Interesting minutia drags down fatalistic 'American'
Anton Corbijn's contemplative espionage drama "The American" marks a throwback to the existentialist spy movies of the 1960s flavored with a touch of European cinema.
That's code for: It doesn't come close to the action-packed thriller that the trailers and TV commercials suggest.
This fatalistic character study - and this film does a lot of studying - is steeped in the creeping sense of paranoia, isolation, distrust and loneliness experienced by an American assassin named Jack, played with soulful eyes and a heavy heart by George Clooney.
Forget the hyperactive high jinks of Jason Bourne and the thrills of a 007 feature film.
If "The American" recalls Ian Fleming's James Bond, it's only during the spy's literary, never-filmed introspective moments when Agent 007 exercised in his hotel room to stay fit and stave off boredom.
Clooney plays Jack, an American agent whom we never know much about.
After dispatching an attacker during a snowy shootout in Sweden, Jack gets orders from his gravel-voiced supervisor (Johan Leysen) to head to Rome and wait. And wait.
Eventually, Jack meets his conscience in the form of a kindly priest (Paolo Bonacelli) who possesses a heart of gold and exceptional English skills.
Jack also meets his might-have-been dream girl in the form of a beautiful, loving prostitute (Rome-born actress Violante Placido) who also possesses a heart of gold and absolutely no latent male hatred issues.
The plot, or what passes for one in "The American," kicks in when a hot, international assassin of vague political orientation (Thekla Reuten) approaches Jack to build a specialized weapon she can use for an unspecified target.
Jack creates a compact, rapid-fire sniper rifle with flash suppressors and sound deflectors, from scratch. He meticulously fits the metal components to the wooden stock, and fine-tunes the instrument of death with the finesse of a master craftsman.
We see how careful Jack is when making mercury-tipped, exploding bullets by drilling into the slugs and finishing them off with loving strokes of a metal file.
"The American" loves this sort of interesting minutia, but at the cost of its pace and narrative interest. It also loves long, lengthy sequences with Jack walking down lonely cobblestone Roman streets in search of his soul.
The director, Netherlands-born Anton Corbijn, hails from the world of music videos and possesses a truly cinematic eye for visuals that tell stories without the need for words.
He finds a soul mate in co-producer Clooney, who projects an irresistible blend of sadness and self-reliance.
This is a remarkable performance by Clooney, who captures a smart and experienced assassin who's lost his edge.
He has become haunted by his deeds, and is destined to spend every waking moment exhaustively scanning his surroundings for signs of danger.
For he knows they will come.
If he waits.
<p class="factboxheadblack"> "The American"</p>
<p class="News">★★½</p>
<p class="News"><b>Starring:</b> George Clooney, Violante Placido, Johan Leysen, Thekla Reuten</p>
<p class="News"><b>Directed by:</b> Anton Corbijn</p>
<p class="News"><b>Other: </b>A Focus Films release. Rated R for nudity, sexual situations, violence. 106 minutes</p>
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