Reese Witherspoon, Jake Gyllenhaal, Peter Sarsgaard, and Meryl Streep – could result in such a dud. Don’t let the trailer for this one fool you, it’s about a hundred times more exciting than the actual movie. Scene after scene, nothing could evoke any emotion or interest from me at all, particularly not the world’s most anticlimactic reunion scene at the end of the movie between Reese Witherspoon’s character and her husband! I feel like “Rendition” tries to send a clear message to its audience but completely fails to engage the audience enough to make anyone care or take that message seriously.

Would I Recommend?: I would not recommend this movie because there is a slew of other post 9/11, let’s-all-hate-the-government movies out there that at least aim to be more educational and interesting than “Rendition.”

Score: 2 out of 10

- Jessica Conrad