I have got to hand it to you Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences, the Oscar nominations this year were full of surprises. It’s not going to win but I was very excited to see Get Out up for Best Picture along with Jordan Peele’s nomination for Best Director. I was also a little surprised to see The Square up for Best Foreign Language feature since the professional critics seemed so split on it.
But we are not talking high art this month, oh no! This month, let’s talk about a pair of movies that feature Hollywood stars that have been cranking out films for decades: Tom Cruise and Jackie Chan. True, Cruise has had three Oscar nominations and Jackie Chan received an honorary Oscar in 2016, but these are not names you expect to see come award season.
American Made (2017) [R]
Let’s start with the younger actor of the two, shall we? American Made is the story of Bobby Seal, a TWA pilot who was recruited by the CIA to assist with their Central American operations. Based on a true story, the film follows Barry as he becomes a drug smuggler, traffics weapons, launders money and eventually becomes entangled in the Iran / Contra affair of the 1980s.
As tenuous and risky as Seal’s actions sound, director Doug Liman does a good job of transferring that sense of unease to the viewer. I found myself wondering on several occasions “How is he getting out of this thing?” A good deal of that tension comes from the deft direction and editing. This isn’t a movie you will fall asleep watching as the pacing is breezy and keeps you engaged.
But ultimately, this film comes down to the performance of Tom Cruise. And I can’t lie. It’s pretty weird seeing a 55-year-old Tom Cruise pretending to be a young dad or someone naive enough to think you could just bury dirty money and not get caught. It’s also pretty weird to see a 55-year-old in a love scene with a 34-year-old, but that’s Hollywood I guess. But American Made gives Cruise what is probably the best written role he has had in a long time and he does an admirable job with it.
Say what you will about Tom Cruise, he’s given us a ton of classic movies. Is American Made going to be one of those classics? No, I wouldn’t think so. But that doesn’t mean it isn’t interesting and well worth your time. You just may not walk away quoting lines from it.
7 paws out of 10
The Foreigner (2017) [R]
Speaking of someone who has given us tons of movies, our next film, The Foreigner, stars Jackie Chan who has made more than 200 movies. No, you read that correctly. He is truly one-of-a-kind.
This film, The Foreigner, is about an anguished father who is looking for vengeance after the death of his daughter in a rogue IRA bombing. What makes this novel is not that the 64-year-old is still doing his own stunts (though, of course he is still doing his own stunts), but that instead of his trademark slapstick humor, Jackie’s character is actually very stoic.
Don’t get me wrong, there are still plenty of Jackie Chan action moments but The Foreigner feels more like a political thriller than just a straight up action film. The film also gives Chan a chance to do something I have never seen him do before: cry. Part of the beauty of Jackie Chan movies is that his characters are always such lovable, happy-go-lucky guys. It is genuinely heart-breaking to see Chan as an anguished father.
Now don’t go thinking that The Foreigner is some award winning fair. The film goes a little too fast through the setup. I’ve seen the direction described as “no-nonsense” and it does feel like it was less of a passion project and more of a paycheck. The plot is a little convoluted for a movie that is really just a revenge film. And not all of the acting is terribly convincing. But you’re not watching this for Pierce Brosnan or any one else. You are watching this for Jackie Chan.
Even if you haven’t been a fan of his before, you really should give The Foreigner a shot. It may not be beautiful. It may not be thought-provoking. But you are going to have a good time.
7.5 paws out of 10
As always, if you have a movie you think I should check out or you want to talk further about one of these reviews, drop me a line at collincougar@collin.edu or leave me a message on Facebook.