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Original title: Interpreter, The Directed by
Sydney Pollack Written by
Martin Stellman, Brian Ward Cast
Nicole Kidman, Sean Penn, Catherine Keener, Jesper Christensen, Yvan Attal [more]
Release Date
• USA: Apr 22, 2005
• UK: 15 Apr 2005
DVD Release Date
• R1: Oct 4, 2005
Budget USD 80,000,000
BoxOffice: $72.5M
Official Website:
The Interpreter Website
MPAA Rating
Rated PG-13 for violence, some sexual content and brief strong language.
Running Time
2 hours, 8 minutes
Country UK, USA, France
Production Companies
Working Title Films, Misher Films, Mirage Entertainment, Studio Canal
Studio Universal Pictures
More info on IMDb.com
Other Titles
• The Interpreter (2005)
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The Interpreter Reviews |
But no one goes to see a film because it's 'professional' and it's hardly the same as being edgy, exciting or daring - and The Interpreter is none of these things. With a mundane script a deathly dull characters The Interpreter is a rather large disappointment. [read review] 5/10
--Matt McAllister (FutureMovies.co.uk)
"Thriller" isn't quite the right word to describe Sydney Pollack's The Interpreter. "Anachronistic" is a much better description because even with very contemporary subject matters like terrorism, failed diplomacy in the United Nations and—wait for it—actual communication between government agencies, the superstar-heavy film still unfolds like a relic of the past. [read review] 
--Lynda Lin (The Movie Insider)
At it's best however The Interpreter is a gnawing white knuckle thriller, pumping tension out of a pressure cooker of hard-boiled plots and spilling into a tangled web of cut throat politics, savage strategy diplomacy and justice system perversion. At it's worse it's a slightly clunky but diligent Hollywood picture handled with thought and restraint. [read review]
But despite inherent implausibilities, the tension in these scenes is increasingly gripping and increasingly driven by passion rather than conspiracy, which makes the characters and underlying themes seem all the more true, even if actual events are considerably harder to believe. [read review] 
Not since "Shark Tale" has cinema given us such a blend of realistic detail and whimsy. And while it pains me to beat up on Pollack, who, in addition to being a consistently wonderful actor, is at least attempting to make movies the old-fashioned way, itpains me more to actually sit through his movies. [read review]
--Stephanie Zacharek (Salon)
Perhaps the most cheated of all is the terrific Catherine Keener, who is relegated to a part that amounts to barely a walk-on. Still, that she manages to all but steal the show with her wry delivery of the movie’s one great line (“Now that’s just rude!”)is almost payback enough for director Sydney Pollack’s arrogant padding of his own role from what should have been a Hitchcockian cameo to what amounted in the end to the level of third billing. [read review] 
--Elaine Perrone (eFilmCritic.com)
Snappy dialogue, attention to detail and nightly news relevance all add up to a very enjoyable film. If you need romance, explosions and gun fights to hold your attention, consider looking elsewhere. But if you like seeing a little political awareness inyour thrillers, The Interpreter could be just the movie you’ve been looking for. [read review] 
--Chris Wilson (eFilmCritic.com)
The film is never less than interesting, but never entirely riveting, either. It's hard to dislike "The Interpreter," especially given the generally overblown state of most mainstream thrillers. But it's a film that, as a whole, ultimately comes togetheras less than the sum of its parts. [read review]
What I admire most about the film is the way it enters the terms of this world -- of international politics, security procedures, shifting motives -- and observes the details of all-night stakeouts, shop talk, and interlocking motives and strategies. [read review]
--Roger Ebert (Chicago Sun-Times)
Both Kidman and Penn are fantastic. They have great chemistry together. The film runs like a well-honed machine. Some of the scenes are pure heaven. Watch out when pretty much everyone winds up on the same bus. You can cut the tension with a knife. [read review]
They've made a movie that is well above serviceable, and one which I can easily recommend. It has all the importance and staying power of a novel you take to the beach, but that's fine. Intelligent escapism is what these things are for, after all. [read review]
--Jay Seaver (eFilmCritic.com)
But in “The Interpreter” there isn’t enough solid suspense to get over the far-fetched nature of the way the plot is worked out. The tale is only moderately compelling if one makes allowances and the ending brings a letdown. That’s not good. [read review]
...a great movie or even a particularly good one, but it does offer something more than just superficial entertainment value. It asks us to care a bit more, and because I saw it, I do care just a bit more today than I did yesterday. [read review]
“The Interpreter” looks nice and the acting is terrific, but that's just on the surface. Definitely not the absorbing thriller you can feel Pollack was aiming to produce, "The Interpreter" is good but ultimately forgettable. [read review] B-
--Rebecca Murray (About.com)
The political angle actually sounds plausible, as do the reactions of just about everybody involved. And there's one kick-ass suspense scene at the center of it all. I can't ask for a heck of a lot more from a thriller. [read review]
In the end, The Interpreter is at best a mediocre movie that might be worth a single viewing at some point in your life but I wouldn't recommend rearranging your schedule to see this yawner. [read review] 5/10
--Brendan Cullin (EmpireMovies.com)
In short, then, this is a very old fashioned thriller that successfully uses tried and trusted techniques and craft but slaves them to a story reflecting very modern concerns and issues. [read review] 80/100
--Scott Andrews (FilmFocus.co.uk)
The Interpreter is at best a mediocre movie that might be worth a single viewing at some point in your life but I wouldn't recommend rearranging your schedule to see this yawner. [read review] 5/10
--Brendan Cullin (EmpireMovies.com)
Thank God for Catherine Keener, playing Tobin's partner, whose dour grimaces and deadpan sarcasm (strangely) save the film from being an otherwise humorless and pretentious mess. [read review] 
--Christopher Null (FilmCritic.com)
This unmemorable conspiracy-theory film has been gussied up real pretty-like with prestigious actors and intelligent dialogue, and darn if it doesn't make a world of difference. [read review] B-
--Eric D. Snider (EricDSnider.com)
It wants to be a mediocre thriller, and falls just short of that. And if it had tried to talk about these meaningful things, it likely would have failed in that regard as well. [read review] 
The resolution of The Interpreter might not reach as far as we could hope, but it makes its point even if Pollack’s hand should be clear to those paying close attention. [read review]
--Erik Childress (eFilmCritic.com)
Alfred Hitchcock couldn’t get permission to film inside the United Nations building but a movie starring Nicole Kidman and Sean Penn will definitely get the signatures. [read review] D+
--Adam Biernat (TheCinemaSource)
The Interpreter is an enjoyably old-fashioned movie that reminds you that thrillers don’t have to be about big budget effects and explosions to succeed. Worth seeing. [read review]
--Matthew Turner (ViewLondon)
It's not a dazzlingly original film, but it's rich in precisely-observed emotional detail. And when all's said and done, that's one of the reasons we watch movies. [read review]
See "The Interpreter" and chances are, you'll only recall Kidman's face. And that bus scene. "Condor" will endure; it already has. "The Interpreter" simply won't. [read review]
--Desson Thomson (Washington Post)
Even if the rest of The Interpreter can’t live up to that elucidation, this thriller still manages to resonate because of it. [read review] +
"The Interpreter" is the kind of film that wants to make a great statement but ends up just making a puddle on the floor. [read review]
The power of their performances makes their characters credible -- and compelling -- even when "The Interpreter" isn't. [read review]
The Interpreter is a slick, suspenseful political thriller with a huge problem at its center: Nicole Kidman. [read review]
``The Interpreter'' has finished translating its cheesy plot into an only partially satisfying ham sandwich. [read review]
The {major} plot point is breezed over, and so it's possible to be disappointed by the lack of depth. [read review] C+
--Lee Tistaert (Lee's Movie Info)
The Interpreter is so lofty it feels as if it were made to be screened at the United Nations. [read review]
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