The Interpreter could have been a much better film, had there actually been a mystery to be solved.

Throughout the film, you think there is going to be a huge “no way! Why didn’t I see that?” moment, but the closest you get is, “so this is it, huh?”

Nicole Kidman stars as “the interpreter,” Silvia Broome, who overhears a secret conversation in the U.N. She believes someone is going to kill the hated leader of Matobo?a fictitious country in Africa?when he arrives in New York to speak in front of the U.N.

When someone gets wind that Broome overheard the conversation, her life becomes in danger. Call in the secret service, in the form of Sean Penn’s character, who doesn’t believe a word she is saying, yet still must protect her. I thought the secret service only protects government officials, not translators.

Will this turn out to be a whodunit type of story? Is Kidman one of the bad guys and actually orchestrating the whole thing? Who’s pretending to be good but really is bad? Without ruining the lackluster ending, none of those questions really matter.

So many clich?s that otherwise would have seemed like a nuisance, but without even one of them, the film lacks depth and excitement.

Bonus Material

Director Sydney Pollack holds nothing back while assisting with the special features.

The much talked about alternate ending, which Pollack at one time was so adamant on including, would have added nothing to the film except an eye roll.

But the rest of the features are interesting, which is more than the actual film can boast.

“Sydney Pollack at Work: From Concept to Cutting Room,” is a rare look behind the scenes of one of the finest directors around. Audiences will see how important he believes even the smallest decisions are, and you may actually gain a little more respect for the film?just a little.

Another feature courtesy of Pollack is “Interpreting Pan & Scan vs Widescreen.” It gets a bit technical, and if you’re not a stickler for details, you may want to skip this. But if you have ever wondered how they shrink a movie you see on screens into the format you see on your differently-shaped television set, it is worth the viewing.

“The Ultimate Movie Set: The United Nations” will inform you that the movie was actually shot in the real United Nations building, making The Interpreter the first movie to get permission to do so. Pollack even met with Kofi Annan. If you don’t want the movie for its absent heart-racing storyline, it may actually be worth watching just to see the inside of the U.N. Or you could just watch this feature.

Also included is “A Day in the Life of Real Life Interpreters.”

Release Date: October 4, 2005
Movie: 1.5*
Features: 4.5*
Overall: 2.5*






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