Films can easily succumb to melodramatic scripts and overdone performances, especially when the focus is on unearthing truths from the past. "The Debt," however, treats its plot and truths with a certain care, keeping the drama in check and the performances on par with the script. The film's ultimate downfall lies in its inability to create a seamless transition between characters in the past and present.
Famed director John Madden, of "Shakespeare in Love" (1998) fame, brings the 2007 Israeli thriller of the same name — or "HaChov" in Hebrew — to American screens with an adapted script.
"The Debt" depicts three Israeli intelligence agents, Stephan Gold, Rachel Singer and David Peretz, as they complete a mission to capture one of the most notorious former Nazis still alive 30 years after the Holocaust.
In "the present" (1997) Helen Mirren plays Rachel, an ex-Mossad agent who became famous in 1966 for killing the nefarious Nazi known as "The Surgeon of Birkenau." As always, Mirren plays her role with care, class and deliberation. Viewers, however, should not expect this to be another Oscar-winning role for the acting veteran.
"The Debt" begins with some confusing flash backs, mysterious dialogue and a brutal murder that leave viewers on edge. In the first 15 minutes of the film, it becomes evident that Mirren's expertise and presence will carry the plotline, as her co-stars Tom Wilkinson, who plays former agent Stephan, and Ciarán Hinds, in the role of former agent David, fall short of her level of performance.
The film begins to gain momentum when the true stars of "The Debt," the younger Mossad agents, begin their journey. Rachel (Jessica Chastain), joins two other spies in Berlin to find, capture and bring the doctor to trial in Israel: Stephan (Sam Worthington) and David (MartonCsokas). Together, they bring life to the film with their more youthful roles.
The film becomes really engrossing as the past begins to merge with the present. Madden successfully creates sympathetic characters, making each spy a driven, one-person army. The film also humanizes its characters because they suffer from very raw emotions, tragic pasts and obvious flaws.
But like a spy with an assignment, this movie never loses sight of its plot. Jesper Christensen plays the calculating, evil surgeon, now acting as an OB/GYN in Berlin. Once the spies find their target, they devise a plan to kidnap him and send him to Israel to stand trial. However, this plan goes awry, and its aftermath forms the crux of the movie.
"The Debt" is not an archetypical espionage flick in the slightest. Audiences are spared from tired plotlines, including the stereotypical spy who has been wanted since losing his post in intelligence, or the womanizing spy with plans to steal a precious artifact or save the world from a madman.
Instead, "The Debt" is a spy movie with a purpose: Rachel, David and Stephan are fighting for the many innocent victims of the Holocaust. The film takes on a greater sense of personal significance when viewers learn that both David and Rachel lost family members to the genocide.
However, while the mission, so to speak, of the movie is honorable, the cliched spy-movie music and the choppy editing are out of place. These elements detract from the film's intensity in moments when the viewer would otherwise be emotionally gripped.
Ultimately, "The Debt" successfully brings Rachel to life, and adeptly captures her struggle later in life when she finds herself plagued by an old lie that, if revealed, would turn her fame to infamy. Overall, though, viewers will enjoy the action sequences and the reflective message that "The Debt" has to offer.
