When watching the film, the most charismatic and significant actor of the picture Lamber Wilson, who played the “villain” Eric, catches the eye and stands out from the heroes most of all.
The plot, as we learn later, is built on revenge for Eric stealing the manuscript and--that's it? Yeah, I was also surprised that this was Alex's motive for revenge on Eric. It would seem that Eric killed his almost relative, whom he loved more than himself, but here lies 1 plot hole, and it is the largest:
Of course, Alex could have suspected Eric of murder, but he couldn’t have known for sure because Eric burned everything.
I'm not a professional reviewer, and I'm not going to go into acting and other parameters - it's not bad, but it's not good either. Lawther did not play badly, but as I have already said the writers of his motives, why, decided to limit the theft of the book.
In the end, I even felt sorry for the main “villain”, yes, he is certainly a freak who shoots innocent translators, rude to employees, in general a typical purposeful capitalist, but the fact that the writers treat him like a stupid idiot, and not a person behind whom a successfully built company and a huge team, this is already a question.
And in general, the final disclosure of the “secrets” shows nothing except that Goodman’s entire plan was built on the wildest coincidences, and the billionaire, whose stupidity was carefully prescribed by the screenwriters, is led to child traps like a girl from a nursery. Wilson, by the way, tried his best to make his hero not a rag, but a solid man, but the writers did not give him this.
As a result, an average detective with a relatively predictable ending and very obscure motives.
Very interesting and confusing detective turned out in the French. The classic plot about a group of people in an enclosed room (in addition, there is a lot of action and outside its walls) is very unusually diluted with a literary and publishing theme and, of course, where there is no crime, when anyone can be the culprit. The film has a good tempo, a cool script, interesting and such different characters from different countries, as well as very spectacular and unexpected twists. Director Rouenzar tenaciously holds the audience’s attention, taking the best from Western colleagues in the craft. The international cast is pleasant to the eye, but especially the vile Lambert Wilson, who naturally wants to strangle, and the mysterious Olga Kurylenko in a beautiful white dress, stands out. In general, it turned out to be an excellent twisted detective with dashing turns and an unexpected denouement. Fans of "Suspicious Persons" on note! Nicely done!
If you like to calculate the idea of the author from the first to the last minute in tension both in the plot and in the methods of production at the presto tempo, and you have a sharp intellect, then the film will like. I only liked the book-writing theme around which the thriller was played.
In principle, it was interesting to watch. And then at the end of the day, all of a sudden, bang and roll upside down. But! Just one question. Why such a complicated scheme? Why did he make all this up?
For the first time I meet a film in which an hour and a half of enchanting nudity ends with 15 minutes giving at least some meaning. If I could, I wouldn't watch it!
Life under a layer of concrete, or Bestseller from a bunker
The problem in evaluating films, I think, is always inflated expectations. I didn’t expect anything special from this film – I thought it would be a sluggish Franco-Belgian detective. And in the end got quite a good, although not a Hollywood thriller.
According to the plot, a group of translators from different countries are locked in an ancient castle, without communication and the Internet, so that they make a translation of a sensational bestseller expected by readers - for several countries at once (including from Russia). But, as is customary in such films, something went wrong - and the bunker slowly turns into a comfortable, but still a prison with merciless guards. . .
I have read many times that the film is based on a real story, which the authors thoroughly sprinkled with their fictions. In the course of events, new circumstances and turns are strung on the core of the plot - which several times radically change the plot and the viewer's attitude to the characters.
The film has an external purely detective canvas, and many heroes with different characters, several conflicts inside. And, what I like, it has a common message and food for thought - about the attitudes of employers towards people, the pursuit of money, the nibbling of business sharks and the human rights to work in normal conditions.
Honestly, I don't understand the reviewers who write that the film is ' slowly spinning'... It is a shame when the movie is judged by Hollywood patterns, when characters, psychology are lost due to rapid promotion, and in the end, the characters themselves turn into a schematic charismatic 'massive'.
There's no such thing in this movie. The authors try ' chew ' for viewers nuances, while leaving room for reflection and imagination.
And, by the way, in one of the roles here lit up Olga Kurylenko - she plays the same Russian translator. And here her role is much better than in the recent French action film about the Russian diaspora 'Clock'.
As a result 'Translators' turned out to be quite at the level. Yes, I won’t revisit it, but as a European detective, it looks pretty good. My score is 'normal'
I couldn’t think of another title other than this banality. Because for a long time I was so pleasantly surprised by the story. And although the acting work was not all at the top, for which I lowered one point, the twists of the plot were very pleased. Greetings from my favorites 'Exam' and '11 Ocean's friends' and similar scam stories turned out to be just a cut of the main line of the narrative, which turned out not to be at all about, but at the same time answered all the questions, and they arise throughout the film more and more - however, if you look carefully to the end, everything becomes as clear as it has been for a long time from such abstruse films. Yes, it is not very clever, this film, you just need to have patience and attentiveness, along the way enjoying the constantly coming answers to old questions, and not being afraid of new ones.
The plot seems to be simple at first glance: the publisher is preparing to release the third volume of an incredibly successful novel, which is written by his friend a book lover, wishing to preserve anonymity. To ensure that the text of the novel does not prematurely leak to the network, the publisher sets unusually strict conditions for translators, who, according to the author, are invited to simultaneously translate in one closed bunker with all the amenities ... except for Internet access. Of course, they do not read the entire contract, which they later regret, because they are treated almost like prisoners - at least from the moment it turns out that someone still leaks portions of the novel into the network, blackmailing the publisher with this and demanding good retaliation. In a rage, he begins to lose his head, and then you will not be bored!
The ending was simply a balm on the soul of a longing moviegoer, but here it already depends on what endings you like. One thing I can promise - you did not expect such a denouement, especially since she answers questions, one of which will torture the attentive viewer already from the middle of the film.
I won’t even write about the music or the quality of the shoot – I didn’t notice them, chained to the plot. And now, after watching, I sit satisfied like a cat that has eaten sour cream.
9 out of 10
In 2003, some kind of thunder among the clear sky was the publication of the book by American fiction novelist, lover of conspiracy theories Dan Brown & #39;The Da Vinci Code'. In an instant, he became the best-selling writer, and the work itself was recorded in the rank of international bestsellers, although it acquired some scandalous fame, but it played even more on the popularity ' Code...' And it is immediately clear that after such a phenomenal success, all of Brown's new works were instantly swept off the shelves. But at the same time, the translation of Brown’s new works from English into other languages was shrouded in mystery, so that information about the plot, and, most importantly, about the final of his books, did not leak into the world space. In a 2013 translation of Inferno 39, twelve translators were locked up in a secret bunker in Italy. This situation became the plot basis for the creation of the Franco-Belgian psychological thriller ' Translators', which was released in 2019.
According to the plan of Daniel Presley, Romain Compin and Director Rouensard (he also became the director of the film, and before that he became known for the comedy melodrama & #39; Love at the Fingertips' (2012)), there is a very popular writer Oscar Brach, and its publisher is the agency of Eric Angstrom. And the latter knows the fact that if information about the book leaks out of the bunker in which he gathered translators, the publishing house will go down. Therefore, translators are in strict conditions, they are constantly monitored, they have no access to the world wide web. It feels like Angström has foreseen everything, but suddenly a few pages of a new book by the mysterious Brah, whom no one has ever seen, hit the Internet. It becomes obvious that there is a hacker among the translators leaking information, and his next step was to demand a fabulous sum so that the next part of the book will not be broadcast again. Angström begins his own investigation. But the fact is that the hacker pursues completely different goals than enrichment. . .
As you already understand, 'Translators' staged in the genre of a psychological thriller with elements of a detective. And we, according to the law of the genre, are offered to try to play Sherlock Holmes and try to find a mysterious hacker. But it is better to immediately warn that it is not necessary to do searches in vain, the creators of the Translators & #39; came up with a non-standard direction of the film, where, approximately in the middle of the picture, many intrigues are revealed. And you might think that this is all the interest in ' Translators' fades, but it is not, because you need something else to keep the viewer at the screen the whole final half of the picture. And there we came up with a few more unexpected plot moves, which, again, it is quite difficult to predict. And, of course, this approach can not but please the viewer who long and confidently leads us through intricate plot moves with flashbacks, but the other viewer will note that this way it turns out that ' Translators' somewhat delayed and the authors of the picture too complicated the plot, but, nevertheless, this distinguishes the film from other representatives of the genre.
Among the famous actors involved in the film, you can recognize Lambert Wilson in the image of Eric Angstrom, Olga Kurylenko, Eduardo Noriega, Sidse Babett Knudsen and Riccardo Scamarcio. And among them all can be distinguished, perhaps, only Lambert Wilson. As already mentioned, his character is tough, sharp, controlling an iron hand and if you try to take something belonging to him, he will stop at nothing, a fierce beast wakes up in him. This is how the character of Lambert Wilson is remembered, and if the rest of the honored people supported his impulse and impulse, then, of course, the Translators & #39 would become much more widely known in the cinematic space. There is nothing special to say about their game. But while they were in a static position, Alex Lawther took advantage of his chance to stand out, who had a rather emotional character.
So, 'Translators' is a hermetic psychological thriller with unforeseen plot moves, but the rather static play of many actors leads to the fact that the picture lacks emotional load, but for the idea of the authors ' Translators' I want to thank you, besides, somehow a well-built detective was not on the screen for quite a long time, so that 'Translators' With all their flaws, they were a balm to the soul, especially for the connoisseur of the genre, who was not so sure.
Everything would be fine, but the script in my damp, the selection of actors in general causes bewilderment, against the background of Wilson, the rest looked like something faded, especially this boy the whole film was annoying, in the middle of the plot were sagging, these are negative sides, from the positive, this is the idea and the final part of the film. . . 6 out of 10.
The fact that the film "Translators" on Kinopoisk was declared as an intellectual thriller could not but attract my attention to it. I have always liked films of this kind, especially this film was built according to the classical scheme: to find a criminal in a room closed from the outside world. Therefore, the time spent watching it promised to be a pleasant pastime, hope was also inspired by the fact that the film was released in the past, and not in this year, scarce for good films.
The fact that the plot of the film is based on a real story that allegedly took place during the translation of one of the numerous and, of course, commercially successful novels by Dan Brown, was not said, probably only lazy. According to the plot of the film, as well as in the case of Brown’s book, a group of translators is invited to an isolated, devoid of all contact with the world to translate the next volume of the bestseller. The purpose of this secret action is to prevent premature leakage of the content and to publish the book simultaneously in several languages. But despite all the heightened precautions worthy of the world’s best secret services, the leak still happens and publishers start to have problems. Finding the culprit in a group of people who have just met each other is not easy and in the process reveals very unexpected facts from the life of the team.
The film for me personally turned out to be very exciting and interesting, despite the fact that there is absolutely no action in it, there were enough unexpected turns in the investigation of the incident and the change of suspects. Almost all the action takes place in one room, everything is very chamber, except for a few particularly dramatic moments. The characters of the film talk a lot, but all the conversations are appropriate and only on business, no idle talk.
The only drawback I would call that the main intrigue ends almost in the middle of the film, but for the rest of the film, the authors had enough other mysteries. The intrigue ends with the film, the viewer will not be bored. Despite the almost complete absence of shooting and bloodshed, the film can rather be attributed to psychological thrillers, for the intellectual it seemed to me simple. In any case, against the background of this year’s colorless and talentless film, this film looks almost a masterpiece.
In the world of literature, a supernova race was lit - the mysterious writer Oscar Marriage, sprinkling fashion bestsellers. No one saw it, but the two books were wildly popular, so the release of the final novel of the trilogy should exclude any preliminary leaks to the world. In this regard, the publisher Eric Angström is taking extremely tough measures - he attracts 9 translators from different parts of the world who are not familiar with each other, locks them in a bunker located in a mansion owned by a certain Russian oligarch, and completely deprives people of communication with the world, taking away cell phones and forbidding them to go online without strict control from the outside. This should all last two months, but an impeccable plan fails: some hacker manages to leak several first pages of the novel into the Network and demands an impressive ransom, forcing colleagues to suspect each other and urgently look for a traitor, since Angström is clearly not going to ceremony with the criminal.
Almost everyone who writes about this film mentions the real fact that the writers of Translators started from - the story of the translation of Dan Brown's novel Inferno, which was dealt with by 11 people locked up somewhere in Milan. In fact, the compact-looking design of the film allowed not only to create a tense hermetic thriller, but also had a very wide semantic potential, considering the problems of modern literature, when the concept of popular popularity is not identical with the quality of the syllable, studying the characters of people revealed in extreme situations and allowing you to scroll a lot of spectacular plot tricks. Did Director Rouenzart ("Love at the Fingertips") manage all this? Well, as the French themselves would say, comme si comme sa.
Of course, watching “Translators” is quite interesting – the story itself is fascinating, honestly tries to maintain the audience’s attention, pleases the presence of good European actors and has a huge number of unexpected endings, even when it seems that all the secrets are laid out in the middle of the film. But this is where the mistake begins to hide, when the director and screenwriters decided to outdo themselves and turned the complex plot into an ordinary cumbersome puzzle, in which serious conflicts were written out too superficially, and the suspense component loses Hitchcock’s elegance and reduces the film to the level of standard entertainment films of the “Illusion of Deception”. Scenario feints, although they may surprise, but at some time they become too many, because of which the creators of the picture do not notice that the originally laid potential is rapidly fading, deep thoughts evaporate, characters turn into a motley crowd, and the abundance of high-flown references to Marcel Proust looks only spectacular backgranud. But, probably, this is just the same movie “for a weekend evening”, which allows you to have a fun time and does not require serious thinking, especially since after watching it it is easily forgotten.
It is said that the plot of the film directed by Rouensard “Translators” (2019) was composed by life itself: 12 translators of Dan Brown’s novel “Inferno” worked in a special bunker in Italy. I don’t know if the parallels with the picture end there, but I think it was done not only to prevent leakage of information, but also to create a legend around the book. Modern literature does not shy away in order to survive in the conditions of the market.
So, in the plot of “Translators” nine translators of the new book are sunk in a secret bunker to translate the final part of the trilogy “Dedalus” by a certain Oscar Braque, whom no one has ever seen. After some time, fragments of the novel leak into the network, and a ruthless publisher Eric Agnestorm tries to find the mole. Because of such a strange entanglement, at first it seems that this detective is not quite familiar – without an obvious crime: indeed, who investigates literary crimes? But, gradually, the viewer opens the whole depth of intrigue and meanings of this film: the answer is approximately to the middle of the film, but with the underwater currents of this solution, everything is not so simple.
Thrillers about the isolation of a certain group, conspiracy schemes and the laws of the jungle applicable to modern society, we have seen, it seems, for the rest of our lives. But here, Director Rouenzart reverses everything and puts the genre and familiar schemes upside down. We have already become so ingrained in the postmodern aesthetic that these games seem to be an unconditional and self-evident part of the plan. But sometimes you can see through them a simple and even naive idea, but to convey it to the viewer now you need to entertain him, intrigue, impress - and only then say the most important thing.
The games of cultural charades, which are also skillfully used by the director of Translators, seem to be unconditional: this is not only a reference to the bestsellers of the recent past like The Da Vinci Code or Inferno, but also to the bestsellers timeless – first of all, Bulgakov’s The Master and Margarita with the eternal truth that manuscripts do not burn. As it turned out, they burn, and how else: burn to the ground in the fire of human greed. Because in these disputes about copyright and publishing policy, it is not about literature at all, but only about the revenue for it.
This reference to Russian literature and understanding of literature in a different capacity than a way to earn or become famous, can be attributed to the image of the translator of the novel into Russian Katerina Anisinova performed by Olga Kurylenko. Reading a work as if it were an author’s revelation, to which he lets the reader as close as possible, is traditionally known only in Russia – this is, we can say, our historical and cultural background.
With the screen of the detective plot, Régis Rouensard for the time being covered up his main artistic idea: to tell about what is beyond the tricks of stealing a manuscript, unraveling a tangle of causal connections and searching for a criminal. He spoke about human love, mutual support, honesty and creative freedom. True literature always belongs to the reader, not to the publisher, in whose favor the writer alienates copyright. But to remind us of this and to reach us, everything has to be dressed in the form of a detective with a mixture of conspiracy. But what times, such songs.
I won’t say that I liked it, but it will be interesting for book lovers. But the whole story is implausible, which the authors wanted. And the final was made somewhat stamped, but unexpected. Hence the improbable.
2 months – a lot of secrets, several translators, one Joker
Few people think about what translators think about their work. They quietly, painstakingly work on other people’s works and almost never earn serious money for their work. Translators are workers without much talent, and yet the quality of translation often depends on the sales of books in different territories. Therefore, it is impossible to write them off, especially when there is a lot of money at stake, which can bring a crazy profit to the publisher.
At the center of the film’s story are several people who have received a promising order to translate the final book of the Daedalus trilogy. To fulfill their mission, the heroes go to the French castle of Eric Angström, the head of a large publishing house, to do the responsible work in a specially equipped bunker. No Internet, mobile phones or other gadgets in your hands - now just a computer and a library, two months, and work and nothing superfluous. This can be safely tolerated during the allotted period, but there is an unexpected turn of the plot!
It turns out that among the translators there is a traitor who stole several pages of the text of the future book from the bunker. If a few million euros are not transferred to his account, at least half of the book will be leaked to the network. This means that there will be no nailing for Angstrom, as few people will want to buy the second part, if all, so much material is already available without any payment. So Angström has no options left. He must find out who set him up and at the same time look at his own figure in a different way.
The format of this film is reminiscent of Agatha Christie’s cult novel “Ten Negroes”, as well as many films telling about how a group of previously not very familiar people is locked in one room and someone in this situation can die. And although the format for art is not at all new, it is presented in the Translators is just wonderful. It is very difficult to break away from the screen when the investigation begins and the heroes must calculate the traitor. In this film, by the way, there are a few unexpected moments, so do not rush to relax ahead of time.
Among the cast I want to highlight a few people. For obvious reasons, Olga Kurylenko attracts attention, but her role is not the biggest. Kurylenko is beautiful and in principle, this is enough here. One of my favorites was Alex Lawther, who played a British translator. He certainly gave the film dynamics and sharpness. By the way, and Lambert Wilson, who played Angstrom, did not hit his face in the dirt, introducing him to his frankly cold and dangerous character in the best traditions near the villainous school.
With the exception of a couple of points, I really liked the Translators. The film came out incredibly tense, it has secrets and surprises, which are very carefully woven into the overall plot. The creators did a good job, which I appreciate.
I don't watch thrillers. But I bought the humanitarian name. I watched it until the end because I liked the idea. A guy who does not recognize the power and power of literature, the text, is punished. I punished myself. It's money and fine art. Art wins. And the author can't hide. Anonymity is a mirage.
A new detective thriller that will try to surprise
Nine highly professional translators are invited to the bunker of the huge mansion, who must simultaneously translate a new potential bestseller into their languages. Their mobile devices are taken away, there is no other connection to the outside world in the bunker. This is done specifically to rule out any story leak before the book is released. However, soon the first 10 pages of the novel are online, and the anonymous person promises that the rest of the work will suffer the same fate. The only way to prevent this is to pay a lot of money. Everyone in the bunker is under suspicion. But who is really involved in a cunning adventure?
What kind of movie is this?
Initially, “Translators” was positioned as an incredibly twisted detective thriller, shot in the best traditions of the genre. We were promised super secrets, mega secrets and an explosion of consciousness. What did we get?
The idea of the film is not bad, although not original, since the real story that happened with the translators of Dan Brown’s acclaimed book “Inferno” (yes, there, too, the translators were sitting in the bunker) lies in the lead. But even without it, there is a feeling that we have already seen or read something similar. However, at this stage, the tape is interesting and promises something interesting.
But soon the questions begin.
Problems
The first question is related to the hero of Lambert Wilson, who organized this bunker story. The character immediately begins to behave aggressively, hysterically and clearly does not think about the reputational and legal consequences of his behavior, which is very strange for his status. All this beats the realism of the film, which is not shining high.
As for the translators (in one of the roles, by the way, Olga Kurylenko), around which the plot should be built, because of their large number and the inability to reveal each to the proper extent, the filmmakers decided not to disclose anyone. Even those who will eventually play key roles.
What we are shown about most of them, turns out to be caricature patterns that do not give the opportunity to carry out at least some psychological analysis, which in this kind of film projects usually begs for.
In addition, in the middle of the film, its authors generally decide to score on translators and shift the accents of what is happening to one single character and simultaneously change the genre of the film from detective to thriller. This change looks too sharp, which gives the impression that the middle has been cut out of the film.
Unexpected story repeats
In the film, we have three main twists. The first is the least important, so we will not dwell on it.
As for the second, from the point of view of the plot is very serious, but, in essence, is nothing unusual. The thing is that this unexpected turn simply copies one of the classic detective endings. Those who love detectives can easily guess.
The last, most important twist, looks good. But just the first minute. Because when you start to think seriously about it, its logic quickly collapses, the implementation of associated adventures begins to seem excessively resource-intensive, and the ultimate goal is not necessarily achievable.
Problems are everywhere.
What's the result?
On the way out, we have a film that has some of the features of really great thriller-detective films, but all the crap in it too is full. You can watch, but you should not expect anything special. In fact, there is a feeling that the story had potential, but the implementation failed and big script shortcomings.
Well, one of the problems of this French-Belgian film is that its characters, as the plot develops, raise completely different topics for conversation, thereby hinting that perhaps they should be listened to by the viewer, who, in turn, will chase two rabbits, neither will catch. Another problem lies in a completely dry and unattractive picture, because of which it was not boring to watch what was happening, but not as interesting as we would like, and at the same time, a little more could be expected from the dynamics, given the genre of a tense thriller-puzzle. But, nevertheless, I think that all of the above should not be put as an example of the unambiguous shortcomings of the tape, since their weight depends for the most part on perception due to certain expectations of a particular viewer, under which the film is clearly not going to adapt, since it works exclusively on the plot.
I was attuned to exactly what I got in the end, namely a one-off movie with its own drama and riddles, not taking into account only the pleasant additions, if I may say so, that concern the entertaining nature of the plot itself. Actually, as for the plot, we have a closed space in which the publisher of the acclaimed book trilogy "Dedalus" gathers translators to work on the final part in order to avoid its leakage, which, despite all this, occurs. But to develop the story in the usual tense style for a number of tapes with a similar set does not intend. That is, it is neither “Claustrophobes” any, nor “Hunters behind Rusum” and even “Exam”, as you might think.
So, about the hares, none of which you can catch. Heroes raise different topics for conversation throughout the action. Here are the inherent meanings in the images of the characters of the best-selling Daedalus, and the urgent need for money, formulated as admiration for world capital to keep afloat, and unfulfilled dreams, and with them the drama, born subplots associated with specific heroes. First of all, it's hard to know where to focus your attention, what's going to have the most impact on what's going on. Second, these moments serve as a backdrop to the main intrigue of guessing who the hacker is, and how far he can go with his reasons for disclosure, and how far the publisher, in turn, can go to prevent a complete leak of the book. All this is framed by a nonlinear narrative and leads to a fairly informative and multi-level denouement. Here-this-turns are taken for granted, especially for a savvy viewer, but what they are good for is, of course, that they put all the dots on the “e”, filling the gaps in the hacker’s motives, claiming the meaning and exact establishment of cause and effect.
By the way, one of the interesting themes of the film concerns the conflict of creativity and its promotion. One view is that the work itself should be perceived in a vacuum from all that promotes it and seeks to make it a hit in the eyes of society. But there are people who are willing to do anything to close their debts, find financial well-being and success, and they rely solely on the sensationalism of the work. Such people think mercantilely and do not believe in creativity itself, but believe in the money it brings. The modern film industry suffers from this. For example, when the next part of a franchise is released, the producers go out of their way, just to make a sensation by sucking the plot out of a finger, twists from nothing, just to deceive the expectations of the audience, which at the first viewing may work, but in the end there are only plot holes, lack of logic and idea. While the value of real creativity is tested over the years, and despite the fact that the viewer can know the whole plot in advance, each time it opens from a new side and gives fresh emotions. And in this case, any leak, if it can harm the financial side of the issue, then in no case hush up the quality of the product as such. That’s all that matters.
Well, as for this tape, I am sure it will find its viewer, among which I will not consider myself because of the scarcity of the overall production, but the ideological and entertaining in the plot plan of the film is not to occupy, it is worth admitting.
There are detective films built in such a way that clues are arranged in the script, so that revealing the identity of the criminals and / or the main plot twist makes you look at the whole plot in a new way. And there are projects that also stand out, by the way, where the twisting plot threads of the detective are added on a whim or for a shock effect. This usually works, but can sometimes lead to loss of attention. “Translators” must belong to this group: there is a mysterious story, a special style, but somehow it is difficult to collect a single whole picture from what is happening, although the main plot twist contributes to this.
“Translators” is a small, almost invisible, but still dodgy thriller detective. In a remote, luxurious palace with limited contact with the outside world, nine translators were brought together to translate the final volume of one of the most famous books, Daedalus. Someone starts posting a novel online, and the publisher realizes that the pirate is one of the translators. Where did the leak come from, if the translators are already locked in the bunker?
The script is inspired by the news that emerged after the publication of Dan Brown’s Inferno. Some jobs, especially those with high profit potential, should enjoy maximum anti-spoiler protection, so the premise should not be criticized. On the contrary: from the idea to the first scenes and blows the spirit of Agatha Christie. The main characters, whose personalities are revealed with humor and emotions, are pieces on the chessboard, which are played by a mysterious hacker and, in fact, the publisher himself - a villain with an iron hand.
However, at some point, the plot of “Translators” begins to move away from the “mystery in a closed room”. Instead of focusing on a closed bunker, part of the film is about memories. In other words, despite the “double bottom” and the desire to confuse the viewer (in places, the “Translators” succeed in this), all the cards are laid out on the table too early. Every time the viewer thinks that the mystery has been solved, the plot twist follows the plot twist: and the development of the script is not always reasonable and does not always have a certain frame. And although “Translators” raise an interesting question – the concept of creative property, somehow especially delve into the context of the script in it does not want: this topic is a little dreary and, it seems, not in its place.
What begins with a chamber detective about blackmail quickly curls up and decomposes into something else. As a result, it becomes clear that as such the detective work in the “Translator” – the cat cried, but there is something else – a kind of replication of attention to detail. When it becomes clear what everything is going on, “Translators” are much inferior in entertainment: neither scenes of memories that serve to reconstitute and reveal characters, nor certain comparisons of the inner features of the characters do not work properly. Diversity can bring a story to life if, of course, this story was.
5 out of 10
On the eve of the release of the final part of the highly successful book trilogy 'Dedal' its publisher, a bit paranoid businessman Eric Angström, assembles an international team of translators. For the duration of their work, translators are settled in an underground bunker in France, in the mansion of a Russian billionaire, blocking all communication channels with the outside world. However, despite precautions, Angström fails to save his publishing house from Piracy #39. The first ten pages of the book are publicly available, and an anonymous blackmailer threatens to continue publishing online and the publisher goes to extreme measures.
Before us is a good action thriller about the secret dangers of this quiet profession. Who knows any translators in their country? What they are guided by when translating the text into their own language and what goals they pursue in principle, deciding on such adventures with the estate. Here, in fact, everyone is under suspicion and these suspicions increase every minute and for good reason. By the way, as it turned out, the idea of translators locked in a bunker is taken from real life. Something similar happened with the book by Dan Brown and his book Inferno 39. But, of course, everything else in the plot is already a fictional story, but what!
Despite all the twisting of the plot, alas, I figured everything out from the very beginning, who will watch carefully, he will notice everything, I assure you. But I confess, the intrigue is held noble, will my guesses be justified? In general, I recommend this interesting film to all lovers of puzzles and detectives. I am sure that many, as the storyline of the versions, they will change with geometric progression. The actors played brilliantly, the types were chosen correctly, because each translator has his own secrets, which we quickly learn.
The climax and final twist are stunning. Not only do they turn the whole story upside down and allow you to look at it from completely different angles, but at the end of the picture also reveals a very deep psychoanalysis as a writer and translator, and just an ordinary person, who was deprived of the most precious thing in his life. This allows you to understand the motives of the main characters.
I must say, I love thrillers about an enclosed space, when the whole plot is based on dialogues between the characters in an isolated room and attempts to arrange comfort and security for themselves.
The film "Translators" interested me! Based on the description, I expected that thriller, built on dialogue and confused attempts to survive in the unknown. Well, in style 'Exam'.
But the plot of the film was not quite like this. Which doesn't mean I didn't like it.
So, plot. The famous French writer finally wrote the third and final book and the whole world in anticipation. To publish the novel at once in all countries of the world, where the author sells well, and to prevent leakage to the network, translators are collected in a bunker, deprived of communication and given 20 pages a day for translation.
Of course, it won't just happen that way. An attacker writes to the publisher that if he does not receive five million euros in the account, the first hundred pages of the novel will leak to the network. And as confirmation sends to the network the first ten pages.
All translators are under suspicion. No one else has the text. Their phones are off. How did the pages go online?
And yes, the important point is the identity of the author is a big mystery. Except for the publisher, no one has ever seen him.
Things get worse when the publisher doesn’t send money. A hundred pages on the network, a new call - and already need 15 million (or so, I do not remember exactly), otherwise another two hundred pages will get into the network.
The publisher loses his temper and begins to mutilate his captives - yes, they become prisoners of translators, even our Olenka Kurylenko, who plays a Russian translator.
For any writer, such attention and excitement is, of course, a fairy tale. But there are downsides everywhere. This film perfectly depicts the situation when the result of creativity is born a commercial product that is packaged and sold as a common commodity, with the appropriate attitude.
Mystery, frankly, three. Behind whose identity the real writer hides I understood almost immediately, and why he did so – too.
Is it because I am also a writer?
5 out of 10
I must say, I love the genre of thriller in an enclosed space, when the whole plot is based on the dialogues of the characters in an isolated room, but, unfortunately, it is very difficult to find a worthy representative of this genre, but the film "Translators" I was interested! Based on the description, I expected the same thriller, built on dialogue, in the style of the Exam. As a result, God, it is necessary to be deprived of talent!
It doesn't lie. Indeed, the film is about how nine translators from different countries are locked in a bunker so that the plot does not leak during the translation of the best-selling novel, but the leak still occurs and it becomes clear that someone from the translators did it! In spirit, the film is really reminiscent of a mixture of Exam and 10 Negroes. I must admit, the first part of the film was made incomparably. I've always admired the work of translators -- these heroes of the invisible front who work so that people in their country can read a book or see a foreign-made film, and we don't even know their names. How the characters live in a comfortable bunker, how they work, how they communicate and share the peculiarities of the color of their countries is all good. The thriller in this part of the film is also good, because there is an atmosphere when the publisher (like Mashkov) announces to them the conditions of their work or when they treat translators, trying to find out who the hacker is.
In general, in terms of pumping, the film is generally good. Sudden, brain-explosive, plot twists in the film will be many. The characters are pleasing, although there are many, but the creators were able to more or less reveal and show them, so that the translators do not merge into one and it is interesting to watch each one, especially the family history of the Danish translator, who is mired in the family household. By the way, the Italian translator, horribly, looks like Zelensky. In short, the first part of the film about the work of translators and the beginning of the investigation is good. Although sometimes due to the rapid development of the plot, it seemed that the film rushed too quickly and did not concentrate on the plot, but fine.
Two questions really bothered me: 1. Why did no one suspect a Greek translator was hacking? From the very beginning, he says that he despises this novel, that he works only for money and openly rejoices that the plot is leaked online, but at the same time no one suspects him at all! 2) I understand that the film is based on real events, but still. Why is the publisher so afraid of leaking the story to the network? I remember when the seventh Harry Potter book was released in 2007, there were spoilers on the Internet before the release and official translation, but still most people chose to go to the store and buy a book or when pirated copies of the film leaked to the Internet last year before the release of Avengers: Endgame, but still most people chose to go to the theater and the film became the highest grossing film in history. I mean, even though the story leaks always happen, most people do not want to read pirated translations from the Internet, but want to go to the store and buy a book with a verified, official translation for their own comfort. Besides, if readers are true fans of the work, they should not care about spoilers at all, they will still buy the book. But that's my subjectivity.
Unfortunately, the movie creates problems for itself. The film is not really about translators looking for a rat in their ranks, it is interrupted by flashbacks and flash forwards and honestly, but it spoils the tense atmosphere of the film. Moreover, if flashbacks about the relationship between the publisher and the writer still affect the plot and reveal the nature of the publisher, then one of the flash forwards will spoiler who the hacker is! Are the translators of the movie normal? You show the hacker in the middle of the movie, you realize you killed all the suspense and want to watch the movie next? It's like 10 Negroes in the middle of the movie telling you who the killer is. All, further watching the film is not interesting, so the fun is that after this flash forward continues to investigate who the hacker. Now that’s a mystery, who is the hacker? With this stupid flash forward, the creators killed their film completely.
That's how questions come up. How could a hacker predict characters' phrases? Why does one of the characters in the whole movie require the publisher to link him to the author? Are there no microphones in the French interrogation rooms and no way of knowing what the suspects are saying? How did the official translation end? Why did we, in the middle, show a huge flashback about stealing a suitcase on a train, if it is pointless, and in fact during this flashback one of the characters even showed how one of the characters broke his arm and all in order to understand that it does not make sense? So why did they show it?
Conclusion: Like I said, finding a good thriller is hard. Usually, such films have a good idea, which the creators cannot implement a disgusting script or production. But “Translators” is a unique film for me, for the first time in my life I saw a film that could be good, it had all the prerequisites for this: the plot, the idea, the characters, the direction, but this film dug itself a grave and buried itself and even put a tombstone. Why was it necessary to show in the middle who the hacker was, and then go on with an innocent face in a movie where the characters were looking for who the hacker was? Why the film could not be made in the style of Exam or 10 Negroes so that the characters were always investigating in the bunker, and in the end it turned out who the traitor was. That would be interesting, but it doesn’t.
Of course, you can’t call a bad movie. As I said suspense is, characters translators and antagonist publisher are good, the storyline about the conflicts of the publisher and authors is also good, but alas, so ruin the idea, it is necessary to try.
4 out of 10
P.S. You want to watch a good intellectual thriller. See Farm Trap, Cube, Mindhunters or all the same Exam.
The film "Translators" reminded one of the stories about Sherlock Holmes - "The King of Blackmail", where someone threatens to make public letters between lovers. There is nothing in common between the film Directed by Rouenzar and the TV film by Igor Maslennikov except for the topic of blackmail, just the motive of the story, where a mysterious man threatens to reveal someone’s secret on paper, seemed recognizable.
So, nine translators from nine countries sign contracts and agree to temporary imprisonment to work on the translation of the world bestseller from the mysterious writer Oscar Braha. Their phones are taken away, they cannot use the Internet, they have no access to the outside world - all these precautions have only one purpose: to prevent the leakage of information on the book, because this can seriously affect the financial position of the publisher. But translators have a lot of privileges: they have their own cinema, swimming pool, even bowling alleys. In short, they do not deny themselves anything. Almost nothing.
After a while, the first leak occurs: the first 10 pages of the book go to the Web, and it becomes clear to the publisher Eric Angström (Lambert Wilson) that the culprit is one of the translators he hired. An unknown hacker threatens to continue to publish the book in parts until he is paid a round sum. At the same time, a dangerous game begins, in which the publisher, in order to prevent further leaks, resorts to more brutal methods to deter the hacker. And he teases the opponent and in each new letter quotes the words of one of the translators, said literally the day before. That is, he is in the bunker and he/she is one of his own. . .
According to the facts, the film is based on the story of Dan Brown’s novel Inferno, where translators were also locked in a bunker. I don’t remember any emergency situations happening there. But one way or another it is quite interesting that from such an episode that took place to be, the writers made a full-fledged film with their idea, zest, several components and, frankly, not a frail twisted intrigue.
At times, the narrative in the film is mixed and the viewer finds himself either in a bunker (the recent past), or in prison (this action takes place in the present), where two people from the main participants in the events described are talking. For the time being, the director covers the face of one of the interlocutors, but as soon as it becomes clear who is sitting on the other side of the interrogation table, you realize that Rouansard has trump cards up his sleeve. It’s only halfway through the movie and there will be more surprises. The viewer is not deceived – the creators of “Translators” continue to add fuel to the fire, maintaining interest and not letting you relax. As you get closer to the finale, you realize that there is not one person playing a double game here and these two who are talking in the interrogation room are trying to outsmart each other, using some tricks (possibly peeked in the detective books they read).
It is noteworthy that the participation in the film of Olga Kurylenko and Riccardo Scammarcho does not guarantee them the main roles. Although they are one of the most recognizable in the cast. This may mislead the viewer, but this technique only fuels interest, because you watch the development of other characters. These two are certainly important and (maybe) play some of their games and play their games. When you move forward on the plot, there are thoughts (and this is very cool, because you are not just watching, you are cleaning up this interesting case) that one of them, as well as other heroes, may be involved. You write in your head possible moves, but time after time they lead to a dead end. For me, it was suspicious that Kurylenko's heroine was again shot in the stomach as in "Seven Psychopaths" and in connection with this, thoughts arose about her collusion with Angstrom. Whether they had the ground under their feet or not, you will know when you watch the film.
Very well on the detective atmosphere of the film was influenced by music written by Jun Miyake. It was just made for a detective and could be used in any other film of this genre and would be appropriate. It was somewhat reminiscent of The Talented Mr. Ripley, where music of a similar tone was played in tense or tragic moments. Especially cool is the composition “Le recrutement”, as if counting down the time and bringing the viewer closer to the next discovery. It's actually very similar to John Ottman's "New York's Finest" from Brian Singer's "Usual Suspects." Whoo-hoo! What is the one that beats the ears and increases the degree of tension! It'll boil a little bit more. These stringed instruments seem to cut in the ears and do not allow you to take your eyes off the screen! The word music is effectively and successfully selected. Beautiful!
Despite the fact that the detective line of the film originates from the leak of information on the book and at the very beginning there is no murder or any other crime, the story develops quite famously and the death of one or two people will not matter. In the "Translators" as in any book of this genre - everything has its time.
But look at you. I do not impose my opinion on anyone.
The subject of literature is close to me. I sometimes indulge in writing fiction. It was just a hobby, nothing serious, but I had to deal with publishers. Of course, not with such sharks of business as shown in the film publishing house ' Angstrem'. However, there is some experience.
I will not analyze the content of the film, I will not describe the cornerstones of the plot, which are present in '. Suffice it to say that the scam looks far-fetched and strange for the twenty-first century. Nothing but bewilderment all this running on the background of the Eiffel Tower does not cause. A lot of screen time is devoted to the heroine of Olga Kurylenko. So I want to quote Gleb Zheglov: 'A beautiful woman is always a distraction'
I would rather write about what I really liked and what I disagree with. The success of the book is made by two: the author and the publisher. It would seem to be an axiom, but a contribution to a common cause can not always be equivalent. It is unfortunate to realize this, but nowadays success depends on advertising almost more than the quality of the text. And about the quality can only be associated with a specific target audience.
The film raises the question of who is more important, the Author or the Publisher, but to my great regret, this is done in a hurry, the dialogue of the characters is crumpled, and could give much more to develop the character of one of the key characters. And this against the background of a sluggish, I would say, sleepy beginning.
Another interesting point is the attempts to reason about the talent of the writer. In the mouth of Eric Angström it sounds a little tense, as if we are talking about a completely banal well-known subject. The hard thing is a writer's talent. I understand this as the ability to verbalize the mood of society, clothed in the text ideas that are interesting and in demand at this time. Putting letters into words and words into sentences is a craft that has nothing to do with talent.
The theme of talent is presented in the film through the personal drama of one of the characters. It is more complete than arguments about who is the owner of the house: the author or the publisher. But, alas, without revealing the very concept of talent by at least minimal means, and this is sad. I would like to ask the writer: Why did you make the viewer pick his nose sluggishly for the first half hour, if then you let the plot into a gallop, and did not develop dialogue that could decorate the film?
Results. The theme is great, but this is the case when the drama and psychological tension was not enough, and the action looked faded. For all the shortcomings of the film, I cannot give a low rating.
The story of nine extraordinary translators imprisoned in an underground bunker of their own free will. They diligently and painstakingly translate the latest book of the acclaimed bestseller in order to avoid its leakage to the network. But some unscrupulous scumbag (or scumbag) still leaks a passage of the book into free access and thereby triggers confusion in the ranks of translators who suspect each other. . .
French dramatic thriller with elements of detective, the plot in which at first looks too attractive and ridiculous, and only in the final, revealing all the cards, finds the right meaning and integrity. When watching some of the actions and motivations of the characters will cause some bewilderment, but you should stubbornly and patiently wait for the ending, without rolling your eyes to the back of the head in a gassy hiss and convulsive fits of indignation.
In terms of the plot, the tape is able to surprise, and makes several spectacular twerks, and if even the viewer guesses who is the main “villain”, then he will not understand exactly “why, for what and why”. The film is a kind of clever game in the game, imitation of deception, playing with reason and psychology. The description is very vague, but I do not want to spoil.
The picture clearly shows the monetary dependence in modern society, where for the sake of a large sum they are ready to go on their heads, tear the flesh and shamelessly kill. A society that speculates on knowledge for profit is probably not the future we expected. As Socrates put it, “If anyone sells his wisdom for money to anyone who is only willing to buy it, he is nothing but a sophist who will forgive philosophy.” . .
Moral: they will recruit grief-translators, and then reissue Harry Potter, where instead of Severus Snegg - Zlotheus Evil.
As a result, an interesting film, smoothly transitioning from a detective to a clever trick.
7 out of 10