A plodding direction from Chris Weitz results in a somewhat banal telling of the extraction of Adolf Eichmann from suburban Buenos Aires in 1960 by Mossad agents.
As a thriller it has its moments as legendary Mossad agent Peter Malkin (Oscar Isaac) confronts the man who masterminded the Final Solution. And, strapped to a chair, there’s nothing more tempting than inflicting a quick and painful exit to the odious Nazi bureaucrat (Ben Kingsley). But the agents are under strict orders from Mossad chief Lior Raz to bring him to Jerusalem to face trial and provide a voice for those who survived the Holocaust.
Those moments are few and far between. Dialogue heavy (script by newcomer Matthew Orton), Operation Finale looks to address individual responsibility and culpability, a gravitas that gets lost in a feature that also wants to celebrate justice with the discovery of such a war criminal. The story itself is wholly engaging but, sadly, not the delivery.
Rating: 56%
Director: Chris Weitz (A Better Life, The Golden Compass)
Writer: Matthew Orton
Main cast: Oscar Isaac (Balibo, A Most Violent Year), Ben Kingsley (Gandhi, The Red Sea Diving Resort), Lior Raz (Mary Magdalene, The Kindergarten Teacher)
An Opinion or Two 