The Amateur

Hey Hollywood -- we need more movies like these. Not a remake. Not a sequel. Dramatic. Something ANYBODY over the age of 12 could be taken to, AND enjoy. This is the first decent movie I've seen in months. I'd go to the theaters every week, if there was something to see.

Back to the movie. Interesting premise. Not a whodunnit. More of a "howsHegonnadoit". Acting on the whole was was fair -- but the main plot characters kept it going well. Remind Malik, Caitríona Balfe, Laurence Fishburne, Rachel Brosnahan -- all gave great performances.

The pacing was good -- knowing how many revenge subplots were going to happen kept the movie moving without me checking my watch.

Thank you for an original movie.

And a new franchise is born. Falling somewhere between Jason, Bourne and James Bond, with a dash of the tech guy from Mission impossible, Remi Malik's The Amateur is a wonderfully entertaining and intelligent thriller, with extraordinarily strong supporting acts from just about everybody else involved, including an excellent Lawrence Fishburne, really on form here in a part which gives him real substance for once.

In a year, which has seen its fair share of lack Gloucester movies, this is a real crowd, pleaser, and no doubt we do well in box office as well as on home screen screens. Malik is exceptional believable, and as usual, evoking real emotion.

I just saw The Amateur and I was pleasantly surprised. I am not a fan of a lot of the non-stop action movies that leave one feeling as if they had been shot out a cannon for 90 minutes, and this movie wasn't like that. There was, I thought, a nice build up that gave you a sense of the character and that he was an unlikely choice as an international assassin. I the thought the use of suspense was good, ratcheting things up as it went along, and I was surprised and intrigued by some of the twists and escapes. I haven't seen a lot of Rami Malek, but I really liked him in this role. I always like Lawrence Fishburn, and he was good, as were a couple of heavies that Charlie outwits in the end. All in all, a good movie, one I was glad to have seen. If they make a sequel, I will likely see that as well.

The Amateur had the potential to be a gripping thriller, especially with such a strong lead actor at the center of it all. Unfortunately, despite his undeniable talent, he felt underutilized in a script that lacked depth and nuance. The dialogue was particularly weak, often falling flat and leaving the actor with little to work with emotionally or dramatically.

The story seemed intended to immerse us in the character's frustration and grief as he searched for those responsible for his wife's death. However, this emotional core never quite landed. The relationship between the main character and his wife wasn't developed enough for us to truly feel the weight of the loss. The early scenes meant to establish their bond felt forced and lacked any real passion, which made it harder to invest in his motivations later on.

What's more frustrating is how much time the film spent on elements that didn't serve the story, while barely touching on those that could have added emotional depth and weight. The pacing and focus felt misplaced, detracting from what could have been a much more powerful narrative.

On the technical side, the cinematography was quite strong - it's clearly a well-shot film. However, the color grading choices didn't always work in its favor. Many scenes were overly dark, making it difficult to follow what was happening, at least on the cinema screen where I watched it.

Overall, The Amateur is a decent choice if you're looking for something to fill a lazy Sunday afternoon. But it's not a film that lingers or leaves a strong impact. With better writing and emotional grounding, it could have been so much more.

7.25/10 STARS - Saw this was based on a book and now I'm interested to listen to the audiobook (narrated by Scott Brick, who is a fantastic narrator). The movie itself was pretty good, and I enjoyed it. There were some issues here and there with conveniences when it came to his ability to get things done and some moments where suspension of disbelieve was required. Perhaps this was partly because it felt like there was a lot omitted along the way, not clearly showing us how he was able to accomplish what he did. Maybe some more scenes showing him having to figure out how to get to where he needed to be in order to sabotage something would have been good (like in the swimming pool scene). But since this movie was already more than two hours long, I suppose it might be a bit much to show us everything. I liked that we got a good feel for the main characters intense grief over the loss of his wife and his determination to make everyone pay - yet totally out of his element when it came to the brutality of face-to-face killing. Video review will be available on my YouTube channel shortly.