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A Deliberate, Methodical, Quiet, Moody "American"....
-
Feb 5, 2011
- by woopak_the_thrill
- posted in Movie Hype
Rating:
I’ve seen a series of mixed reviews on director Anton Corbijn’s “The American”. A few of them gave the movie high marks while the majority gave it a less than average rating, claiming the movie was such a slow-moving boring affair that they had to fight falling asleep on it. Well, I am not the type who dislikes slow-moving films, I actually revel in them as long as the narrative is compelling, the acting is great and the cinematography is impressive. I would have to say that “The American” is a victim of its own attempts in sensationalism; with George Clooney in the lead, it would be easy to dismiss it as your cookie-cutter action film complete with explosions and fast-moving momentum. If you are going to watch this film, forget about the misleading trailer and go with the movie as a moving, deliberate, methodical drama-thriller that has the sensibilities of foreign films. The casual movie watcher would call it slow, and those looking for action thrills will be very disappointed.
+4
This is a film that goes into the psyche of a former hitman and is an adaptation of the novel by Martin Boothe entitled “A Very Private Gentleman” and may indeed be the better title. The film is a tense, focused, by-the-numbers tale with a meditation about life with some quick, well-handed shoot outs. There are no explosions and no musical score to generate emotion. This is the story of a former assassin who is trying to live past that bloody life, and for me, I am truly sorry that I missed this film in theaters and for me, this may be one of Clooney‘s finest films.
Jack (George Clooney) is a man who lived in violence. After a botched assassination attempt on his life, Jack flees to the Italian countryside. Always on the move and on the alert for danger which may not come or may be just around the corner, Jack keeps to himself while providing supplies to a beautiful woman called Mathilde (Thekla Reuten), he begins to appreciate the quiet and simplicity of the way of life in this small town. As he accepts the friendship of a priest (Paolo Bonacelli) and he pursues a torrid liaison with a sexy prostitute, Clara (Violante Placido), Jack feels that he may be free of danger. But is he really?
The film has the flavor, mood and atmosphere as a 60’s French crime epic or perhaps a 70’s Italian film by Leone; somehow it reminded me of the Austrian film “Revanche” the way it uses limited dialogue and musical scores. With “The American”, as with foreign films, one needs to read between the lines. The direction ensures that each dialogue has meaning, every action or reaction has a hidden meaning and it makes the film as one meditative character study of a man whose past profession and life calls for violence. I didn’t think the film was slow, for me it carried enough cinematic ‘zest’ that drew me into its screenplay. Yes, it requires patience as the film is not your conventional kind, but I enjoyed the way it developed its narrative through the feelings of a former hitman.
“The American” asks the viewer for the motivation and doesn’t show the motivation. The leading character played by Clooney has relationships, and yet all of them seem so far and kept at an arm’s length as displayed in the opening act. Jack is a man who knows that his life would one day end in violence, he knows betrayal is a part of his affairs and so he is paranoid, he always looks behind his shoulder and he tries not to establish relationships; each sound or person can be seen as a potential threat. One would wonder why he would create a close one with a beautiful prostitute and the answer is in the film’s opening act. Jack is a man who wants to finish his affairs, even in hiding, he does what he does well, and in this case creating a custom weapon for another. Clooney was surprisingly quite convincing as the lead character. He doesn’t say much but the direction makes his actions speak much loader. (observe his eyes while he puts together a rifle at home, you‘ll see a longing and tired soul) I was impressed how Clooney pushed the boundaries of his range.
The supporting characters weren’t mere fodder to be sure. The priest (played by Palo Bonacelli) was the reflection of a righteous man who had done bad things in the past which was hinted at, speaks volumes in the narrative despite their limited screen time together. The woman called Mathilde (Thekla Reuten) is a representation of one who is beginning a life of violence whereas Jack wants to leave it behind. The relationship with Clara is one last effort as to not be alone, it was an expression of being human and having the need for companionship; could be love or could be a simple atonement for his past crimes.
The cinematography by Martin Ruhe accentuates the direction as he makes each shadow a potential threat, each compressed camera shot further plays off the labyrinth-like town and the town is given character as with the rarity of passer-bys and renders the place with possible tension as the sounds and corners may hide a hidden threat. There are some sequences with a soundtrack, it is a beautiful haunting score by Gronemeyer that captures the soul of our protagonist. The film also has some sex scenes and quite a good number of nudity, so please take notice of current company.
“The American” will be one of those underrated, underappreciated films that came as an underdog in 2010 and will remain as one in 2011 on Blu-ray and Dvd; and this is quite sad. Due to its sorry attempts in marketing the film as an action film, the film will never reach a deserved appreciation. True, it does have a narrow focus and is meant for the esoteric audience, but I guarantee your patience and investment of thought will pay off. The direction never meant the film to be conventional, he relies on observation, keeps to some ambiguity as to actions speaking and words unspoken. It is one film that keeps its sight on one person, his world and how we see such a world. For me, “The American” is the surprise hit of 2010.
Highly Recommended! [4+ Out of 5 Stars]
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More The American reviews
I recall reading or hearing somewhere that “The American” isn’t quite what you expect. I never gave that much thought until I watch the movie. The promos for this movie depict it as an action and/or suspense film. This is somewhat misleading and why trailers/previews at times can either praise a film or condemn them before they are released. I can say that I really, really enjoyed this motion picture. I am not going to rehash … more
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*** out of **** Depending on your personal definition of true joy, "The American" could very well be all kinds of fun. It's not the kind of fun that would usually get labeled with such a commonly-used word, but perhaps it's entertaining on a number of different levels. Do not go in to the film expecting an action-spy thriller. While "The American" does indeed have a thriller in its guts, it's mostly a drama; and a damn good one too. To say the least, "The American" is different … more
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THE AMERICAN Written by Rowan Joffe Directed by Anton Corbijn Starring George Clooney, Thekla Reuten and and Violante Placido Father Benedetto: You are American. You think you can escape history. You live for the present. Ordinarily, when Americans travel abroad, they are expected to be boorish, loud and down right disruptive. In Anton Corbijn’s second feature, THE AMERICAN, it is practically … more
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After a trip cross country and 3 months away from the movies I wanted to spend some quality time in a darkened theater being entertained by the moving pictures that played out before my eyes, however this not the welcome I was expected. The American is a slow moving and depressing story unlike any of Clooney's "traditional" films and expected abilities. With little to no dialog the passing of time feels as though it takes hours rather than … more
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I want you to picture yourself sitting in a room, it is dark, and the only source of light is a low hanging fixture that is swinging back and forth back and forth. You look down at the steel table in front of you and before you see a gun, you stare at that gun intensely. Sitting across from you in the shallow light is another person. You don't know who this person is or why he or she is there sitting across from you but as you look at that person and then you look at … more
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If you like slow moving and slow paced movies then according to my wife and I you will love this movie. We usually love George Clooney movies and when we first saw the previews it looked exciting, and the fact that my wife has actually been to Italy and taken a lot of pictures Italy is really beautiful. The previews did not dispute this fact. This movie is very slow moving and George is a man of little words in the show. I am used to seeing him run the show just like he did in all of his Oceans … more
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Dark, brooding, methodical, meticulous, and engrossing Anton Crobjin's "The American" is easily one of 2010's most morally complex and engaging films of the year, a true masterpiece. "The American" is a stylish and daring return to old school filmmaking of the 60's, 70's 80's and early to mid 90's, this is a slow paced and thought provoking look at what a life as being a deliver of death can do too one man's soul and mind. Of how … more
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About the reviewer
William (woopak_the_thrill)
Please "Like" Film and Movies and Keep the Economy strong....LOL!! My Interests: Movies, Anime, History, Martial … more
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About this movie
The American is a 2010 American thriller film directed by Anton Corbijn and starring George Clooney, Thekla Reuten, Violante Placido, Irina Björklund, and Paolo Bonacelli. It is an adaptation of the 1990 novel A Very Private Gentleman by Martin Booth. The film opened on September 1, 2010. A trailer for the film was released on May 3, 2010.
References
http://www.fandango.com/theamerican_130692/movieoverview
http://trailers.apple.com/trailers/focus_features/theamerican/
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1440728/
Official site
http://focusfeatures.com/film/the_american/
view wiki
References
http://www.fandango.com/theamerican_130692/movieoverview
http://trailers.apple.com/trailers/focus_features/theamerican/
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1440728/
Official site
http://focusfeatures.com/film/the_american/
Cast:
George Clooney,
Silvana Bosi,
Paolo Bonacelli,
Johan Leysen,
Irina Björklund,
Violante Placido,
Thekla Reuten,
Filippo Timi,
Lars Hjelm,
Giorgio Gobbi
Director:
Anton Corbijn
Genre:
Crime,
Drama
Release Date:
1 September 2010 (USA)
MPAA Rating:
R
Screen Writer:
Rowan Joffe,
Martin Booth
Runtime:
105 min
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Yay for Karen! We all love Karen! (gives her a big hug)
oh, another thing. Never let it be said that I only review dark, mature comic books. I also do nostalgic ones.
I am planning to buy this on Bluray sometime soon I'm just waiting for the price of the DVD to come down a bit. But what I found most intriguing about this film is that from the opening scene with Jack in the cottage you are instantly hooked, you can not stop watching this as it just sucks you deeper and deeper into its world that-to me- is what filmmaking is all about. But the scenery and the engrossing atmosphere never overpower these multi-dimensional characters, I have an old saying if the characters have no power or are not interesting than the film falls. And the characters in this film are some of the best written yet and you are right this is one of Clooney's best films to date. And yes you can expect a review from me sometime soon I am kind of swamped right now I let my reviews backup on me so I have some serious catching up to do but I will review this film.