The International sort of came through cinemas without a great deal of fuss, partly thanks to reviews that, while not bad, where more of a shrug than actual criticism. This sort of lukewarm reception contributed towards it being forgotten quite quickly and is also the reason it has lingered on my rental list for a while before eventually I decided to have a look. I'm reasonably glad I did because mostly the film is a perfectly decent thriller that can best be described as "solid" in that it delivers enough to be watchable without ever doing anything specifically well enough to be memorable or worth seeking out.
The plot must have been part of getting it made because certainly the time is right to find an audience for a thriller where the villain is a bank seeking profit at all moral costs and without any thought about the suffering caused by their pursuit of wealth and power. Perhaps once there was a really smart script with this at its heart but it feels like it was changed along the way to rather lose this element. The bank is really a criminal enterprise and the fact the main characters are bankers is perhaps a secondary thing. This hit me towards the end where the banker aspect was rather jumbled and the film seemed to just end with some sort of conclusion but not one that really justified the whole narrative to that point. The good things are that the script appears to have been changed to be more a traditional thriller so that, while it is about a bank, we still have running, gun fights, car chases and other moments of danger. These are all perfectly fine and the give the film its energy but it does feel like they also robbed the central narrative of a bit of its edge and direction.
The direction is solid though and the cast work well in the main. Owen has presence and commands during most of the film. When the material is not clear then he cannot always salvage it but he does a decent job. Watts is an interesting presence but yet has so little to do – in particular the action parts of the film see her totally sidelined and, where she starts the film as co-star, the second half didn't do much with her. Mueller-Stahl is always a solid performer and is so here, while the supporting cast are all decent enough in support. The script lacking that edge, relevance and direction perhaps affects everyone's performance though.
Overall The International is a solid enough thriller but nothing special or worth making an effort to see. It has some good set pieces and the idea is sound but as it goes on it does seem to lose its way and settles on a conclusion for the sake of a conclusion rather than something strong and effective. Solid, but nothing more than that.
The plot must have been part of getting it made because certainly the time is right to find an audience for a thriller where the villain is a bank seeking profit at all moral costs and without any thought about the suffering caused by their pursuit of wealth and power. Perhaps once there was a really smart script with this at its heart but it feels like it was changed along the way to rather lose this element. The bank is really a criminal enterprise and the fact the main characters are bankers is perhaps a secondary thing. This hit me towards the end where the banker aspect was rather jumbled and the film seemed to just end with some sort of conclusion but not one that really justified the whole narrative to that point. The good things are that the script appears to have been changed to be more a traditional thriller so that, while it is about a bank, we still have running, gun fights, car chases and other moments of danger. These are all perfectly fine and the give the film its energy but it does feel like they also robbed the central narrative of a bit of its edge and direction.
The direction is solid though and the cast work well in the main. Owen has presence and commands during most of the film. When the material is not clear then he cannot always salvage it but he does a decent job. Watts is an interesting presence but yet has so little to do – in particular the action parts of the film see her totally sidelined and, where she starts the film as co-star, the second half didn't do much with her. Mueller-Stahl is always a solid performer and is so here, while the supporting cast are all decent enough in support. The script lacking that edge, relevance and direction perhaps affects everyone's performance though.
Overall The International is a solid enough thriller but nothing special or worth making an effort to see. It has some good set pieces and the idea is sound but as it goes on it does seem to lose its way and settles on a conclusion for the sake of a conclusion rather than something strong and effective. Solid, but nothing more than that.