The Interpreter (2005)

User Rating:

6.5/10   

Director:

Sydney Pollack

Writers (WGA):

Martin Stellman (story) &
Brian Ward (story) ...

Release Date:

22 April 2005 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

The truth needs no translation.

Plot:

Political intrigue and deception unfold inside the United Nations, where a US Secret Service agent is assigned to investigate an interpreter who overhears an assassination plot.

Plot Keywords:

Interpreter | Political | United Nations | Secret Service | Suicide

Awards:

3 wins & 1 nomination

Cast

Nicole Kidman	...	Silvia Broome
Sean Penn	...	Tobin Keller
Catherine Keener	...	Dot Woods
Jesper Christensen	...	Nils Lud
Yvan Attal	...	Philippe
Earl Cameron	...	Zuwanie
George Harris	...	Kuman-Kuman
Michael Wright	...	Marcus
Clyde Kusatsu	...	Police Chief Lee Wu
Eric Keenleyside	...	Rory Robb
Hugo Speer	...	Simon Broome
Maz Jobrani	...	Mo
Yusuf Gatewood	...	Doug
Curtiss Cook	...	Ajene Xola (as Curtiss I'Cook)
Byron Utley	...	Jean Gamba

Also Known As:

L'interprète (France)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for violence, some sexual content and brief strong language.

Runtime:

128 min

Country:

UK | USA | France

Language:

Aboriginal | English | French | Portuguese

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Taiwan:PG-12 | Switzerland:14 (canton of Zurich) | Iceland:16 | Malaysia:U | USA:PG-13 (certificate #41613) | Denmark:11 | Canada:14A (Alberta/British Columbia/Manitoba) | Canada:PG (Nova Scotia/Ontario) | France:U | UK:12 (DVD rating) | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Brazil:14 | Canada:G (Quebec) | Finland:K-15 | Germany:12 | Hong Kong:IIA | Ireland:12A | Netherlands:12 | Norway:15 | Peru:14 | Philippines:PG-13 | Portugal:M/12 | Singapore:PG | South Korea:12 | Sweden:15 | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | UK:12A

Filming Locations:

East 9th Street & Stuyvesant Street, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Universal Pictures

Trivia:

Sylvia uses Earthlink's webmail service. Her account is [e-mail] and she's writing to [e-mail] - 'MTB' of course being a fictional TLD.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: About 15 minutes into the movie, as the helicopter is taking off, Woods gets a call that, she claims, informs her that Ziwani's head of security has arrived. In fact, what she hears on the line is the Israeli national telephone company's recording: "Hamispar sh'higata, lo poel tmani." In English: "The number you have dialed is temporarily unavailable."

Quotes:

[first lines]
Simon Broome: She wouldn't tell me her husband's name. She wouldn't even write it.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Vision of a Future Passed: The Prophecy of 2001 (2007) (V)

Soundtrack:

Laughter

Recommended!

I had the chance to see this film yesterday at its world opening in Athens,Greece."The interpreter" is a political thriller directed by one of the most suitable filmmakers for this,Sydney Pollack. Nicole Kidman plays the role of a South African-born UN translator who overhears an assassination threat against the dictator of an African country.Sean Penn plays the role of a Secret Service agent,assigned to investigate the case.Soon we find out that the interpreter's past could explain her possible involvement in the conspiracy.So-maybe-not everything is exactly as it seems to be. Both Kidman and Penn give controlled and emotional performances,although intense and powerful on the inside.It's nice to see 2 stars of the value of Kidman and Penn to make these choices in their career and not waste their talent in indifferent projects. In the end the film is not only a political thriller.It is also a story on overcoming personal losses,dealing with the past in a clever,effective way and moving on...