American Ultra (2015)

A stoner - who is in fact a government agent - is marked as a liability and targeted for extermination. But he's too well-trained and too high for them to handle.

Director:

Nima Nourizadeh

Writer:

Max Landis

Stars:

Jesse Eisenberg, Kristen Stewart, Connie Britton

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jesse Eisenberg	...	Mike Howell
Kristen Stewart	...	Phoebe Larson
Topher Grace	...	Adrian Yates
Connie Britton	...	Victoria Lasseter
Walton Goggins	...	Laugher
John Leguizamo	...	Rose
Bill Pullman	...	Krueger
Tony Hale	...	Petey Douglas
Stuart Greer	...	Sheriff Watts
Michael Papajohn	...	Otis
Monique Ganderton	...	Crane
Nash Edgerton	...	Beedle
Paul Andrew O'Connor	...	Diesel
Freddie Poole	...	Potter
Ilram Choi	...	Newton

Storyline

Small-town stoner Mike Howell (Jesse Eisenberg) spends most of his time getting high and writing a graphic novel about a superhero monkey. What Mike doesn't know is that he was trained by the CIA to be a lethal killing machine. When the agency targets him for termination, his former handler activates his latent skills, turning the mild-mannered slacker into a deadly weapon. Now, the utterly surprised Mike must use his newfound abilities to save himself and his girlfriend from getting wasted.

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Plot Keywords:

stoner | slacker | small town | cia | watching television | 

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Taglines:

Everyone's getting smoked

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Genres:

Action | Comedy | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong bloody violence, language throughout, drug use and some sexual content

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official Instagram

Country:

USA Switzerland

Language:

English Mandarin

Release Date:

21 August 2015 (USA)

Also Known As:

Operación Ultra

Filming Locations:

New Orleans, Louisiana, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$28,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$5,454,284 (USA) (21 August 2015)

Gross:

$14,434,604 (USA) (2 October 2015)

Company Credits

Production Co:

PalmStar Media, Bridge Finance Company, The, Circle of Confusion

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Auro 11.1 Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In the trailer Topher Grace is imitating how the people get blown up by a bomb, in the movie this scene is changed into "the kid gloves are off."

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Goofs

The skyline of Manila, Phillipines may not be Manila. I suspect it is some place in the US. Can someone confirm this?

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Quotes

[first lines]
Adrian Yates: Where do you want to begin?
Mike Howell: [thinking, seeing flashbacks] Dustpan. Spoon. Noodles. Bear. Frying pan. Fire. Apollo Ape. "Marry Me."Where did it all begin?
Mike Howell: Okay, it started three days ago, in the town of Liman, West Virginia. It's where I lived with my girlfriend, Phoebe. She is the only good thing that's ever happened to me. I honestly cannot even remember my life before her. We were the perfect fucked-up couple. She was perfect, and I was the fuck-up. And we were really, really ...

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Crazy Credits

During the closing credits, there is an "Apollo Ape" cartoon depicting the continuity of the film's final scene.

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Connections

References Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (2001)

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Soundtracks

Ghetto Thang
Performed by De La Soul

User Reviews

Tonal Mess

If the new movie American Ultra was half as clever as it seems to think it is, it would be a bawdy treat. The design is extremely stylish and even nobly unique, but underneath those flairs of fun is one of the most identity-confused films ever, a true mess of genres and tones that never quite finds its footing. The cool premise and individual moments of fun can't overcome how poorly executed the final product is. Ultimately, AU is proof that a mash-up of good scenes without a cohesive center does not a good movie make. Eisenberg and Stewart play a pot-loving couple who learn that their lives may be more than they seem as they run into trouble with the CIA. It's Pineapple Express meets Bourne, but can't decide which one it more wants to emulate. At both times absurdly funny and oddly sincere, all the performers seem to be in different movies. On the villain side, we've got Goggins giving a Joker-like performance as a darkly hilarious, mentally disturbed madman, while Grace seems to think he's still on a sitcom, delivering lines with off-putting snark. On the other end, Stewart and Eisenberg fumble between broad comedy and indie drama with little clarity or success blending the two. Not that it's devoid of laughs; it manages some humor when it focuses on the identity crisis of a slacker-turned-trained-killer. Unfortunately, our hero wasn't the only one trying to awkwardly discover himself; so was the movie. What could've been an inventive little comedy ala Scott Pilgrim or Zombieland is an ultra-mess.