The Commissioner (1998)

John Hurt is wasted in this German-English-Belgian low-budget, poorly produced drama/thriller. Hurt does his best, and the basic idea from the novel is sound, but this film is a failure in most respects (If you want an example of how this sort of thing MIGHT have been done, chase up the original English TV series of 'Edge of Darkness') For a start the production values are awful. It's sub-TV. In one scene a camera pans to the left, obviously bumps into something, wobbles, and the six producers and co-producers (not to mention editor, director) either didn't notice or didn't care. The sound, in some scenes, is filled with the sort of ambient noise you really don't want: noises which ought not be heard make their way in.Supporting actors are at best adequate; at worst painful.In theory it ought to work, given a budget, but it ends up a tiresome shambles. Without Hurt it would be unwatchable. Gods know why maybe the best male actor of the early-mid 80's was reduced to this sort of thing.

Minister James Morton is sent to Brussels as the new British European Commissioner retreating from a government scandal. He is disappointed with his new portfolio as Commissioner for industry. That is until Helena Noguentes appears as the new Commissioner for the Environment. Add to this a media manipulation, a potential international disaster, high level corruption and a dash of American cavalier capitalism it makes for good watching.I hadn't come across this until I saw it on cable - definitely worth a watch. Hurt virtually holds up the rest of the cast throughout although a good performance is put in by David Morrisey. This has been Sluizer's only attempt at making a film in English and is commendable. Moves well back and forth from location in London to Brussels. Lets face it how many films could they make interesting about the EC?

I had my finger on the fast-forward button while watching this, as I expected this to be a boring and mediocre political thriller and I'm not that very interested in politics. But what a surprise! It turned out to be a smart and very intelligent movie, with a realistic and intriguing story! Although lots of actions happen, on a very high tempo, the story always remains clear and comprehensible. John Hurt was extremely strong, the photography was nice and the camera-work effective. I also liked the music very much, it certainly contributed tot the tension in the film. I think it's great the way George Sluizer made this movie with possibly not that much money.

The Commissioner is a great film starring John Hurt as the British Commissioner of Industry in the EU. His acting as usual is intensely engrossing as Commissioner Morton uncovers industrial corruption on a grand scale. But wait, which company is the most corrupt? And who is responsible for all the killings? Is Armin Mueller-Stahl really a company man who came in from the cold? Complex plot with many twists, and if you can follow it you have my admiration.But at heart this film's significance lies in its forceful stance against big industry. You'll never question the validity of the WTO protestors again.