American Assassin Movie Review

'American Assassin'

'American Assassin'
Cast: Dylan O'Brien, Michael Keaton, Sanaa Lathan
Director: Michael Cuesta
Rating:

American Assassin has been adapted for the screen by Michael Cuesta from the New York Times best-selling novel by Vince Flynn. Like most espionage thrillers, this one too begins with a horrific incidence where Mitch Rapp's(Dylan O'Brien) fiancé is killed in the crossfire of a terrorist strike, not much long after he proposed to her. Luckily for the audience, the opening is strong enough to cash in some feeling for the huge loss Rapp suffers. And we just about know where the story is going thereafter.

18 months later, Mitch has turned the corner, trained himself into a 'secret' secret agent, communicating online disguised as a terrorist in order to get closer to the exact bunch of assassins that carried out the attack. The CIA is no pushover though. He is intercepted and sent to a boot camp for more precise training by War veteran Stan Hurley(Michael Keaton). And the training is where most of the drama happens before the film explodes into a globe-trotting action-gore spectacle-encompassing mental and physical torture with fancy virtual reality experiences. Irene Kennedy (Sanaa Lathan), a senior CIA personnel is in awe of the young black ops officer's skills while Hurley and another operative Annika(Shiva Negar) have some unfinished history tagging at their heels- to complicate matters. Of course these are tired and overused clichés being given a revitalised spin but it all leaves you discomfited.

Most of the elements used here are pretty much preposterous and rendered without any subtlety. The hate-fuels-hate counter-terrorism strategy assumes nihilistic proportions that are hard to digest. Vengeance is the operative word here. Innocent civilians are gunned down, blood gets spilled and it's an appalling sight to say the least. It all just goes over-the-top thereafter and your stomach is likely to heave as a result of such a prurient assault on your senses. American assassin is a compulsively badass, brutal, emotionally vacant actioner that leaves you gasping at the heavy-duty carnage and mayhem poured into what is largely a generic action thriller. If you are the type who thinks 'rivers of blood' make a movie more thrilling then this one will certainly make you sit up and take notice!

Watch 'American Assassin' Trailer