This retro bit of Cold War intrigue could be considered Pierce Brosnan's dry run for playing James Bond. Even Brosnan's savoir faire, however, can't pep up the tired blood of a caper flick that plays like a syndicated TV adventure series. The made-for-cable film premiered as "Alistair
MacLean's Night Watch."
Enlisting his best agent, Sabrina (Alexandra Paul), to crack a case involving a forged Rembrandt, U.S. Intelligence Chief Caldwell (William Devane) is unaware of the far-reaching conspiracy instigated by a computer mastermind who has appropriated the priceless painting Night Watch. An art
collector by choice and a computer whiz by training, Martin Schrader (Michael J. Shannon) sells the North Koreans a microchip that shuts down any database after killing the receiver of the triggering message over the phone.
As the ploys of the art-forgers intersect with the cyber-spies, Sabrina trails the front man for the art ring until his boat collides with a gas-filled craft and explodes. While Sabrina and her intrepid partner, Michael (Pierce Brosnan), pose as jet-setting honeymooners in order to move in
Schrader's social circle, Schrader accelerates the North Korean's plot to launch a satellite that would give that country dominance in the intelligence field. Michael is able to survey Schrader's mansion during a party and obtain valuable info. By the time Sabrina and Michael's Hong Kong
connection, Myra (Irene Ng), gets killed for abetting them, the Hong Kong CIA branch uncovers the bold computer eavesdropping scheme. After Sabrina is kidnapped while Michael pursues Myra's killer Mao Yixin (Lim Kay Siu), Michael rescues his cohort during a traffic jam. Extorting the satellite's
password from the captive Schrader by destroying the irreplaceable canvases in his collection, the Korean ringleader Mao Yixin moves closer to the satellite blast-off. Clued in by Schrader, whom the CIA rescues along with the surviving paintings, Sabrina heads off to sabotage the mission's van
near the harbor. While confronting the North Korean menace, Michael pushes Yixin into the flames produced by the satellite's lift-off. Sabrina quickly locates the abort button and stops the satellite.
Fans of "The Man From U.N.C.L.E." will be relieved to know that the spirit of that Cold War TV series serves as a role model for the CIA spooks defeating the Iron Curtain villains in DETONATOR 2. Although Brosnan and Paul look swell in evening clothes and handle repartee as well as physical action
with aplomb, they're aren't given much to work with in terms of characterization, stylish dialogue, or plotting. What they manage to do successfully is look unflappable while they race through various exotic locales. Losing patience with the ins and outs of technical tomfoolery, viewers can sit
back and soak up the sun, gaze at the lush scenery, and identify with the appealing stars--something moviegoers became accustomed to in the (far more exciting) James Bond series. (Graphic violence, nudity, profanity.) leave a comment
