Today’s quick review: The Peacemaker. When a Russian nuclear warhead goes off in the Ural Mountains, Dr. Julia Kelly (Nicole Kidman) is put in charge of the United States’ investigation into the situation. To get the information she needs, Kelly turns to Lt. Col. Thomas Devoe (George Clooney), a soldier with a hands-on approach to gathering intelligence. But the investigation turns dire when they learn that nine other warheads have gone missing.
The Peacemaker is an action thriller about a soldier and a scientist who must work together to recover a truck full of stolen nuclear weapons. The search takes them from Russia to Europe and the Middle East as they pursue a rogue general (Alexander Baluev) and his fanatical employer (Marcel Iures). The Peacemaker features a strong pair of leads, a well-constructed thriller plot, and a smattering of good action, making it a basic but enjoyable watch.
The Peacemaker gets good mileage out of its leads. Nicole Kidman and George Clooney are well-matched as Julia Kelly and Thomas Devoe, two professionals who are skilled at their jobs but have very different ways of thinking. To the characters’ credit, they are able to put aside their differences and work together for the greater good. The greatest appeal of the movie is watching Kelly and Devoe use their respective talents to track the missing warheads.
The question of what happened to the warheads gives The Peacemaker a solid foundation for its plot. The scant clues available are just enough for Kelly and Devoe to piece together what happened, desperately pulling at threads to find the weapons before they are gone for good. Still, The Peacemaker does lay it on a little thick. The slow pacing early on and a couple of unnecessary steps to the plot keep the movie from being as tight as it could be.
The Peacemaker has what it needs to please fans of the action thriller genre, albeit not what it will take to win over skeptics. The movie’s relatively generic setup and overly detailed plot may not appeal to some viewers, but those looking for a solid race against time should look no farther. Steer clear if you’re hoping for more violent, hands-on action or a plot that’s genuinely cerebral.
For an even sharper thriller about a missing Russian asset, try The Hunt for Red October. For a grounded spy thriller about an unfolding crisis, try Spy Game. For a more over-the-top action thriller about stolen weapons, try The Rock or the Mission: Impossible series.
5.9 out of 10 on IMDB. I give it a 6.5 to 7.0 for a decent plot that delivers what it promises.