The International

Clive Owen is another Blockbuster and it seems like he just makes these movies like I eat muffins. This English actor is now a star and he has earned his reputation and success with hard work and diligence. he stuck with his craft after several years of struggle and hard ship.

This latest spectacular film is similiar to a Bond film in that is moves across the world. Owen was the runner up to Daniel Craig to become the next Bond after the producers and owners of the Bond series felt audiences had seen enough of the cavalier and the yuppy look of Pierce Brosnan. They were right.

Owen plays Louis Salinger who works for Interpol. He has been working on this case for a couple of years. The IBFF, I believe this is the correct acronym, a powerful bank has taken a stranglehold on the money and weapons dealing throughout the world. Their tactics are not far away from altruistic but sinister. Money and greed, the two elements that have wreaked havoc throughout the ages. They want to own the debt of rogue nations all over the world. The hidden financiers of third world dictatorships. But their dealings affect all nations and the stability of them. They were dealing with the Syrians, Israelis, Russians, and Chinese. The IBFF is the principal backers of the RFF, a violent militia in a fictional African nation. Why would the IBFF back this organization when they do not have any money? So they can use this country and others like it for their own profitable motives.

The pretty Naomi Watts is in this movie and her running around brought haunting memories of the frightening movie, The Ring.

This movie goes to Berlin, Milan, NYC, and I believe Luxemberg, among a few other locations. Watts plays Eleanor Whitman who works in the DA office in NYC. She and Salinger are trying to track the movements of these banking members and their hitman and their financial capital transfers. Apparently, a bank in Manhatten is one of the center piece of the IBFF financial backbone. The base root, their links extend from here. IBFF has bribed key officials in Europe to look the other way and to cover up high crimes. In fact, they bribed and controlled a high police official in Europe and had him damage and corrupt a crime scene after a high ranking politician was assassinated.

It is interesting to me because Salinger, much to the dismay of the left, has to go out of the box to get to the bottom of this case. If he just followed the rules, like he has been doing, good people would end up getting killed and the villians who do not follow any rules would continue their lucrative mayhem and misdeeds. Salinger must borrow a play book from 24's All Star character and main plotline's Jack Bauer. And this is the last we see of Watt's Whitman. Following the army field manual's rules only hamstring's the good guys and is easily thwarted by evil agents. And for the left to cry that it is immoral to break any rules, they seem to look the other way when one of their heroes Che Guevera practiced the same tactics. And I never saw the left speak about morality when they attacked and dug up everything about Sarah Palin.

But I guess the left could be happy since the big bad bankers are the villians. But it must be totally fiction because the bankers in this movie are actually intelligent unlike real life. Too bad they are devious and promote and enable violence.

This movie does not have any recognizable music but the musical score reflects the suspense and action scene in this movie. This movie does not have any of the expensive action scenes shown in a Bond film. But there is an incredible shoot out in the Guggenheim in NYC where scores of villians are killed but millions of dollars of damage is sustained and even more brutal is the death of a NYC detective. This surveillance just blows up in their face. They are caught in a maelstrom.

When Salinger's partner is killed in the beginning, it is the cigarette. The movie never states this, this is just my belief.

The movie is well written, it is a spectacular movie. Worth watching, probably the best this year thus far in 2009. Something to keep us busy until T&T hit the scene. Terminator and Transformers is what I am talking about. This movie is as good as Inside Man, probably better, and as good as Quantom Solace.

I would allocate this movie four stars.****