Starring: Dylan O’Brien, Sanaa Lathan, Michael Keaton, Taylor Kitsch
Director: Michael Cuesta
Running Time: 111mins
Cert: 18
Last night I went to the movies after a long while and saw the patriotically titled, American Assassin starring Dylan O’Brien.
I’ve been a Dylan O’Brien fan since small roles in The Internship and then of course The Maze Runner and was excited to see what he would offer in the way of a more ‘adult’ role.
Before I go into his performance however which is well done in my opinion; this film in a lot of ways is not the best in terms of release time. There are a few who may agree with the opposite as the content is current and thought provoking and to witness the destruction near the end was actually quite emotional for me. Its not the best content to have been released in such tumultuous times for America when relationships with Muslims are strained and this film plays heavily on that animosity.
When his fiance is killed during a random terrorist attack, Mitch Rapp (O’Brien) takes it upon himself to exact revenge against the man/terrorist group who killed her. While this dedication to revenge brings him to the attention of the CIA; the dedication is overshadowed by what seems to be his hatred of ALL Muslims which isnt a good thing to watch. It plays out that his reckless and impulsive behaviour is rewarded by top authorities when he is hired to work for them to bring down a terrorist group.
Moving on from this, O’Brien’s performance is commendable although for future reference Dylan – growing a beard does not a grown up make – although it does suit him!
He embodies the character really well and you believe his passion for wanting to go after the terrorists even when the fight is no longer his to fight.
The negatives? A bit too much globe trotting for my liking. One minute we’re in Roanoke, then we’re in London then we’re in Turkey then Greece! I gather its the nature of a ‘spy’ but it was a bit much to keep up with! The characters, though played well by all involved are quite 2 dimensional: tough ex Army vet, tough as nails Black female at the head of the operation; loose cannon rookie that has exceptional skill.
On the plus side, there are some decent fight scenes especially one in an apartment that has one entire wall made of glass which makes for good viewing. They’re not overly done and believable in the technique and skill. There are a few Easter eggs in terms of ‘the real enemy’ but not too obviously so.
I liked that it was brought together in the end that things were not as they seemed which helped with the general impression of the film.
Definitely enjoyable and thought provoking as to what is going on around us right now.
American Assassin is out in UK cinemas Sept. 14
CertifiedViewing 