American Assassin (2017) Reviews

• Made For Teenagers

  johnyysmith2017-11-26

  Only good thing to say was the production values. Keaton cashed in on a film beneath him. Hollywood wasted another book which could easily have been scripted far better, and been the basis of sequels. Apparently all that is needed to find an international terrorist cell is hang around outside their bank. And then allow a hormone driven nearly man to punch anyone he wants and they spill the beans. Pathetic Another grown up not going to the cinema for a while now. There is little else to add.

• What a crying shame

  rrome662018-11-18

  There are two elements to consider: (a) Is this close to the book and (b) is it a decent film? The answer to (a) is that it isn't even close. I am a great fan of the Mitch Rapp series and whilst I am not for a minute suggesting that the books are classical literature they are a fabulous and entertaining read. Almost nothing in this film has anything to do with any of the books. The only saving grace is that they didn't make the mistake of casting Tom Cruise (like they did to play the 6' 5" Jack Reacher!) in the role of Mitch Rapp; I think that Dylan O'Brien did alright but i wasn't convinced - I think they could have done better but maybe so could Mr O'Brien with an even slightly passable script and director. Generally I found the casting pretty dire. (b) Was it a good film? No. Plain and simple. It was pretty weak - even ignoring the divergence from the book. A crying shame that a book series with such good potential for being turned into a great film series has been massacred by this film. Shame on the script writers, shame on the producers and directors. Had author Vince Flynn been alive I'd like to thank that he would have vetoed this rubbish.

• Bad Movie even if you didn't read the Novel

  ernestpoirier2017-09-14

  Let's start with those of us who are huge fans of Vince Flynn, and his numerous novels about Mitch Rapp. If you have read American Assassin, I highly warn you NOT TO SEE THIS MOVIE, as it will be a complete disappointment. The only similarities are: The title, the characters, and the fact that Stan Hurley bites a guy's ear off. The other 92% of the movie is pure Hollywood b/s. The movie only needs to use the book as a guide, and take the story off the pages and onto the big screen, and it's a blockbuster, but no - they can't do that. They have to hack and mutilate a great story by Vince Flynn, and twist so many things that it makes you feel like walking out of the theatre. Now - let's say that you never read Vince Flynn's novel. I still would not recommend seeing this movie. The plot is sketchy at best. You have actors playing roles that they can't pull off (i.e. A french-man playing a Mossul agent). arggg. And then there is the second rate special effects / CGI. There is a particular scene near the end of a Navy Helicopter flying into the scene where Mitch Rapp has located the nuclear bomb (i.e. that's not part of the book either, and it's the premise for the movie)...but back to the chopper - it's obviously a special effect. Fast forward 10 minutes to the end, and the USS IKE (Aircraft Carrier) is in the ocean and there are waves crashing over it's deck. SOOO LAME. Shame on the director, producer and anyone else who was responsible for butchering a phenomenal novel. I pray there isn't a part 2.

• Dylan O'Brien has found his franchise

  mharah2017-09-28

  Books are NOT movies. This needs to be said over and over, because there is always a cabal of complainers who hate any movie that doesn't faithfully follow its hardcover source. I haven't read Vince Flynn's American Assassin, and I don't intend to. But I feel fairly confident that he wasn't writing a movie. American Assassin (the movie) is a film-telling of the original story; it is NOT the original story, and it doesn't pretend to be. (Memo to Vince Flynn fanatics: Don't go see it.) American Assassin is a terrific watch, if for no other reason than seeing Dylan O'Brien nail it. And he is well aided by his supporting cast, most especially Michael Keaton, Taylor Kitsch and Saana Lathan. (I would like to have included Shiva Negar, but her character is severely compromised by problematic writing. She did the best she could with what she was given.) The script is larded with clichés, but for the most part the actors make good use of them. Director Michael Cuesta keeps it all moving right along. Most of the characters are very thinly drawn, leaving the actors to flesh them out as best they can. The special effects range from absent entirely to overdone. The script itself lurches from event to event, with an ending that goes beyond credulity. None of this matters. Dylan O'Brien is on screen ninety percent of the time, and his character is spot on. He is totally in command, and his charisma is entirely in charge. For a movie such as American Assassin, that's what it is all about.

• It's made of clichés but the result is pretty damn good!

  kaptenvideo-898752017-09-13

  Boy (Dylan O'Brien) sees her fiancé killed in terrorist attack and vows bloody revenge. He becomes a CIA counterterrorism agent, training under the seasoned pro (Michael Keaton) whose past suddenly returns to haunt him. Also starring: Yousef 'Joe' Sweid, Sanaa Lathan, David Suchet, Taylor Kitsch, Shiva Negar. Along „Renegades", this is one of the good recent actioneers that has a risk of not finding an audience it deserves. Probably because everybody thinks that yeah, trailer ain't bad, but we've seen enough stuff like this. But wide release is actually around the corner yet, so let's hope for the best. „American Assassin" may have a very typical action thriller trailer, and it's true that the story is made of clichés mostly, but the result is actually very enjoyable. The action is bloody and satisfying, the actors are good and charming, and the characters are just interesting enough to make you care. Almost all of the spy or secret agent action movies I've seen do the mistake of being pretty watchable for the most part but ruining the end: * introducing too many surprise twists to explain the events (= lazy storytelling), * taking itself too seriously (= becoming increasingly dull or heavy- handed), * or favoring often seen tired (how many times have you seen a final shootout on the roof of the building while it's raining, for example?). „American Assassin" never drops the baton, or pacing for that matter, which makes it fresher than most of its ilk. Also, the movie wins greatly by having three cool but not that widely known male actors in leads, one of them older and two younger. Let's examine them one by one, shall we? Kitsch is surely one of the greatest American action stars still unrecognized by the wider audience. He's got the muscle, the looks, the charm – what's not to like? If only his part was bigger. This is the only sad thought I had when the movie ended. You remember Kitsch from „Friday Night Lights" series, HBO's „True Detective" season 2, „John Carter" (as John Carter), „Battleship", Oliver Stone's „Savages", and „The Lone Survivor". Still can't quite recall the face? Told you so. One of the unregonignized greats. Dylan O'Brien in the lead is a star of long-running „Teen Wolf" series and also appears in „The Maze Runner" trilogy. It's good to see him starring in a movie now, and he looks fit to kick ass too! I totally bought him as a young hero. And last but not the least, let's bow down to Michael Keaton, one of the more charismatic movie stars of 1980's and 1990's who's probably not that well-known anymore. But he has lost none of the charm. This measured performance of ruthless counterterrorism veteran is probably the most memorable thing in the movie overall. Maybe it's time for Keaton revival? He's appeared in quite good projects lately – „Birdman", „Spotlight", „The Founder". Playing Vulture in newest „Spider-Man" did not probably hurt either, at least not his bank account. All in all, this movie is one of the rare positive examples where tired and overused clichés find a new life thanks to committed movie makers – CIA, terrorists, trained to kill, nuclear threat, plutonium and all the other blah blah blah is not interesting just by itself anymore. The young hero of „American Assassin" is actually the central character of so far 15 popular political thriller novels, so with any future commercial success, we may have witnessed a birth of a new action man who is interesting enough to compete with Jason Bourne, Jack Ryan, or the others. Director Michael Cuesta is also known for 2011's „Roadie" and 2014's „Kill the Messenger", look them up, both are interesting. So what if the movie is not exactly original? It's watchable and fresh, and the explosive ending is a joy to witness!