The International (2009)

An Interpol agent attempts to expose a high-profile financial institution's role in an international arms dealing ring.

Director:

Tom Tykwer

Writer:

Eric Warren Singer

Stars:

Clive Owen, Naomi Watts, Armin Mueller-Stahl

1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Clive Owen	...	Louis Salinger
Naomi Watts	...	Eleanor Whitman
Armin Mueller-Stahl	...	Wilhelm Wexler
Ulrich Thomsen	...	Jonas Skarssen
Brían F. O'Byrne	...	The Consultant
Michel Voletti	...	Viktor Haas
Patrick Baladi	...	Martin White
Jay Villiers	...	Francis Ehames
Fabrice Scott	...	Nicolai Yeshinski
Haluk Bilginer	...	Ahmet Sunay
Luca Barbareschi	...	Umberto Calvini (as Luca Giorgio Barbareschi)
Alessandro Fabrizi	...	Inspector Alberto Cerutti
Felix Solis	...	Detective Iggy Ornelas
Jack McGee	...	Detective Bernie Ward
Nilaja Sun	...	Detective Gloria Hubbard

Storyline

In The International, Interpol Agent Louis Salinger and Manhattan Assistant District Attorney Eleanor Whitman are determined to bring to justice one of the world's most powerful banks. Uncovering illegal activities including money laundering, arms trading, and the destabilization of governments, Salinger and Whitman's investigation takes them from Berlin to Milan to New York and to Istanbul. Finding themselves in a high-stakes chase across the globe, their relentless tenacity puts their own lives at risk as the bank will stop at nothing - even murder - to continue financing terror and war.

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Plot Keywords:

interpol | money laundering | post punk | lyon france | milan italy | 

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Taglines:

Sometimes a man can meet his destiny on the road he took to find it.

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Genres:

Action | Crime | Drama | Mystery | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for some sequences of violence and language

Did You Know?

Trivia

Near the end of the film, Salinger uses a radio frequency scanner to overhear a conversation. The scanner is an Alinco DJ-X3.

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Goofs

The characters Tommy and Clement are talking inside of an Audi. But when Louis finds out that Clement died, the car shown in the picture online is clearly a VW Passat.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Thomas Schumer: Listen, I'm from the Bronx, so you need to keep it simple. Why is the bank buying all this missile-guidance stuff from Calvini? - I don't get it.

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Crazy Credits

"The fictional exhibition depicted in the main galleries of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum was not curated by nor an actual exhibition of the museum."

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Connections

Featured in WatchMojo: Top 10 Action Movies That Needed More Action (2016)

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Soundtracks

Wir Setzen Uns Mit Traenen Nieder
from "St. Matthew's Passion" BWV 244
Written by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performed by Hungarian State Symphony Orchestra
Courtesy of Naxos of America

User Reviews

Great mystery/investigative thriller, beautifully shot by Tom Tykwer

I'm a fan of German director Tom Tykwer (Run Lola Run, The Princess And The Warrior, Heaven, Perfume: The Story Of A Murderer). The story seemed like a different direction for him, so this was a must see for me.

First, the only problem I had with the film is the screenplay, some contrived lines, especially in the third act, stick out. The dialogue really tries to force the theme down the viewers throat. Other than that, everything else was top notch. The way the story is set up and fleshed out was engrossing to me. I like a film that lets the viewer figure it out for themselves. It's got a classic mystery set up, where the viewer is in the shoes of the protagonist, we get to figure it out along with him as he unravels it.

Clive Owen and Naomi Watts were decent, but not really stretching there acting legs here. The cinematography and locations were beautiful, filmed in a neo-noirish blue/grey color palette with lots of wide angle shots of the characters dwarfed by the urban architecture. The shootout was very well done and more realistic and grittier than the usual action set piece.

It actually reminded me of a Michael Mann film.

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Sony Pictures [United States]

Country:

USA Germany UK France

Language:

English Italian French Danish

Release Date:

13 February 2009 (USA)

Also Known As:

The International

Filming Locations:

USA

Box Office

Budget:

$50,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$9,331,739, 15 February 2009

Gross USA:

$25,450,527

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$60,253,843

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures, Relativity Media, Atlas Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

118 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1