The Peacemaker

A top-notch thriller, The Peacemaker follows a by-the-book scientist (Nicole Kidman’s Julia Kelly) and an arrogant army colonel (George Clooney’s Thomas Devoe) as they team up to track down stolen nuclear weapons before they’re used by terrorists. There’s little doubt that The Peacemaker, running just over two hours, improves substantially as it progresses, as director Mimi Leder, working from Michael Schiffer’s screenplay, delivers a somewhat erratic opening hour that’s riddled with hit-and-miss interludes that wreak havoc on the movie’s momentum (eg the padded-out prologue). It’s equally clear, though, that the film, before it becomes an impressively gripping endeavor, remains entirely entertaining due primarily to Leder’s solid, stylish visuals and the agreeable and charismatic work from Kidman and Clooney, and it goes without saying, as well, that The Peacemaker benefits considerably from a smattering of engrossing sequences throughout. (There is, for example, an mid-movie car chase that’s nothing short of electrifying). The picture’s transformation from watchable to captivating, then, comes in its progressively spellbinding second half, as Leder infuses the proceedings with a propulsive feel that only increases in the buildup to the (quite literally) explosive final stretch – which certainly (and effectively) cements The Peacemaker‘s place as a stirring political thriller that actually fares better than most similarly-themed efforts of late (including all of the recent James Bond adventures).

***1/2 out of ****