The Interpreter

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For other uses, see Interpretation (disambiguation).
The Interpreter

The Interpreter film poster
Directed by Sydney Pollack
Produced by Tim Bevan
Eric Fellner
Kevin Misher
Written by Martin Stellman (story)
Brian Ward (story)
Charles Randolph
Scott Frank
Steven Zaillian
David Rayfiel uncredited
Starring Nicole Kidman
Sean Penn
Catherine Keener
Music by James Newton Howard
Cinematography Darius Khondji
Editing by William Steinkamp
Distributed by Universal Pictures
Release date(s) April 2005
Running time 128 min
Country United States, Mozambique
Language English
Ku
Budget $80,000,000
Gross revenue $72,515,360
Official website
Allmovie profile
IMDb profile

The Interpreter is a 2005 drama/thriller film, starring Nicole Kidman, Sean Penn, and Catherine Keener and was the final film to be directed by Sydney Pollack.

Contents

[edit] Plot

The film revolves around Silvia Broome (Nicole Kidman), an interpreter working at the United Nations in New York, who was born in New York and raised in the Republic of Matobo, a fictional African country. The events depicted in the film span approximately one and a half weeks.

The United Nations is considering indicting Edmond Zuwanie (Earl Cameron), president of Matobo, to trial in the International Criminal Court. Initially a liberator, over the past twenty years he has become as corrupt and tyrannical as the government he overthrew, and is now responsible for ethnic cleansing and other atrocities within Matobo. Zuwanie is soon to visit the United Nations and put forward his own case to the General Assembly, in an attempt to avoid the indictment.

A security scare forces the evacuation of the UN building, and Silvia returns at night to reclaim some personal belongings. At that time she overhears discussion of an assassination plot, and runs scared from the building when those discussing the plot become aware of her presence. The next day, Silvia recognises phrases in a meeting where she is interpreting from words she overheard the night before, and reports the incident to UN security; the target of the plot appears to be Edmond Zuwanie himself. They, in turn, call in the United States Secret Service, who assign Tobin Keller (Sean Penn) and Dot Woods (Catherine Keener) to investigate, as well as protect Zuwanie when he arrives.

Most of the film surrounds the multi-pronged investigation of the assassination plot: the efforts to secure the UN building before Zuwanie's arrival (and to find any weapons, explosives or the like that may have been smuggled in), the investigation of Zuwanie's enemies and political opponents, the investigation of janitors that work at the UN building (after Silvia's apartment is broken into, but not forcefully), and the investigation of Silvia herself. As the film progresses, we see Silvia has in the past been involved in a Matoban guerrilla group, that her parents and her sister were killed by land mines laid by Zuwanie, and even that she was girlfriend to one of Zuwanie's political opponents. Despite Keller considering Silvia a prime suspect, the two grow close as events unfold, and Keller ends up protecting her.

The assassin is discovered while Zuwanie is in the middle of his address to the General Assembly, and security personnel rush Zuwanie to a safe room for his protection. In the confusion, Silvia attempts to take revenge on Zuwanie for all that has happened, and Keller arrives just in time to prevent her from murdering him. The assassination plot is revealed to be a sham; Zuwanie planned it to enhance his own credibility - and thus avoid the indictment - while also eliminating his political opponents (one in particular is killed when a New York City bus service is bombed). Zuwanie is indicted, and Silvia is expelled from the UN, returning home to Matobo soon afterwards.

Subplots include the desperate private nature of Keller, whose wife was killed in a car accident a mere fortnight prior to these events, and the desperate private nature of Silvia, who is anxious to hear from her brother; he still lives in Matobo. Silvia later discovers that both he and her former lover were killed as part of the 'plot.'

The story is inspired by Suzanne Glass's novel "The Interpreter."

[edit] Production

[edit] Filming in UN buildings

Kidman and Penn in a scene inside U.N. General Assembly.
Kidman and Penn in a scene inside U.N. General Assembly.

The Interpreter is the first movie ever filmed inside the United Nations General Assembly and Security Council chambers. Earlier films used only the exteriors or were filmed back when the buildings were under construction (and did not really have an "inside"). The producers approached the U.N. about filming there before but were turned down. Filming would then relocate to Toronto with a constructed set however due to the cost of it, Sydney Pollack approached Kofi Annan directly and personally negotiated to film inside the United Nations. Annan agreed.

Former United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan, who is from Ghana, commented on The Interpreter that "the intention was really to do something dignified, something that is honest and reflects the work that this Organization does. And it is with that spirit that the producers and the directors approached their work, and I hope you will all agree they have done that."

The UN Security Council can call an emergency meeting at any time. Because of this possibility, filming in the Security Council chambers had to be quick and anticipated by the film crew.

Ambassadors at the United Nations had hoped to appear in the film, but actors were asked to play the roles of diplomats. Spain's UN Ambassador Inocencio Arias jokingly complained that his "opportunity to have a nomination for the Oscar next year went away because of some stupid regulation." (See "Diplomats' movie hopes dashed" story on BBC News)

[edit] Matobo and Ku

The country ("Republic of Matobo") and its corresponding constructed language ("Ku") were created for this film. The director of the Centre for African Language Learning in England, Said el-Gheithy, was commissioned in January 2004 to create Ku. Ku is based on Bantu languages spoken in Eastern and Southern Africa. It's actually a cross between Swahili and Shona although it has a number of unique elements of its own.

The tagline for the film, "The truth needs no translation.", in Ku is Angota ho ne njumata.

[edit] Zuwanie and Mugabe

Some have seen strong parallels between the movie and the real country of Zimbabwe, which banned the movie.

  • Both Mugabe and Zuwanie were once respected freedom-fighters.
  • In real life, Robert Mugabe had ruled Zimbabwe for 25 years when the movie was released. The movie's Zuwanie had been in power for 23 years.
  • Australia and New Zealand are pushing for Mugabe to be indicted by the UN Security Council for trial before the International Criminal Court on charges of crimes against humanity; Zuwanie is indicted by the UN Security Council for trial before the International Criminal Court on charges of crimes against humanity.
  • Both Mugabe and Zuwanie were teachers before being involved with politics.
  • Mugabe tends to wave his fist; Zuwanie his gun.
  • Mugabe hired Ari Ben-Menashe, who claimed to be an ex-Israeli secret service agent, to arrange an assassination attempt which would see Morgan Tsvangirai tried for treason. Zuwanie is portrayed as arranging for a Dutch former mercenary to arrange an assassination attempt on him, as, to quote the film, "a nearly assassinated president gains credibility and sticks around to enjoy it".
  • Mugabe has a preoccupation with the British and accuses Tony Blair of trying to unseat him. Zuwanie thinks the French are doing the same.
  • The flag of Matobo bears a strong resemblance to the flag of Zimbabwe.
  • The name of the fictional country of Matobo is an apparent reference to the name of the Matobo National Park in Zimbabwe.
  • The film has a scene where there is a demonstration against Zuwanie at the UN; one of the anti-Zuwanie demonstrators is a holding a poster with the open-handed symbol of the main opposition party in Zimbabwe: The Movement for Democratic Change.

Zimbabwe's government has itself spotted the parallels between Mugabe and Zuwanie

  • In September 2005, the Herald, a government-controlled newspaper in Harare, Zimbabwe, attacked the film, calling it an anti-Zimbabwean work supported by the CIA. The film has been approved for release and distribution inside the country by the country's official censorship board. Acting Minister of Information and Publicity Chen Chimutengwende said, "The CIA-backed film showed that Zimbabwe's enemies did not rest. They have resources and are determined to wage their war on the economic, social and cultural fronts. The names of the main character in the film are Shona," Mr Chimutengwende said, referring to Zimbabwe's main ethnic group to which Mugabe belongs. "The film talks about an African president going to the United Nations and our president is going to the UN next week so the connection is so obvious," he said. "But we will defeat them and we will defeat neo-colonialism. We have defeated a powerful enemy before which was colonialism," he said. Tafataona Mahoso, chairman of the Zimbabwe government Media and Information Commission, said it was "cheap American and Rhodesian propaganda . . . typical of the tactics used during the Cold War".
  • Zimdaily.com reported on 23 September 2005 that the President's Office had issued an interdict banning screening of The Interpreter. The interdict, seen by Zimdaily, stated that the film is "mischievous" and a "subtle denigration of our head of State by the Bush administration and the CIA." It states that screening the film risks contravening Section 13(1)(A) as read with subsection (6) of the Censorship and Entertainment Control Act, and that it is in contravention of the Public Order and Security Act, which outlaws communicating statements deemed to undermine the head of State.
  • Zimbabwe's government also linked the film to efforts by Australia and New Zealand to have Mugabe indicted by the UN Security Council for trial before the International Criminal Court on charges of crimes against humanity. The attempt to indict Mugabe for crimes against humanity is supported by the International Bar Association.

[edit] Cast

[edit] Awards

In 2005, the Los Angeles Film Critics Association awarded Catherine Keener as Best Supporting Actress, for her parts in several films including The Interpreter.

[edit] See also

[edit] External links


Preceded by
The Amityville Horror		 Box office number-one films of 2005 (USA)
April 24, 2005		 Succeeded by
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
v • d • e
Films directed by Sydney Pollack

The Slender Thread (1965) • This Property Is Condemned (1966) • The Scalphunters (1968) • Castle Keep (1969) • They Shoot Horses, Don't They? (1969) • Jeremiah Johnson (1972) • The Way We Were (1973) • The Yakuza (1975) • Three Days of the Condor (1975) • Bobby Deerfield (1977) • The Electric Horseman (1979) • Absence of Malice (1981) • Tootsie (1982) • Out of Africa (1985) • Havana (1990) • The Firm (1993) • Sabrina (1995) • Random Hearts (1999) • The Interpreter (2005) • Sketches of Frank Gehry (2005)