CS Weekly Archive > Weekend Read > 2/13/09

Don't Bank on It

By jenelle riley

Action speaks louder than words in this thriller about an Interpol Agent (Clive Owen) and a New York ADA (Naomi Watts) working to uncover the dangerous and deadly dealings behind one of the world's most powerful banks.

The International

Eric Warren Singer

Though the subject matter is decidedly modern, The International feels like a throwback to the old-fashioned conspiracy thrillers of the 1970s like The Parallax View or Three Days of the Condor. There's one decent man caught in a world of corruption; in this case, Interpol Agent Louis Salinger (Clive Owen), whose single-minded pursuit to bring down an international bank that profits from war and mayhem forms the spine of the story. Of course, he's aided by an icy blonde in the form of driven attorney Eleanor Whitman (Naomi Watts). There's also an unstoppable assassin known only as The Consultant (Tony winner Bryan F. O'Byrne), who might just hold the key to exposing the entire operation.

Salinger relies less on high-tech gadgetry and more on brute force to achieve his goals, a refreshing alterative to the current glut of James Bond/Jason Bourne knock-offs in theaters. The script, by first-time screenwriter Eric Warren Singer, is also mostly free of bells and whistles—which ends up being both a blessing and a curse. Singer doesn't dumb anything down for the audience; the characters speak quickly and knowledgably about the intricacies of how financial institutions often aid arms trafficking, mercenary armies, and terrorism. But for the average moviegoer without a Masters Degree in Political Science, it's often hard to see how this all relates to the story at hand.

Things get off to a good start by making the stakes personal: Salinger's partner is offed by The Consultant for getting too close to the truth. This occurs in the opening minutes of the film in a beautifully tense scene staged by director Tom Twyker (Run Lola Run). But that initial fury is diluted by too many scenes of people talking endlessly about the corporation, without a face ever being put to that evil. Is the villain the head of the bank, Jonas Skarssen (Ulrich Thomsen)? Or his confidante, former Stasi agent Wilhelm Wexler (Armin Mueller-Stahl)? Or perhaps his mouthpiece, Douglas White (Patrick Baladi)? It's hard to keep track and, frankly, hard to care. The occasional nuggets of fortune-cookie wisdom don't help, as when Salinger states how people often find their destiny on the path they take to avoid it. That line worked far better, and was far more appropriate, in last year's animated hit, Kung Fu Panda.

The film works best in its virtually wordless action sequences. In addition to the opening, the centerpiece of the film involves a shoot-out that begins with Salinger tracking down The Consultant, only for the two to team up against a dozen men sent to kill the latter before he can expose his bosses. Set inside the stark Guggenheim Museum in New York City, the scene is a heart-pounding marvel.

The cast is game and mostly utilized well, and Twyker does his best to keep the action moving. Unfortunately, the film is weighed down by an unimaginative script that results in a thriller about as exciting as a trip to the bank.

The International
Sony Pictures
Rated R; 118 min.

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Jenelle Riley is a journalist and playwright living in Los Angeles. She enjoys good food and bad horror movies.




The International courtesy Sony Pictures

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