[Warning: mild spoiler ahead]
Clearly The International was greenlite before the Lehman Brothers collapse, the United States mortgage crisis, and the overall downtown of the international economy. The creators of the film may very well have been prophetic in choosing their movie’s “enemy” (i.e., bankers), but I pity the distributor who got stuck trying to sell a film about a subject that no one wants to give another $10 to and an ending that’s the very last thing a beleaguered populace wants to see (sorry to say, but the bank basically wins).
That said, the film as executed isn’t terrible. There are some engaging action sequences, the story is interesting enough (even if strangely familiar and quite fantastical), and the viewer is granted a two hour tour of some wonderful international locales (yes, exactly like the Bourne series, but without Matt Damon’s hand-to-hand combat . . . it is missed).
Unfortunately, the film’s dialogue is at times forced and cliche, and one almost cringes at certain lines which were very evidently written with scene, but not character in mind. For example, wait for Clive Owen’s character to start talking about burning bridges; the line is just painful.
Still, if you like chase movies or thrillers, The International won’t do you completely wrong. I almost guarantee you won’t like the ending especially the ridiculous use of newspaper clippings to “finish” the story, but you could do far worse than this film (see: Proof of Life).
