The Peacemaker
| Year: | 1997 |
| Studio: | Dreamworks SKG |
| Director: | Mimi Leder |
| Cast: | George Clooney, Nicole KidmanArmin Mueller-Stahl |
Long before Clooney was a player, this was his first few steps up the ladder of Hollywood royalty and one he'd avoid like the plague today - a by-numbers political action thriller, ready to roll out after the topical elements had been plugged into the oft-rehashed storyline.
The coloured blocks elements are stolen nuclear weapons, the Balkans conflict, a villain made more human by his bitterness at the powers that be leaving him to suffer (the UN, in this case), and the attractive, can-do American heroes who have to clean up the mess and adhere to the central theme - it's a nasty world out there and America has to accept some part in it, but that doesn't mean they'll kick seven shades of shit out of anyone that tries to take it to American soil.
The good looking heroes are Clooney and Kidman, an army colonel and civilian handler respectively who get wind of the plot after former soviet nukes are lifted by the plotters determined to teach America a lesson in humility after letting the Balkans descend into bloodshed without lifting a finger to stop it.
They trail the bad guy all over the world before he turns up in New York with Armageddon in a backpack, and it's up to the duo to get in close enough to cop the appropriately sexy scrapes and save the day.
The effects and action don't really get much better than the nuclear blast over the Russian panhandle in the beginning, but if you're a right winger in the mood for another American-kicks-arse-no-matter-who-says-what film, it's for you.
Also - for trivia fans - Dreamworks' first ever release.
The coloured blocks elements are stolen nuclear weapons, the Balkans conflict, a villain made more human by his bitterness at the powers that be leaving him to suffer (the UN, in this case), and the attractive, can-do American heroes who have to clean up the mess and adhere to the central theme - it's a nasty world out there and America has to accept some part in it, but that doesn't mean they'll kick seven shades of shit out of anyone that tries to take it to American soil.
The good looking heroes are Clooney and Kidman, an army colonel and civilian handler respectively who get wind of the plot after former soviet nukes are lifted by the plotters determined to teach America a lesson in humility after letting the Balkans descend into bloodshed without lifting a finger to stop it.
They trail the bad guy all over the world before he turns up in New York with Armageddon in a backpack, and it's up to the duo to get in close enough to cop the appropriately sexy scrapes and save the day.
The effects and action don't really get much better than the nuclear blast over the Russian panhandle in the beginning, but if you're a right winger in the mood for another American-kicks-arse-no-matter-who-says-what film, it's for you.
Also - for trivia fans - Dreamworks' first ever release.