Monte Casino was the venue where I got the chance to check out the latest blockbuster on the circuit currently. I was pumped to check this one out, this has been the case since the first time I saw the trailer back in August. Trailers do a great job in making a movie seem more than it actually is, I’ve eluded to this fact on numerous occasions before. So, was this the case in this instance also?

Cast – Dylan O’Brien, Michael Keaton, Sanaa Lathan, Shiva Negar & Taylor Kitsch

Director – Michael Cuesta

Genre – Thriller/Action

Running Time – 1h 51m

The Plot

Distributed by Times Media Films, on behalf of Lionsgate, the movie follows the rise of Mitch Rapp (Dylan O’Brien) a CIA black ops recruit under the instruction of Cold War veteran Stan Hurley (Michael Keaton). The pair is then enlisted by CIA Deputy Director Irene Kennedy (Sanaa Lathan) to investigate a wave of apparently random attacks on both military and civilian targets. Together the three discover a pattern in the violence leading them to a joint mission with a lethal Turkish agent (Shiva Negar) to stop a mysterious operative (Taylor Kitsch) intent on starting a World War in the Middle East.

The Good

The movie includes an impressive cast with a plotline that’s also equally intriguing. To put it in simple terms, American Assassin is a full-blown action movie complete with explosive film stunts – from hand-to-hand combat to gun fights, helicopter and car chases. It will satisfy the apatite of any movie lover, especially the action junkies.

The Not So Great

Despite what it offers, American Assassin has its flaws. Maybe it has to do with the fact that I was constantly finding myself comparing it to similar titles such as The Accountant and Jason Bourne, probably not fair of me to do that but it’s hard not to. When compared to such titles, American Assassin doesn’t even come close. It’s not as polished, tight and together as the aforementioned movies.

Outside the comparisons though and purely from an outright movie watching point of view, American Assassin gives one the impression of being loosely knit and not having enough to fully impress. This is disappointing especially when you consider what it initially presents through the trailer and plot. It had the makings of being a great movie but sadly the execution in many instances just wasn’t great.

So, is it a bad movie?

No, not at all. Despite its faults (and maybe not watching from a critic’s point of view), American Assassin still makes for a good watch. This is all thanks to its impressive fight scenes and standout performances from Michael Keaton and Taylor Kitsch.

Officially in cinemas tomorrow, American Assassin is not a great movie nor is it a bad one. When faced with little options for your viewing pleasure, it might just do the job. Even with a running time of just under 2 hours, it does meander a bit and feels much longer, but if you can put up with some of its faults, – my guess is most individuals can – then it should make for a decent watch. Again, it’s not perfect but does a job, American Assassin manages to get a 3 out of 5 rating from me.

Thanks to Ster-Kinekor this past weekend I got to see one of the hottest movie on circuit at the moment, Deepwater Horizon. What made this occasion more special was the fact that it was done in the all new and recently revamped cinema at Cresta Shopping Center. But wait there’s more, we got to see what is known as the “beautiful disaster” of a movie in Cine Prestige! Quite a great treat and experience it was which you can read more about later this week.

Onto the movie, I mentioned earlier that it is a “beautiful disaster” (a phrase I came across from one of the international reviews on the movie) and that’s probably the best way to describe it. So is that a good or bad thing you might ask? Let’s see. Deepwater Horizon is an American biographical disaster thriller film directed by Peter Berg, written by Matthew Sand and Matthew Michael Carnahan and starring Mark Wahlberg, Kurt Russell, John Malkovich, Gina Rodriguez, Dylan O’Brien and Kate Hudson. It is based on the 2010 Deepwater Horizon explosion and oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

Based on a true story, Deepwater Horizon comes hot on the heels of another movie I recently reviewed that’s also based on true events, Sully. Horizon though kind of makes Sully feel like a walk in the park with more heart wrenching and tense moments. Whilst watching you can’t help but wonder why people do such things…being in the middle of the ocean, nowhere really and you are drilling deep down the ocean where you can’t be too sure what lies down there? Even if it is for oil…I still don’t get it. Maybe it’s just me but then again, what do I know.

You might be safe in your theater seat when watching but you can’t help but feel the emotion. The filmmaking is outstanding in that respect. The only thing I will say though is it does take a while to get going with the first hour or so dedicated to introducing the characters and not much really going on but when you consider that it’s not that long of a watch it makes sense why they would do that.

The movie eases us through by focusing on the working-class crew on the oil rig, that include chief electrician Mike Williams (Mark Wahlberg) and dynamic positioning officer Andrea Fleytas (Gina Rodriguez). Once everybody’s aboard the rig, located 65 km off the coast of Louisiana and drilling 5,000 feet below sea level, the situation starts heating up and gets interesting – On the record, the current job is $53 million and 43 days over budget, crazy right? The workers – led by Jimmy “Mr Jimmy” Harrell (Kurt Russell) start feeling the pressure from BP (yip that one) bigwigs like Don Vidrine (John Malkovich), who are supposedly “visiting” to make sure things start moving more efficiently. With the pressure building there’s a need to start speeding things up with the right safety measures being ignored in the process. That then sets the scene for what’s to come and what the whole movie is centered on.

Cast – Mark Wahlberg, Kurt Russell, John Malkovich, Gina Rodriguez, Dylan O’Brien, Kate Hudson

Genre – Biographical thriller

Director – Peter Berg

Running Time – 107 minutes

As always, not going to spoil it for you, what I will say is it’s a great movie and indeed a beautiful disaster that was well crafted and a great tribute to the lives that were lost (see below image for those and here for more info on the real story).

Deepwater Horizon gets a solid 3 out 5 rating from me.