The Interpreter - Review

I’d been planning to watch this movie for quiet sometime and finally I got a chance yesterday. The movie was worth all the pains that I took to watch it.

It’s the first time that a director was permitted to shoot his movie inside the general assembly or other parts of the UN building. Even Alfred Hitchcock was not allowed to shoot inside the UN for his 1959 movie “North by Northwest”. Sydney Pollack makes the best use of his opportunity and had made a thriller that everyone is bound to enjoy.

The movie also ran into some controversy in Zimbabwe, since one of the main characters of the movie, Edmond Zuwanie who is the ruler of a fictitious country Matobo, has many parallels with the present Zimbabwean ruler Robert Mugabe. The Zimbabwean government accused the US of allowing the CIA to help making of the movie, so that it could be portrayed as anti-Zimbabwe.

The movie starts with the French representatives of the UN strongly protesting against Zuwanie, pressing for the international community to allow Zuwanie to be tried by an International Court for ethnic crimes. To counter the claims made by the French, Zuwanie decides to come to the UN and speak in front of the representatives from different countries.

Silvia Broome (Nicole Kidman) works as an interpreter in the UN. She is one of the few people who can understand the native language of Matobo – Ku. One day, when she comes to her office late night to collect some of her things, she overhears an assassination plot being hatched to kill Zuwanie when he is making his speech in the UN.

She has only heard their voices, but they know who she is and she becomes their immediate target.

Silvia is followed by a car the very next day, and she reports the matter to the authorities. A US Secret Service agent, Tobin Keller (Sean Penn), is given the responsibility to get to the bottom of this case. Keller is also responsible for the security of Zuwanie during his stay in the US.

After making an initial investigation on Silvia, Keller thinks that she is lying. Keller finds that Sylvia was brought up in Matobo, where her parents and younger sister were killed in a landmine blast. The landmine was planted by Zuwanie. After her parent’s murder, she had worked along with her elder brother to overthrow the Zuwanie rule.

Zuwanie has two major opponents Ajene Xola and Kuman-Kuman. Unknown to Silvia, Zuwanie had already eliminated Xola and her brother, who were attempting to meet Kuman-Kuman to forge an alliance against Zuwanie. The killing is witnessed by a friend of Xola and Silvia’s brother’s friend, a photographer named Philippe.

Philippe manages to reach US and tell Silvia that Xola is dead, but conceals the fate of her brother. He tells her that her brother is lost.

She seeks the help of Kuman-Kuman by meeting him unexpectedly in a bus. Kuman-Kuman denies any knowledge about the whereabouts of her brother, but promises to find him. As soon as she gets out of the bus, the bus blows up, a terrorist attack masterminded by Zuwanie’s man to eliminate Kuman-Kuman, the last of Zuwanie’s enemies.

This incident, coupled with another one, where someone breaks into Silvia’s apartment and intimidates her prompt Keller to believe Silvia.

Meanwhile Philippe commits suicide and writes a note to Silvia telling her that her brother had been shot to death by Zuwanie’s men, along with Xola.

The night before Zuwanie is to make his speech, an attempt is made on Silvia’s life. She escapes, while the killer is killed by Keller who was guarding her house. She leaves Keller and tells him that she is leaving for Africa, to the place where she was brought up.

Zuwanie arrives at the UN, and Keller still thinks that there would be an attempt on his life.

In a thrilling climax, we get to know that Zuwanie had actually masterminded his own assassination attempt to gain credibility amongst the world, so that he can rule his country peacefully. Keller also stops Silvia, who turns up at the event, from killing Zuwanie, to take revenge for her family.

Finally, Zuwanie is arrested and made to appear in the International Court for masterminding various ethnic crimes in his country, while Silvia returns goes back to Matobo, where her loved ones have died.

What I liked about the movie was the characters played by Kidman and Penn. The initial suspicion that they have about each other, which turns into affection as the movie progresses is captured very well. The director does not overdo the romance, as she leaves Keller towards the end of the movie, with a promise to keep in touch, thus leaving it to the viewers imagination whether they would unite or not.

The plot of the movie is good enough, but at a few places it drags.

The comedy is good, especially since the comedy was through the dialogues rather than in situations.

A good movie, and before I end this review – Nicole Kidman was too cute in the movie!!!