Interested in a political thriller with an unexpected twist? Then “The Interpreter” will satisfy your craving. Sydney Pollack directs this action, crime thriller, starring Nicole Kidman and Sean Penn. Silvia (Kidman) is an Africanborn U.N. interpreter who accidentally overhears a death threat held against an African head of state scheduled to address the United Nations General Assembly. Once the “mistake” occurs, she becomes the center of a Secret Service investigation.
After realizing the great magnitude of overhearing the threat, Silvia faces a battle to not only get someone to believe what she has heard before itʼs too late, but to survive herself. When Silvia becomes a target of the assassins, in comes Sean Penn, who plays Tobin Keller, the federal agent charged with protecting her, yet, remains disbelieving what she has “overheard.”
The setting of this film takes place at the U.N.; however, for some of the scenes, Pollack had to make due with his “set” of the U.N. which inevitably turns out to be quite believable. Most of the film was actually shot within parts of the U.N., allowing Pollack to get the finest of details added to make this thriller more realistic. Kidman and Penn have an astonishing chemistry that filters with tension and emotion, and makes their characters relationship intensified.
The cinematography, shot by Darius Khondji, was deep and dark, adding suspense to each scene. “The Interpreter” is the type of movie where you need to pay attention, yet it is basically clear-cut for the audience ʼs enjoyment. Some of the scenes are weak in the sense that they almost push the barrier between going too far and coming close to being rather humorous.
But throughout the film, the audience will be sitting on the edge of their seats trying to figure out this action-packed thriller. The movie forges ahead with a machine gunlike procession from the opening moments. From the very beginning of the film to the end the suspense doesnʼt die. With Kidmanʼs innocent, angelic face and Pennʼs hard-cut, serious features, the looks fit their characters to a tee, giving the movie a solid theme. The film asks how one confronts brutal tyranny without imitating the enemy. “Vengeance is a lazy form of grief,” Silvia says in the movie.
Making good impressions in sketchy roles are Catherine Keener as Tobinʼs often-sardonic partner, Jesper Christensen as the cunning head of Matobon security, Yvan Attal as a mysterious photographer newly-returned from Africa and Earl Cameron as the wily dictator.
“The Interpreter” has received four out of five stars from numerous critics, including The Hollywood Reporter and Entertainment Weekly. If you are interested in something that isnʼt a typical murder mystery involving a serial killer and innocent victims running for their lives, then check out this film, and be ready for the suspense.