After working together on Gladiator, A Good Year, and American Gangster, Russell Crowe and Ridley Scott are like an old married couple. “We do bicker…frequently,” Scott laughs. “It creates a healthy environ­ment and good fun, actually. It has to be fun, because it’s damn hard work!”

Audiences will see if good fun leads to a good movie in Body of Lies, the twisty story of a shady CIA boss (Crowe) and an operative (Leo-nardo DiCaprio) sent to Jordan to track down a high-ranking terrorist. But the mission isn’t what counts here; instead, the focus is on the tenuous alliance between two men operating outside, around, and underneath the law. “It’s about deceiving everyone and trusting no one to get the job done,” Scott explains. “Sounds negative, but it’s very familiar today, isn’t it?” The result is a throwback to ’70s polit­ical thrillers like 3 Days of the Condor.

With its unvarnished look at American foreign policy (Dubai actually denied permission to film there because the movie was too politi­cal), Body of Lies promises to draw plenty of ire. “People say, ‘God, you’re cynical,’” Scott says. “No, I’m accurate.” Clearly, he isn’t one to shy away from controversy—or hard work. He’s fully booked with multiple flicks unspooling over the next five years. Wouldn’t you think a 70-year-old would want a vacation? “To do what? Fish? And I cannot stand the beach for more than an hour. I start twiddling my thumbs wondering how I’m going to get through lunchtime.”