Forgotten Fridays – The Peacemaker

Thanks for checking out our Forgotten Fridays feature. This is a feature to review some older films that maybe you have forgotten about or maybe never got around to seeing that we just want to share. They may not be old, maybe not forgotten, but they are not new. Just fun to share.

Today’s review is Peacemaker

Genre: Action Thriller
Directed by: Mimi Leder
Staring: George Clooney, Nicole Kidman
Released: September 26, 1997

THE GENERAL IDEA

Two trains crash somewhere in Russia, one carrying a nuclear payload. A nuclear explosion follows the crash and the world is on alert… However, White House nuclear expert Dr. Julia Kelly doesn’t think it was an accident… Special Forces Intelligence Officer Colonel Thomas Devoe doesn’t think so either… Together they must unravel a conspiracy that goes from Europe to New York, to stop a terrorist who has no demands.

THE GOOD

This film is filled with awesome suspense, great action and even better character interaction. It’s miliatary strategy, its interpersonal relationships, its intrigue and action. It has it all.

This started my love affair with the Clooney swagger. His cockiness is hard to argue with when he is always right, but its how he delivers it. And Nicole Kidman looks so uniquely beautiful in this that she almost doesn’t look like herself – in a good way. I have never seen Kidman look entirely unattractive (maybe the Hours) and this is one of my favourite films with her in it. Her character deals with the problem of being a woman in power but they don’t dwell on it long.

The real threat of the film is the terrorist, who despite having no demands DOES have a purpose. You sympathize with what he has endured, but still see the evil in his reaction. He presents a real threat and a real villain which makes the suspense that much more real.

What surprised me most is actually a spoiler, so dont read any more of this section if you don’t want to know. Kidman and Clooney build a close working relationship and learn to respect each other but they never cross into that cliche that insists this means they will be romanticly involved. I love this about the film. They do grow closer and learn to respect each other, but that doesn’t mean they have to date.

THE BAD

I have little bad to say about this movie. I love it.

The title didn’t make much sense to me. There was no “peacemaker” as all they did was stop a terrorist. They don’t stop a war, they don’t stop his entire cause. They stop one terrorist act. And the title implies there was A peacemaker, while the film clearly illustrates how the threat is stopped by the organization and co-operation of many departments and individuals. But that’s all I have to complain about, so its not a big deal.

OVERALL

A great action film with heart and smarts. It has it all. The characters are all well fleshed out and the story builds the suspense to a finale worth watching. An absolute must see for fans of political and military thrillers.

I am going to introduce a new rating system for my Forgotten Fridays picks.

Since all of these Forgotten Friday reviews are going to be what I would already give a high rating to, I had a Tv, Rent or Buy scale going on, but it would seem that an overwhelming majority of my picks get a BUY rating.

So with every Forgotten Friday you see from now on, you get to rate your anticipation for yourself!

TV – If you are at least a little curious, catch it if it comes on TV.
Rent – If it is something you have heard of and forgotten, or just remember enjoying this as much as I did once upon a time, go rent it.
Buy – But if you are like me, and you agree with my review you should go buy it. If its featured here, I already have.

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17 thoughts on “Forgotten Fridays – The Peacemaker

  1. I agree that this film is very underrated.

    The title of the movie “The Peacemaker” is referenced by the terrorist in a video that is not supposed to be found until after the bomb goes off. The good guys find the video after raiding the terrorist apartment. Clooney and Kidman figure out that “The Peacemaker” is the terrorist referencing the United Nations, so they go to New York to go stop the final bomb.

    Looking at it now, this is a dumb way to reference the United Nations. Does anybody believe that the UN are “peacemakers”? If a terrorist really were to threaten the UN today, which they wouldn’t, they would have to reference them as “The Resolutionmaker”.

  2. Yes, this is a great movie. I always find myself stopping on the channel and re-watching when it is on national tv.

    This is a great pick for Fogotton Fridays.

  3. Oh I LOVE this movie.

    As a action flick directed by a woman, there is a LOT of feminist subtext in here that flew over my head the first few times I saw it. Notice how Nicole’s character is treated in the movie. She’s surrounded by men, she’s supposed to be in charge, but none of the men take her seriously, and as the movie goes on, you can see her getting more and more pissed about it. There’s the bit where Clooney basically undermines her in a big meeting in front of a room filled with military personnel (of course, all men). There is one scene in the middle where she is at a military base and she is on the phone talking to someone. You can only hear her side of the chat, but at one point the person on the phone asks for “the man in charge” and she angrily replies “I AM the man in charge. I report directly to the President.” Now that I see that subtext, I love this movie even more than I did when I first saw it.

  4. This falls in the strange “Really good but forgetable” category.

    Every now and then you remind yourself of such a film. (or in this case get reminded)

    thanks Rodney!

  5. I saw this back in 97 when it was in the theaters. Great stuff. I wonder if I still have it on VHS. The car chase is great the bridge/helicopter scene was great. Perhaps a little anticlimactic at the end but a good film. Is it worth mentioning that a woman directed this film? I mean not many big action movies like this are directed by woman.

      1. The Rock is one of my favorite action movies. If you play video games then get Modern Warfare 2. There is one part (albeit brief) that is ripped directly out of The Rock when the Navy Seals go in through the shower room.

  6. I could be wrong because I haven’t seen it in a long time, but I seem to recall that “The Peacemaker” was the name of the stolen nuke. Like I said, could be wrong. Either way, great, underrated flick and I will definitely be giving it another view soon.

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