Worth a Look: The American (2010)

 

Let's hope we will be able to get back to experiencing films like they should be experienced -- in the theaters. Until then, you're likely getting the most out of your streaming services. So in this series, "Worth a Look," these may not be the most critically acclaimed films. But they are still worth your time.

The American

Three and a half stars

Director: Anton Corbijn.

Stars: George Clooney, Violante Placido, Paolo Bonacelli, Irina Bjorklund, Thekla Reuten.

Rated: R (for violence, sexual content and nudity).

Running time: 1:43

“The American” is the anti-action action flick.

 It’s about an assassin hiding out and waiting for instructions for his next job. But there are aren’t elaborate, massive shoot outs; no big explosions and only one small chase scene.

Even the dialogue is sparse. But director Anton Corbijn takes this script based on the novel “A Very Private Gentleman” by Martin Booth and illustrates a more subdued story, a terrific antidote for mindless garbage packed with pyrotechnics.

Clooney plays Jack, an experienced assassin hiding out in Sweden. We don’t know if that’s his real name. It’s not likely. And we don’t know who he works for. He isn’t too different from Clooney’s character in “Up in the Air.” He is good at his job but a loner.

It reminds me of the espionage novels of Graham Greene, in which this is more of a study what motivates the main characters rather than being purely plot driven. But some may not like that.

Jack is forced out of Sweden after other assassins try to kill him. His boss arranges for him to hide out in a small Italian village to await his next job. There, a priest befriends him. Jack is the kind of guy who doesn’t build relationships. Probably interferes too much with his work. Establishing them, then leaving them behind is too messy. Best to not have them at all.

But we see in very subtle ways that Jack isn’t content with being a loner. He looks for a human connection wherever he can find it. Not only does he find one with his priest, he manages to find a hooker who will give him more than what she’s paid to do.

Jack’s final job is to make a rifle so another assassin can pull the trigger. He isn’t told much else. So we learn he not only is a skilled assassin, we see him as a craftsman as he assembles this rifle from a smattering of parts here and there.

The longer he stays in Italy, the closer he gets to Clara (Violante Placido), his hooker. But he also becomes more of a stationary target for the Swedes who were trying to kill him. At this juxtaposition of situations, he decides he wants out of the business altogether once he finishes this job and if he can avoid becoming a victim himself.

Director Anton Corbijn has a real minimalist piece of work here. That’s to say it’s efficient. We aren’t inundated with trite, unnecessary dialogue. There isn’t wasted action, no wasted scenery, no wasted conversations. There is quite a bit of silence, but it’s not unnerving. It makes audiences appreciate that when characters do speak, they make it count.

My only criticism is that this has a bit of “Leaving Las Vegas” in it. When Jack finally commits to wanting to fine a more meaningful relationship with character Clara (Violante Placido), I found myself thinking, “What kind of life can they have? Isn’t this a bit cockeyed optimistic from a character whose every ounce of being seems to be devoted to the pragmatic?” Sure, the argument can be made the prospect of someone who could actually love him is itself impractical and, therefore, attractive to him. It not only fulfills that need to be loved I believe most humans crave, it is an act of rebellion against the way he’s been forced to live his life and conduct his work.

But having another impetus to get out of his line of work probably would have been a better choice in establishing this film’s uniqueness instead of inspiring comparisons to others like it.

Nevertheless, Clooney doesn’t often do marginal work. This is an exceptional film, one that doesn’t seem to waste a single frame.