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'The International' can't make bank
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Clive Owen AP/ Eugene Hoshiko
There’s nothing wrong with a film’s villain being implausible. The cinematic world has had its fair share of strange bad guys, evidenced by folks such as the calamari-headed Davy Jones from ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’. There is a line though, and ‘The International’ crosses it by making a bank the primary antagonist. A bank? Since when did a daily errand become evil material? Next thing you know we’ll be fighting off corrupt grocery stores or man-eating Hallmark cards.
Banks just aren’t scary, no matter how much money they provide to terrorists. Not even Clive Owen and Naomi Watts, the film’s stars, can make it seem that way. These two accomplished actors aren’t allowed to do much thanks to the film’s script. Owen, playing Interpol agent Louis Salinger, has one expression for the duration of the film; that of someone who can’t remember what they did five minutes ago, but suspects it was regrettable. Naomi is up to her usual tricks, meaning she’s still very good at looking like Nicole Kidman.
‘The International’ tells the story of the international bank of business and credit, an all powerful institution that is under suspicion of money laundering, government destabilization, and weapons dealing. As a result of these corporate no-nos, Salinger teams up with a district attorney to try and build a case against them. I would love to say that the film’s events make up for all this, that the plot is as daedal as a game of connect four between Stephen Hawking and Albert Einstein, but it just isn’t there. The interesting sets, like a replica of the Solomon R. Guggenheim museum, aren’t lacking in grandeur, but there’s nothing going on inside them. The investigation techniques are average. Any crime drama itch you have could be better satisfied by an episode of ‘Law and Order’. If you want something this generic, it would be just as effective to train a parrot to repeat the sound of gunshots and the phrase “we’re going to blow the lid off this whole thing”.
Director Tom Tykwer is better known for his film ‘Run, Lola, run’ that has a branching story line based on its protagonist’s possible decisions. It makes one wonder why he would switch from such a pretzel twist plot to this flop. Even the music is dull, with the most interesting bits sounding like text message alert tones. The film’s cast and staff are now officially indebted to the audience. I’m sure everyone looks forward to Tykwer’s next film, as he owes them one entertaining experience.
‘The International’ is now on DVD and gets a five out of ten for its ho-hum performance.
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