The Peacemaker (1997)

A US Army colonel and a civilian woman supervising him must track down stolen Russian nuclear weapons before they're used by terrorists.

Director:

Mimi Leder

Writers:

Leslie Cockburn (article) (as Leslie Redlich Cockburn), Andrew Cockburn (article)

Stars:

George Clooney, Nicole Kidman, Marcel Iures

2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
George Clooney	...	Lt. Col. Thomas Devoe
Nicole Kidman	...	Dr. Julia Kelly
Marcel Iures	...	Dusan Gavrich
Aleksandr Baluev	...	General Aleksandr Kodoroff (as Alexander Baluev)
Rene Medvesek	...	Vlado Mirich
Gary Werntz	...	Terry Hamilton
Randall Batinkoff	...	Ken
Jim Haynie	...	General Garnett
Alexander Strobele	...	Dietrich Schuhmacher
Holt McCallany	...	Mark Appleton
Michael Boatman	...	CPN Beach
Joan Copeland	...	Senator Helen Bevens
Carlos Gómez	...	Santiago
Armin Mueller-Stahl	...	Dimitri Vertikoff
Slavko Juraga	...	Stevo

Storyline

Two trains crash somewhere in Russia, one carrying a nuclear payload. A nuclear explosion follows the crash and the world is on alert... However, White House nuclear expert Dr. Julia Kelly doesn't think it was an accident... Special Operations Intelligence Officer Colonel Thomas Devoe doesn't think so either... Together they must unravel a conspiracy that goes from Europe to New York, to stop a terrorist who has no demands...

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Plot Keywords:

time bomb | army colonel | nuclear weapon | train | nuclear explosion | 

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Taglines:

This is not a test.

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Genres:

Action | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong violence and some language

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Russian Serbian Bosnian Croatian Polish

Release Date:

26 September 1997 (USA)

Also Known As:

El pacificador

Filming Locations:

Cremosne, Slovakia

Box Office

Budget:

$50,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$12,311,939, 28 September 1997, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$41,263,140

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$110,463,140

Company Credits

Production Co:

DreamWorks

Technical Specs

Runtime:

124 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Unlike their characters, George Clooney and Nicole Kidman got along very well on and off the set. In fact, Clooney, a notorious prankster, never pulled a prank on Kidman, out of respect.

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Goofs

When the elevator arrives on floor 18 (around the 1:36 mark), a "down" chime is heard, as Gavrich is heading down, yet the call button stays lit.

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Quotes

Colonel Tom Devoe: Sir, it's not our war.
Dusan Gavrich: It is now!
[He raises his gun to his head... ]
Julia Kelly: NO-!
[... and shoots himself]

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Alternate Versions

TBS and TNT broadcasts eliminate all references to CNN, including putting a colored square over the CNN logo when it appears on screen.

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Connections

Referenced in Watchman Video Broadcast: The Whirlwind (2012)

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Soundtracks

In Einem Kleien Cafe In Hernals
Written by Hermann Leopoldi

User Reviews

underrated/over-criticized

Some movies stick in your consciousness. This is one of them. Although the script is not that original in its major components, Mimi Leder made a very strong visual statement here. The train hi-jacking sequence is about as good as anything on film. Although many reviewers here see the movie as one long cliché, the anti-hero is really protesting Western militarism and the ubiquitous arms industry. He's suffered a great personal loss at the hands of the "let's sell guns to everybody" group. The "Peacekeepers" ignore the slaughter going on around them. Blowing up the U.N. and a sizable chunk of Manhattan may not be the best answer, but in the context of the film it makes sense. In many ways the film is much more subtle than just "good guys/bad guys." Look again and watch for the nuances.