Every Steven Soderbergh Movie Ranked Worst To Best
26. The Good German (2006)
The Good German, based on Joseph Kanon's novel of the same name, stars frequent collaborator George Clooney as war journalist Jake Geismer, a man who becomes entwined in a murder mystery as he crosses paths with his former lover Lena (Cate Blanchett).
Soderbergh shot the movie in black-and-white in hopes of paying homage to cinema's earlier war movies, and the aesthetic - mixed with its star-crossed lovers plot - leaves it looking like a modern-day Casablanca.
That all sounds well and good, but between the tired performances of Clooney, Blanchett and Tobey Maguire and the lacklustre mystery surrounding them, The Good German stands as the perfect example of a movie made with style over substance.
It looks good, and the production design sings, but there's nothing under the surface worth sticking around for.