Back in 1966, three agents Rachel, Stephan and David tracked down Nazi war criminal Vogel and their mission ended with the man's death on the streets of East Berlin. Thirty years later, the secrets the agents share come back to haunt them when a man claiming to be the doctor has appeared.
There is an awkward, irresoluble tension between the movie's urge to thrill and the weighty pull of the historical obligations that it seeks to assume. How much, to be blunt, should we be enjoying ourselves?
The film does have some suspense and makes some interesting points about our need to make heroes out of flawed people; but in the end, even with this wonderful cast, it's still a disappointment.
Rather than focus on the evil of the Nazi villain, it wallows in the collective regret of three Israeli Mossad agents who in 1966 let the bad guy slip away when they had him in their clutches.
Younger audiences will likely find The Debt too slow for their liking, but what it lacks in realistic casting it gains in meatily plotted espionage and weighty drama.
Vogel's introduction, 'This is my hand, and this is the speculum,' may at last have displaced the 'Is it safe?' of Christian Szell--another Mengele stand-in--as the most discomfiting sentence ever uttered by doctor to patient onscreen.
Worthington shows a greater range and vulnerability here than he did in either Avatar or Clash of the Titans, where he mostly just flexed his pecs. He may be a genuine movie star yet.
How can the film convincingly preach via Ms. Mirren's voice-over that truth is more valuable than justice while her character is exacting vengeance on screen?
'The Debt' tackles themes of humanity, revenge and truth so successfully it's hard not to find it powerful - even if it's not the Oscar bait it might have hoped to be.
