Review of Allied (2016) by Greatmartin — 24 Nov 2016

“They don’t make movies like they use to,” is a cry you hear from older/old folks and “Allied” shows them to be right. Director Robert Zemeckis and writer Steven Knight seem to be doing homage to a certain spy thriller genre that was standard in Hollywood during the 1940s and production values from clothes, cars, sets, etc., are there but it is excruciating slow paced not having the speed, editing, that this type of movie should have. There is Casablanca, a much more glamorous Rick’s Bar, a prettier Rick here called Max while IIsa is now a French spy but no one even close to Renault/Claude Raines, Ferrari/Sidney Greenstreet, a Nazi Major Strassi/Conrad Veidt, Peter Lorre/Ugarte nor a Sam/Dooley Wilson to play an equivalent to “As Time Goes By”.

If you have seen the trailer you know that the movie is about two spies who fall in love when they meet for an assignment in Casablanca, marry, have a child, live in London and one has to prove the other isn’t a counter-spy. Finding out the truth takes about an hour and gives, maybe, 5 minutes of suspense and you won’t find/hear “I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship”.

The film revolves around Max (Brad Pitt) and Marianne (Marion Cotillard) but, sadly, there is no chemistry between them and other characters, including Lizzy Caplan (from “The Masters of Sex” HBO series), who plays Max’s Lesbian sister, don’t add anything to the movie. Okay Knight wanted to make the movie more 2016 friendly but adding a Lesbian and a lot of the “F” word doesn’t help and neither does the very phony London blitz that looks like a fireworks show.

The only emotionally moving scene is a brief one between Max and a pilot going on his first mission behind enemy lines. The ending not only has a Hollywood ending but, is way too long and softens the impact of what takes place just before.

“Allied” runs 124 minutes, about 20 minutes too long, and seems to have its heart in the right place but shows they “don’t make them like they use to” though the director and writer tried with the production aspects achieving the goal.