The Interpreter

The Interpreter is an extremely packaged political thriller that contains only a little punch. The main reason I gave it a go was Sean Penn who seems to rarely make mistakes selecting his work. Nicole Kidman can be a mixed bag, and Sydney Pollack a competent seasoned veteran director. All three performed well without setting the screen alight.

The use of the United Nations building was a big plus and definitely gave the movie more realism. It also gave the viewer more of an idea on what a massive organisation the UN is.

Even though "The Interpreter" was enjoyable the ending was definitely a disappointment. It wasn't that it was necessarily wrong, just that you knew what was coming. This was the "Hollywood Factor" showing through. Perhaps the reason it didn't turn into real Hollywood trash was the fact it was filmed and produced in New York.

Director Sidney Pollack has given us some very fine films in the past; THREE DAYS OF THE CONDOR and TOOTSIE come immediately to mind, and he won an Oscar for OUT OF Africa (although it's not high on my personal list of his films). But not even Mr. Pollack can make a great film without having a script to start with. I think that's the lesson of THE INTERPRETER. There are many things that are just not well thought out here, and the whole suffers as a result.

Penn is great as always, Kidman does a lot with her character, but often they're wandering through the scenes in a story that doesn't seem to know where to go next. Actually the fact the movie makes any sense at all is a credit to Pollack's experience and talent. There are some great ideas here, and there's certainly a level of entertainment achieved; even some thought provoking moments. But it's clear the filmmakers weren't working from a well prepared script. 6 out of 10.

Nice suspense thriller with mystery , plot twists and an international conspiracy that unfold inside the United Nations . There an interpreter , Silvia Broome (Nicole Kidman) , overhears an assassination plot , as she has overheard a death threat against an African head of state and then a hard-boiled U. S. Secret Service agent named Tobin Keller (Sean Penn) along with his helper (Catherine Keener) are assigned to investigate the case . Silvia was raised in the Republic of Matobo, a fictional African country, but she has dual citizenship. Meanwhile , the U. N. is considering indicting Edmond Zuwanie (Earl Cameron) , Matobo's president , to stand trial in the International Criminal Court . Initially a liberator , over the past 20 years he has become as tyrannical and corrupt as the government he overthrew , and is now responsible for ethnic cleansing within Matobo . Zuwanie is soon to visit the U. N. and put forward his own case to the General Assembly , in an attempt to avoid the indictment . Then scalating events , happenings grow more nightmarish, and things go awry . We're all being watched ! . The truth needs no translation !.

This exciting suspense flick contains thrills , political intrigue , deception , noisy action , shootouts , twists , turns and is quite entertaining . A commercial thriller that failed at the boxoffice , here Sidney Pollack to indulge in the internal machinery of the UN building which allowed in the movie cameras for the first time and some breathtaking helicopter shots of NYC . The African leaders : Matbo , Ku , Kuman-Kuman are all fictional , of course , but we must asume that Motobo is a post-revolutionary sub-Saharan state and along the lines can be Zimbabwe and the president Zuwanie is a thinly veiled portrait of Robert Mugave figure . This is a competent thriller , but observing global politics from this perspective turning out to be an uncomfortable , frustating experience , but the movie still lends nothing to our understanding of post-colonial Africa , including ethnic cleansing , corruption as well as other atrocities and disasters . Main actors give passable acting , as Nicole Kidman as an interpreter working at the United Nations in New York City whose life is turned upside down as she becomes a hunted target of the killers and Sean Penn as the stubborn agent assigned to the twisted case that takes under the protection the threatened victim ; nevertheless , there isn't chemistry enough among them. They are well accompanied by a good support cast , such as : Catherine Keener , Jesper Christensen , Yvan Attal , Earl Cameron , George Harris , Michael Wright , Clyde Kusatsu , Hugo Speer , Robert Clohessy , David Zayas and Sidney Pollack himself .

It displays a colorful and brilliant cinematography from Darius Khondji, shot on location in UN , NYC . As well as rousing and moving musical score by James Newton Howard . The motion picture was well financed by producers Tim Bevan , Eric Fellner , Anthony Minghella and professionally produced/written/played/directed by Sidney Pollack , though it has some disappointing scenes , flaws and gaps . This good professional was an excellent actor and director , making the following important movies : "The Property is condemned" , "The Slender Thread" , "The Scalphunters" , "They Shoot Horses , Don't They ?" , "Jeremiah Johnson" , "The Way we Were" , "Yazuka" , "3 days of Condor" , "Absence of Malice" , "Tootsie" , "Out of Africa" , "Havana" , "The Firm", "Sabrina" , "Random Hearts", among others . Rating : 6/10. The picture will appeal to thriller fans , but especiallly appointed to Nicole Kidman and Sean Penn fans . In spite of its several shortcomings , flops and failures , the picture is well worth watching .

Being from Africa, I found it highly annoying that they decided to use a fake country name (which of course not a lot of people would know!).

The general idea was great and I love NIcole Kidman, and I was really looking forward to watch this movie. However, after seeing it, I felt a lot more could have been done with this wonderful cast and great idea - a lot was missing and it was pretty predictable.

The sad thing is that there are a lot of children actually walking around with automatic weapons, killing for "lunch money" to survive. The civil wars in Sudan are also very sad, but what is even more sad is that we sit here as bystanders and we don't do anything about it. Yeah, we might complain a little if we hear (or shall I say when we hear/read - because so little is said about it) but then people are more worried about foreign gasoline imports, than they are about human lives in a far away country. All it takes is to contact your local government representative.

While I feel this movie shed a little light on that, and yes I know the story is not about it, the plot could have been more suspenseful and unpredictable.

I was interested in seeing The Interpreter since it looked like a good adult drama. Unfortunately, the movie has some problems.

The big plus of the movie is Kidman. She is one of those women who actually looks better as she ages, and she is a talented actress. Sean Penn is also a good actor, and both do a great job in the movie.

Unfortunately the good acting can't overcome the weak script. I felt like the story was still a 2-3 drafts short of being ready for the screen. The biggest problem was that there are plot holes you could drive a truck through. I also felt the movie dragged through most of the middle as they tried to develop the strained relationship between the principle characters.

If you are a plot-driven movie fan, as I am, the movie is likely to be a disappointment. If you are a acting-driven movie fan, you will probably like the movie more.