IMDB Plot Outline: Political intrigue and deception unfold inside the United Nations, where a US Secret Service agent (Penn) is assigned to protect an interpreter (Kidman) who overhears an assassination plot.

Sydney Pollack ’s Interpreter is the first movie to be shot inside the UN Complex in NYC (even Hitchcock was denied permission for his 1959 thriller ‘North by Northwest’), and it stars Nichol Kidman and Sean Penn. Best known for his Tom Cruise thriller “The Firm” (1993) Pollack takes on a script with as many holes as a Mosquito net, but manages to salvage it to a decent nailbiter in the second half.

Hole 1) The plot is about an attempted assassination of an cruel evil African dictator to be staged in UN General Assembly. The characters (Kidman, Penn) don’t care if he lives or dies - and he is portrayed as a evil man, so we as audience don’t care if he lives or dies. We don’t feel sorry for the lead character as she doesn’t seem to be in trouble, and she is not accused of anything - so why do we care what is unfolding in the screen ? Apathy is a deadly sin in Screenwriting.

Hole 2) Implausibility of the plot. With a closed house like UN General Assembly cant the US Secret Service give protection to a visiting Head of State ? Instead they go about stalking the informer (Nicole) and trying to verify her story. If that is indeed the way it works (Where the one giving a tip is investigated) rather than investigating the threat, then it is bound to fail. Again, how believable is it that an assasin is able to smuggle in a semi-automatic into a General Assembly floor ? The same smart ass fails to see throught the obvious double cross ? A man so smart, but he doesn’t have an exit strategy - and pray, how the hell does Nichol know all this before hand and hides inside the ‘Safe room’ - Please!

On the positive side Pollock’s direction is A Grade. The music by M.Night Shymalan regular James Newton is fantastic.

*** (3/5)