Review of A Most Wanted Man (2014) by Gary B — 09 Sep 2014

So disappointing, especially with the rave reviews on Flixter. I've never seen a movie spend so much time with character development and I ultimately did not care about any of them. I love Phillip Seymour Hoffman and think this was his flattest performance ever.

I wouldn't even advise anyone to wait for it to hit DVD. I would tell them to wait for it to hit HBO and then put it on before bedtime as a sleep aid. I found myself thinking of various "would I rather" scenarios while watching. Would I rather be watching a terrible Adam Sandler movie? Yes. Would I rather be home mowing the lawn? Yes. I actually re-laced both of my shoes in the theater so the laces cross over at the same point on both of them. I should have put my shoes back on and walked out.

The only reason I didn't walk out of the theater is because I thought the story MIGHT be going somewhere. When the lights in the theater came on before the credits rolled, I said to my wife, "please tell me that wasn't the end.".

And Rachel McAdams? Really? This seems like a role that was hand crafted for Diane Kruger. I found myself picking apart her German accent and not even listening to what she was saying.

I wasn't expecting an adrenaline thrill ride, but I expected something closer to Charlie Wilson's War or Spy Game. Characters. A concise plot that you want to immerse yourself in.

I've done ride alongs with police officers and they are universally boring. The lesson learned was that it's not all foot chases and car pursuits. This film felt like a "ride along" with the German version of the CIA.