When I noticed that the title American Assassin had a double dose of "ass" in its name, I hoped it wasn't a harbinger of things to come. I like Michael Keaton and I have been patiently waiting for this film to arrive. It is one of those films that you know could be decent or horrendously bad. I wasn't expecting anything Oscar worthy, just to set the bar at the right level.
Mitch Rapp (Dylan O'Brien) isn't a trained operator. He is a smart kid going to Brown University, ready to propose to his girlfriend. A terrorist attack changes all that. Rapp begins to train himself, intent on infiltrating the terrorist cell responsible for killing his girlfriend. He has a reckless streak, a vendetta, and a single focus. His ability to maneuver towards his goals draws the attention of the CIA, landing him in a special training program under the tutelage of Stan Hurley (Michael Keaton). It is Hurley's responsibility to mold his young protege, in spite of his own reluctance to take Rapp on as an operator. Rapidly evolving events thrust the teacher and his hot-headed student into a real world scenario involving Iran, nukes and a rogue former American operative.
There are a few plot twists in this film, and they seem to dwell a bit too long at times on Rapp's inability to focus. But this is an action film. And an action film that delivers good action with a decent plot is hard to find these days. Surprisingly, American Assassin managed to be modestly good. I'm not going to rave about the writing, but the dialogue was decent, the pacing excellent and the plot better than expected. The narrative arc was pretty solid, with a dynamic (although a bit absurd) climax. If you like mindless fun with a bit of plot to temper to the action, then this film will suffice.
I'm not really a fan of Dylan O'Brien. He does this weird thing with his nose and lips that reminds me of the apes on the original Planet of the Apes franchise. It's weird. He was in The Maze Runner movies, which I watched at the theater and regretted afterward. Those films were a cheap knock-off of the dystopian teen genre. But he was pretty solid in this film. Almost believable as a tough guy. Michael Keaton was rock solid. Just when I thought his career was over, he quietly crept back into Hollywood and has been making plenty of films. Good ones. Not like the ones he took to pay the bills in the interim. He has been great in recent years. The rest of the cast was forgettable. Not necessarily great. Not necessarily bad. Just cannon fodder for the most part.
American Assassin received an R rating by the MPAA. The film is unapologetically violent. There are no sex scenes and only one brief scene with partial nudity. In fact, that scene didn't add anything to the movie and could just as easily have been left out. The violence was contextual. This was one of those films that is hard to watch at times. The gun and knife play was typical for this type of film. But there were also a couple of torture scenes that left little to the imagination. Anyone who is put off by graphic violence should skip this film.
I wasn't sure what to expect going in to American Assassin. I knew the film had as much chance to be a waste of money as it did to be moderately good. I wasn't expecting perfection. And I didn't get it. What I got was a matinee priced action film that had great action sequences, solid pacing, good performances, big special effects and the semblance of a good plot. This is one of those movies I don't mind spending matinee money on, but you won't be disappointed to wait for it streaming either. Good for a fun afternoon out. 7/10.
