The Debt

The Debt is a re-make of the little seen (outside of its home country anyhow) Israeli film Ha-Hov, telling the story of three Mossad agents and their attempt to track down a Nazi War criminal in East Berlin in 1966. The film flicks between then and 1997, in which the older agents are basking in the (relative) glory of their successful mission. Or was it? John Madden is the director here and he’s usually a pretty safe pair of hands. That’s actually a pretty good description of this film which, despite the opportunity for some serious political comment, decides to skirt over the issues and play it as a straight drama / thriller. In fact, most times the screenplay attempts some sort of statement on the moralistic issues they appear forced and clunky. The three agents are Rachel (1966 version = Jessica Chastain, 1997 = Helen Mirren), Stefan (1966 = Marton Csokas, 1997 = Tom Wilkinson) and David (1966 = Sam Worthington, 1997 = Ciarán Hinds). Of the split it’s the 1966 actors that fare the better, though mainly that’s down to them having the meat of the script. The opening of the film is intriguing enough with the time switching technique providing some thought and a couple of short, but smartly directed tense set pieces as the agents kidnap the ex-Nazi (Jesper Christensen, playing the villain, as always). However, when things go wrong and they all find themselves holed up in a grotty apartment the film stalls. Just when all appears lost though, the film pulls a trick on the audience showing us that a crucial scene at the start of the story is not all it appears. It does work, but it’s also quite a risk to con the audience in such a way and some may find it, well, a con. There are some other problems as well, among them the nagging feeling about whether steely Mossad agents would really fall apart so quickly (or indeed use such green ones in the first place) and who on earth thought Hinds looks like an older Worthington? (Seriously, come on). This is more than just a minor quibble, as it adds confusion, especially as Hinds looks a lot more like an older Csokas would. The ending as well is a bit off-kilter, resembling a bizarre OAP stalk and slash as opposed to something really thrilling. On the whole this is a smart film, but some trimming of its bloated edges would have made it a fine one.

The OC Film Sting Final Verdict

A great start and sneaky twist is soon lost amongst the hurried and implausible last 30 minutes. Rating: 6/10.