Directed by Mimi Leder
Running Time: 2:04
DreamWorks SKG blasts on to the scene with it's first theatrical release, The Peacemaker, starring George Clooney and Nicole Kidman. A Russian General has stolen 10 nuclear weapons, and as a show of force has detonated one. But did he steal the weapons for his own use, or is he just the middle-man? It's up to Clooney and Kidman to get the nukes back and save the world. Kidman plays Dr. Julia Kelly, a nuclear scientist and the acting head of the White House Nuclear Smuggling Group. Clooney is Lt. Colonel Thomas Devoe, an intelligence officer with the U.S. Army's Special Forces, who seems to have an amazing knowledge of Russians. They join forces to track down not only the weapons, but why they were stolen. The story is very complicated and with all the foreign names, you really need to pay attention to figure out who is who. The story travels from the U.S. to Bosnia to Russia to Austria and back to the final climax in New York City. The story, while confusing at times, is actually quite good. I think it's the first one to deal at all with the situation in Bosnia, and it also takes advantage of the usual bad guys in American film, the Russians. The thing I liked best about the movie was that it was non stop action. First time film director Mimi Leder, is a converted T.V. director, known mostly for her work on E.R. She takes that non-stop E.R. style to the movies, and it works quite well, the movie doesn't let up for a second. And George Clooney proves to me once again that he is a movie star. He has a presence about him that the top actors in the field have. Like Tom Cruise or Mel Gibson, he has an easy-going nature about him, but whenever he is on screen he commands attention, but doesn't overpower the screen like a Stallone would. Kidman manages not only to hold her own in the movie, but at times (especially the end) she takes control of the film, which is rare for a woman to do in an action-adventure. And most importantly, in most movies when you put two good looking people like Kidman and Clooney together, there is usually a stupid attraction sub-plot running along throughout, but thankfully this time, there isn't. The Peacemaker is a good, edge of your seat thriller that grabs you from the start and never lets go. Check it out.
