Review of The American (2010) by Michael Y — 19 Jun 2011

It's not as bad as I've been lead to believe, and not as good either. The American is a VERY slow paced thriller, though very well performed and crafted, the story isn't one that's all that different.

George Clooney stars as Jack/Edward/Mr. Butterfly/The American. He takes ordinary mechanical tools and creats customized weapons. After an assassination attempt with his girlfriend left dead, Jack seeks shelter in a small villiange in Italy and continues his work for a woman assassin. Jack is traumatized and left emotionally cold, but there might be comfort for him yet as he continually sees the same prostitute. But he is still in danger, with no one to trust. The American serves as a character study, one of isolation, human contact and redemption. This is not your average thriller though, and is not as in-depth as the Bourne movies. The American is suttle and dramatic, relying on us to recognize the emotions of Jack and his mindset. This is a nicely crafted movie, despite its slow as hell pacing. But I would say that it's because of the lack of creativity that drags this movie. We see Jack redeem his personal trust, openness of his heart and his spiritual redemption, but all told in an unoriginal way. Roger Ebert compared The American to good old classic samurai movies, but for me, leave that subject matter to the classic movies. The American may have that classic, japanese cinema feel, but its a story cinema history is already familiar with. Especially the main character falling for a super hot prostitute.

Anton Corbijn slowly paces and directs this spy thriller. It's extremely slow pace does serve a purpose though, creating an emotional isolation effect where we don't just see how lonely Jack's life is, but we can feel it as well. The villiage where this movie is filled is quite beautiful and peaceful. You can see it as a peaceful setting, but for Jack, it is just another place to be as far away from a normal life as possible. The slow pace is also great also for the purpose of making the action and suspece scenes all the more exciting. It might seem slow, but the movie is well directed and the cinematography is wonderful, fully capturing the highly needed emotional depth and feel, whether it be of loneliness, paranoia or beauty of the world.

I can't say the movie is badly directed. It's pacing is classical and unique and the shots are very well filmed. I can't say anything bad about the performances. George Clooney's range is awesome, and the supporting cast is just as wonderful. But I think The American could have been something far more better if it had a more unique story to work with. But as a character study and paranoia movie, The American is well done.