|
Genre: Thriller/Drama
Director: Anton Corbijn
Cast: George Clooney, Bruce Altman, Thekla
Reuten, Paolo Bonacelli, Violante Placido, Irina Bjorklund,
Samuli Vauramo
RunTime: 1 hr 44 mins
Released By: Shaw
Rating: R21 (Sexual Scene and Nudity)
Official Website: http://focusfeatures.com/film/the_american/
Opening Day: 14 October 2010
Synopsis:
As
an assassin, Jack (played by George Clooney) is constantly
on the move and always alone. After a job in Sweden ends more
harshly than expected for this American abroad, Jack retreats
to the Italian countryside. He relishes being away from death
for a spell as he holes up in a small medieval town. While
there, Jack takes an assignment to construct a weapon for
a mysterious contact, Mathilde (Thekla Reuten). Savoring the
peaceful quietude he finds in the mountains of Abruzzo, Jack
accepts the friendship of local priest Father Benedetto (Paolo
Bonacelli) and pursues a torrid liaison with a beautiful woman,
Clara (Violante Placido). Jack and Clara’s time together evolves
into a romance, one seemingly free of danger. But by stepping
out of the shadows, Jack may be tempting fate.
Movie Review:
Breathless.
That was how I felt at the end of The American.
Even as I'm beginning to type this review, I wonder if my
words will live up to the movie's utterly precise *m**ise
en scène*. For once, I am pressured to write a review because
I am afraid it will not live up to a movie's lofty standards.
The American is a quietly devastating study of a hit man,
Jack aka The Butterfly, on the mend. And he is played with
rare restraint by an unshowy George Clooney. That's not to
say he keeps he clothes on throughout the movie. Yes, the
movie offers thrills. But it is not the boisterous *wham-bang*kind
with a lot of double-crossing that you’re likely expecting
based on a misleading trailer playing online (not the one
tagged here).
Its premise fits snugly into the art-house cliché – a thinking
man’s existential thriller. But if you're thinking overlong
indulgent shots, you couldn't be more wrong. Here, the frames
are* *so cleanly composed; its action scenes so meticulously
staged; its sound design so succinct and aurally attuned to
the narrative's cadences. There is never a wasted shot or
sound. Every cinematographic element is finely calibrated
to Corbijn's intent. Each reveal only what director Corbijn
wants to show about Jack's painful existence in purgatory
hell and increasing recalcitrance towards his dangerous profession
fraught with limbos. Jack's presence on earth is hellish as
every sound signals danger. He might as well go deaf.
The American is indeed the closest movie that I've seen since
time immemorial that comes very close to cinematic nirvana.
That its minimalist renditions only serve to direct you to
the single-minded intention and intimate course of understanding
Jack only makes the viewing experience all the more powerful
and pleasurable. In fact, there are a few standout scenes
that evince Corbijn's penchant for pitch-perfect choreography
with dabs of black humour thrown in. One involves a chase
through a cobbled labyrinthine alley and another takes place
in a spartan cafe.
Adjectives like “gorgeous” are often overused for movies that
boast splendid cinematography. Here, it is an apt superlative,
for Corbijn's cinematography isn't mere confection for the
eyes, it is one of precision, contributing to our understanding
of Jack's insular world. His breathtaking top shots of the
bucolic Italian scenery almost seem to map Jack's psychological
terrain.
Rather than succumbing to modern tropes of a suspenser, The
American hearkens back to the Hitchcockian, good old-fashioned
style of suspense, backed by a central three-dimensional character.
Its mini thriller snippets each start with a placid build-up
and climax with a juggernaut. And the good news is, there
are many of such scenes that relish in jolting the audience
in the midst of the bucolic quietude of small town, Castel
Del Monte.
But if you're anticipating a fast-paced thriller of the Bourne
or Bond vein, it's better you check your expectations at the
door because this contemplative movie really takes its time.
But if you are patient, this movie rewards you generously
by the end and will hit your raw nerve. Like all great works
of art, it immerses you into a personal tragedy and makes
sure that tragedy becomes part of you.
Unhurried and confidently directed, The American oozes class
and is a well-modulated character study that will appeal to
fans of Italian maverick Michelangelo Antonioni's brand of
existential cinema. I’m tempted to compare Anton Corbijn to
Italian maverick, Michelangelo Antonioni. Hell, even call
him Antonioni Reincarnate. But such name-calling merely makes
Corbijn sound like a second-rate Antonioni who only lives
in his shadow. As with his impressive feature-length debut
Control, Corbijn shows he is full command of his craft and
is definitely one mighty force to be reckoned with.
Movie Rating:
(Anyone who dares to snooze over this, shoot me!)
Review by Adrian Sim
|
