The International

Could there possibly be a better time for a film that casts bankers as villains whose perfidy extends to bringing down entire countries? Director Tom Tykwer hits the right populist notes in this convoluted but crowd-pleasing thriller that has a pleasantly retro feel more akin to ‘70s films like Three Days of the Condor than the current crop of Bond and Bourne romps. Clive Owen stars as English-born Interpol agent Louis Salinger, who teams with a Manhattan assistant D.A. (Naomi Watts) to bring down an international bank that supplements the usual investment income with profits from gunrunning and illegally obtained contracts granted by third-world dictators. Tykwer stages key sequences all over the world—thereby treating audiences to gorgeous location filming—but saves his set-piece for New York City's Guggenheim Museum where—while trying to intercept the bank's paid assassin (Brian F. O'Byrne in an interesting if underwritten characterization)—Salinger precipitates a 14-minute gun battle that totally perforates the Museum's insides (replicated with a full-scale mockup built in Berlin). Unfortunately, this bravura sequence unfolds little more than halfway through the film, and nothing else in The International comes remotely close to equaling it for pulse-pounding excitement. Often lovely to look at, the somewhat cryptic The International is a strong optional purchase. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include audio commentary by director Tom Tykwer and writer Eric Singer, a half-hour “making-of” featurette, an extended scene (12 min.), a location segment on “Shooting at the Guggenheim” (7 min.), production featurettes on “The Architecture “ (6 min.) and “The Autostadt” (5 min.), and trailers. Exclusive to the Blu-ray release is “The International Experience” picture-in-picture track, and a bonus digital copy of the film. Bottom line: a fine extras package for an uneven yet often intriguing thriller.] (E. Hulse)