Page 24 THE VILLADOM TIMES I & III • September 14, 2011 ‘The Debt’ is one of the season’s best dramatic films by Dennis Seuling “The Debt” unfolds in two time periods: the 1960s and the 1990s. The plot of the earlier period concerns the methodical plan of three Mossad agents to kidnap a Nazi war criminal from East Germany and smuggle him out of the country to stand trial in Israel. The 1990s segment shows how the earlier adventure has impacted the lives of the three. One of the agents, the now retired Rachel Singer (Helen Mirren), is the subject of a book about the mission by her journalist daughter, Sarah (Romi Aboulafia). Rachel seems uncomfortable with all the public attention the book attracts. A scar on her cheek piques viewers’ interest. At the book launch party, another agent, Rachel’s former husband, Stephen Gold (Tom Wilkinson), shows up, adding to Rachel’s discomfort. Rachel is asked to read aloud an episode in the book and viewers see in flashbacks how the young Rachel (Jessica Chastain), the young Stephen (Marton Csokas), and a third agent, David (Sam Worthington), carried out the abduction of Dr. Dieter Vogel (Jesper Christensen). The movie jumps back and forth as the careful planning and kidnapping of Vogel goes wrong and the team is forced to wait in East Germany to smuggle Vogel out. Tensions mount in the agents’ small apartment as Vogel is fed and looked after, with each team member taking a turn as his caretaker. Another flashback introduces viewers to the 1990s-era David (Ciaran Hinds), who appears tired and unhappy. A conversation holds the key to an unusually dangerous mission Stephen later asks Rachel to undertake. As a spy thriller, “The Debt” delivers in suspense and action. Director John Madden’s editing gradually pieces together the film’s mystery and reveals the strained relationships among the team, then and now. All are highly trained, yet emotion becomes the primary cause of difficulties in carrying out the mission. Cinematographer Ben Davis uses lots of shadows and often peers around corners to reveal information. He captures the bleak, gray look of Cold War East Germany with its omnipresent barbed wire, armed soldiers, heavily patrolled border crossing, and the sense that the eyes of Big Brother are everywhere. Mirren turns in a superb performance as the conscience-stricken Rachel, who has kept a secret for 30 years that has never given her peace-of-mind. She is an expressive actress who can convey what is in her character’s heart and mind long before the Helen Mirren stars as retired Mossad agent Rachel Singer in ‘The Debt.’ script spells it out. Both Worthington as the young David and Hinds as the older are effective, but physically they do not resemble one another, and this is initially jarring as viewers attempt to follow David’s 1960s and 1990s actions. Chastain as the younger Rachel (“The Help”) has a meaty role and is in top form and displays the necessary strength, tenderness, anger, and regret. She also manages to convey Rachel’s vulnerability despite having been highly trained in all manner of espionage. She has a Julia Roberts quality that connects with the audience, so viewers sympathize with Rachel, the only woman on the team, undertakes a tough mission. Christensen has several memorable scenes as Vogel, a man who still expresses pride in his part in the Holocaust. His scenes, particularly when held prisoner, provide a creepy feel as he attempts to psychologically unhinge his captors. Director Madden provides a workable balance between the action sequences, set mostly in the ‘60s, and the ‘90s story, which is more about inner turmoil. Viewer attention never wanes, as the story has a healthy helping of unexpected but logical twists. In many ways, “The Debt” is an old-fashioned spy movie, but one that poses a moral question. Rated R for violence, strong language, and a brief sexual situation, “The Debt” ranks with “Midnight in Paris” and “The Help” as one of the best dramatic films of the summer. Mirren heads a fine cast in a gripping, completely involving thriller.