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Film Review
The Interpreter
United International Pictures (2005)
Director: Sidney Pollack
Actors: Sean Penn, Nicole Kidman
Review by Jenni van Wageningen
Silvia Broome (Nicole Kidman) is an African-born interpreter working for
the U.N. One evening as she returns to the empty building after a
security evacuation she overhears a whispered conversation about a plan
to assassinate the Matoban president. (Although both Matoba and its
president are fictional, there are very obvious resemblances to Zimbabwe
and the dictator Mgabe) Although he was at first hailed as a liberator,
Zuwanie is responsible for brutal acts of genocide against his own
people. He is about to visit the UN to justify his actions in an
important speech, and this will determine whether he will face an
international court for crimes against humanity.
When Sylvia reports what she has heard, federal agents are assigned to investigate the case. They become sceptical when they discover that her parents and sister were killed by the Matoban government, and also that Silvia herself took part in anti-government protests.
In the meantime, while Silvia is skilfully avoiding potential killers, others who have become involved in the case are not so fortunate. One of the high points is the scene where Silvia confronts Zuwanie in a bus.
This is an enjoyable movie by a notable director. It does not have that edge-of-your-seat quality and relentless action we have come to expect from political thrillers. And this is just as well because we need to cope with numerous flashbacks and also piece together an understanding of who is who and what the movie is all about. Too much analysis, I am afraid, will certainly highlight the many loopholes and contrived elements in the plot.
Yet because the movie’s strength lies in the two main characters, these weaknesses are not overly disturbing. Both Silvia and Tobin (Sean Penn) have experienced deep personal losses, and in dealing with their grief, both are torn between revenge and forgiveness. At first Silvia decides that violence is the answer, but she later rejects this ‘eye for an eye’ approach as a futile philosophy. She says, ‘Words and compassion are the better way even if they’re slower than a gun.’
This is reinforced by her description of an African ritual that provides families with the opportunity to either seek revenge or choose forgiveness. A year after the murder of one of their loved ones, the killer is taken to the middle of a river and left to drown. If the family decides to swim out and save him, they are offering forgiveness. In so doing, they are freed from their grief.
’Vengeance is a lazy form of grief,’ Silvia states. The healing power of forgiveness is a central theme in this movie, and one that will certainly be endorsed by Christians.
The personal struggles faced by the main characters are echoed on the international front with complex political situations. The plug for diplomacy rather than violence is a very clear message. Naturally the UN applauds this credo, and this is the reason why they allowed unprecedented movie making to take place in the main assembly hall.
The film also raises the issue of leaders, particularly those first seen as liberators, who misuse their hold on power purely for their own gain; or worse still, to turn against their own people with acts of violence. As the saying goes ‘Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.’ The condemnation of genocidal regimes rings through loud and clear.
These are messages we can all agree with, but there are no easy answers. All conflict can be traced back to human sinfulness and rebellion against God. The first step towards true and lasting peace begins with the individual realising a need for God’s forgiveness and accepting God’s rule in his life.
The psalmist asks: ‘Why do the nations rage and the
peoples plot in vain?’ (Psalm 2.1) and then answers this question in the
last verse: ‘Blessed are all who take refuge in him.”
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