The Flipcritic

Sydney Pollack is a director of old-school intelligence, relying on his characters to drive his films rather than the other way around. Like Clint Eastwood, he communicates exceedingly well with his stars, bringing out performances that never insult our intelligence (probably so because he himself is a superb actor). Knowing how to elicit excellent characterization can get you halfway to a good movie, while technique can get you the rest of the way. I am disappointed to say that with THE INTERPRETER, Mr. Pollack nearly gets us there, but not quite.

The movie opens with a strange subplot. Two Africans, one white one black, rendezvous at an abandoned arena. Their fate becomes intriguing, for it could not seem more displaced from the movie’s advertised premise. It is at this point where my interest peaked, knowing how Mr. Pollack would slowly intertwine these two Africans onto an assassination attempt half a world away at the United Nations. At the time, its potential couldn’t have been juicier to me if it were a steak.

Silvia Broome (Nicole Kidman), an interpreter at the U.N., stumbles onto plans of this attempt, overhearing whispers in her sound booth (overlooking the floor of the United Nations General Assembly) after office hours. Soon enough, she is being stalked and intimidated. In come the lawmen.

Though the U.S. Secret Service is known for protecting the president, they are also assigned to protect foreign diplomatic missions. Tobin Keller (Sean Penn) is the agent in charge entrusted to Silvia’s detail, not to protect her, but to protect whomever might be harmed by those she could implicate. Needless to say, she’s upset about the agency’s priorities.

Keller has doubts about Silvia’s danger signals, at one point calling her a liar after an initial briefing. He becomes even more skeptical once he digs into her background, with revelations I leave you to discover. His grilling is more psychological than vocal, with long probing stares into Silvia’s eyes, waiting for her to break down what she is hesitant to divulge. Indeed, she has a lot of explaining to do, regardless of how dispassionate she claims to be towards the politics of her dilemma.

When it comes to geopolitics and diplomatic procedural, the film is top notch. This is the first picture to be filmed at U.N. Headquarters, primarily within its Security Council and General Assembly areas. Some of the film’s extras are actual U.N. staff members. Such unprecedented access and cooperation only boosts the movie’s sense of authenticity and wonder, providing us with the closest experience we will ever have of stepping into this world organization.

The movie’s intelligence is not only reserved for its context. It is also evident in it’s methods, as it contains several marvelous exercises of growing suspense. Within these moments, Mr. Pollack slowly and skillfully turns up the danger notch by notch, unlike lesser directors who go irritatingly go to full blast without pacing or timing. No sequence is more thrilling than when he masterfully orchestrates a bus meeting of several key players, including our heroine, all from different locations, each being monitored. With this much surveillance, how could anything possibly go wrong? Watch and see if it does.

The film is also smart when it comes to character development, as we invest heavily in Nicole Kidman’s and Sean Penn’s characters. Here are two great actors showing why they are where they are. Ms. Kidman can embody feisty sensuous class better than any actress working today, but takes another turn here as someone cold and detached. Her job here is to take apart her character’s persona apart, piece by emotional piece. She starts out as one who has nothing to lose, but in the end risks her losing her soul.

Sean Penn loves playing men who have pain eating away at their spirit. He does the same here playing a Secret Service agent so trusted and respected that his superior (played by Mr. Pollack himself) tells him, “… anything you need.” Mr. Pollack does give Mr. Penn and his character as much breadth as he can, showing a man struggling to do his job because of a personal tragedy. Little does he know how much his loss helps hims out in the end.

The problem with the picture is how these two genuine aspects keep on running into each other. When the movie changes its pace from intriguing thriller to personal drama, it emasculates itself. I’ve spoken with several critics who approve of this personal dimension, noting that it enhances the story. I feel that in this case, it’s a distraction. Knowing how much subtext to inject into an ongoing storyline can be critical, and here, I think Mr. Pollack has put in too much.

Consider when Silvia starts having these long ongoing conversations with Keller about her background. Some of her outpourings feel a bit forced and hokey. And I could not bring myself to accept Keller being touched by her details. The film gives us an excuse for him buying into them because of his private tragedy, making him more sympathetic and vulnerable. But I’m convinced that Secret Service agents of his stature and ability would not be so easily moved or approving. If they were, they would be pulled off duty. I was expecting Keller to be more unflinching and determined. His weakness undercuts the story.

Silvia’s moral predicament thus brings in the unnecessary delving into the issue of African politics and injustice, which is a further disturbance. If the movie wants to be a morality tale about the plight of Africa, let it be. If the film wants to be about a tactical match to prevent an impending assassination at the U.N., let it be. The film’s first half brings suspense with expert skill, and should continue to do so. It can’t let an interest come in from left field and draw us in to a needless topic. The subject of wronged Africa belongs in another movie (and that movie is HOTEL RWANDA), and can be handled in this one with the right amounts and more suitable manner (as SAHARA did perfectly with its villain’s most memorable line). It can’t have its cake and eat it too.

I felt so bad after THE INTERPRETER, not because I didn’t like it, but because I wanted so much to like it. Perhaps it’s because I expected a thriller, but got one that was distracted by a gratuitous interest (when was the last time the Security Council voted unanimously for anything in Africa’s interest?). Nevertheless, I cannot recommend it, despite my great admiration for Mr. Pollack’s work. At least he’s back showing us how suspense should be filmed. How I wish he had killed his darlings though.

Posted by FLIPCRITIC at April 20, 2005 03:19 PM