Verdict: 2.5/5
Suspending belief is something that is a must when it comes to spy thrillers, but ‘The Amateur’ takes things way too far with a thin plot and shallow sell points.
At two hours and three minutes, it’s also way too long. Somewhere in there is a decent 90 minute, snappy action flick – but it’s lost in scenes that drag on way too long and parts that do nothing to advance the plot.
Rami Malek stars as a CIA data analyst named Charles Heller, confined to the basement levels of intelligence headquarters while all the big dogs make decisions well above him – both literally and in pay grade.
His wife Sarah (Rachel Brosnahan) is killed in a terror attack in London, which while central to the plot is actually super disappointing because she’s one of the real highlights of the opening part of the film – it would have been great to see more of her charm throughout.
Heller decides he wants to find the killers himself – and seek revenge. And so he convinces his bosses (or moreso, bribes them) to train him to become a killer – a difficult task, given he can’t shoot straight and looks like he’d run from a spider if he spotted one.
Heller also knows there’s more to this attack than meets the eye – and so emerges a triangle of deceit and a cat-and-mouse game not only with Sarah’s killers, but his own CIA colleagues.
There’s a good movie begging to escape here, but it didn’t manage to find its way out.
Still, there’s a few epic scenes and the overall story is enough to keep you engaged. It’s just nothing to write home about.
See this movie at Hoyts Penrith
