Interpol Agent Louis Salinger (Clive Owen) is investigating the bank IBBC for buying $200million worth of missile guidance system with the Manhattan Assistant D.A. Eleanor Whitman (Naomi Watts). His partner dies in an apparent sophisticated killing. Then his partner's informer is found dead. Salinger is facing many roadblocks in this international conspiracy of money laundering, arms trafficking, and political corruption. Bank chairman Jonas Skarssen (Ulrich Thomsen)'s police statement is revised. Wilhelm Wexler (Armin Mueller-Stahl) is the banker who hired the Consultant.
It's a lot of tense atmospherics. However the heat is left mostly at a slow boil. The use of bankers as bad guys is an interesting twist and a fitting one for the times. This is essentially a spy thriller with bankers instead of spies. The other noticeable thing from director Tom Tykwer is that he loves to put architecture in this movie. The story is a long winding twisty thing. There is a big shootout at the Guggenheim which finally gave this movie some action energy plus the prerequisite architecture fetish. Mostly it's a fun ride for conspiracy lovers.
It's a lot of tense atmospherics. However the heat is left mostly at a slow boil. The use of bankers as bad guys is an interesting twist and a fitting one for the times. This is essentially a spy thriller with bankers instead of spies. The other noticeable thing from director Tom Tykwer is that he loves to put architecture in this movie. The story is a long winding twisty thing. There is a big shootout at the Guggenheim which finally gave this movie some action energy plus the prerequisite architecture fetish. Mostly it's a fun ride for conspiracy lovers.