The American (2010)

An assassin hides out in Italy for one last assignment.

Director:

Anton Corbijn

Writers:

Rowan Joffe (screenplay), Martin Booth (novel)

Stars:

George Clooney, Paolo Bonacelli, Violante Placido

4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
George Clooney	...	Jack / Edward
Irina Björklund	...	Ingrid (as Irina Bjorklund)
Lars Hjelm	...	Hunter #1
Björn Granath	...	Hunter #2
Johan Leysen	...	Pavel
Paolo Bonacelli	...	Father Benedetto
Giorgio Gobbi	...	Man on Vespa
Silvana Bosi	...	Old Cheese Vendor
Thekla Reuten	...	Mathilde
Guido Palliggiano	...	Waiter (Market)
Samuel Vauramo	...	Young Swedish Man (as Samuli Vauramo)
Antonio Rampino	...	Postmaster
Violante Placido	...	Clara
Filippo Timi	...	Fabio
Ilaria Cramerotti	...	Hooker #2

Storyline

Alone among assassins, Jack is a master craftsman. When a job in Sweden ends more harshly than expected for this American abroad, he vows to his contact Pavel that his next assignment will be his last. Jack reports to the Italian countryside, where he holes up in a small town and relishes being away from death for a spell. The assignment, as specified by a Belgian woman, Mathilde, is in the offing as a weapon is constructed. Surprising himself, Jack seeks out the friendship of local priest Father Benedetto and pursues romance with local woman Clara. But by stepping out of the shadows, Jack may be tempting fate.

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Plot Keywords:

female killer | dark hero | anti hero | female full frontal nudity | woman undressing for a man | 

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Taglines:

George Clooney is

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for violence, sexual content and nudity

Details

Official Sites:

Official Blog Official Facebook

Country:

USA UK

Language:

English Italian

Release Date:

1 September 2010 (USA)

Also Known As:

A Very Private Gentleman

Filming Locations:

Castel del Monte, L'Aquila, Abruzzo, Italy

Box Office

Budget:

$20,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$16,662,333, 5 September 2010, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$35,606,376, 4 November 2010

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$67,876,281, 4 November 2010

Company Credits

Production Co:

Focus Features,Greenlit Rights,Smokehouse Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

105 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital DTS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Violante Placido is the daughter of Simonetta Stefanelli who, as Apollonia, stunned Michael Corleone, in The Godfather (1972) some 40 years before this film's similar American-hiding-in-Italy was stunned by her daughter.

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Goofs

When Jack and Mathilde first meet outside the café, the scene has two shots: one facing Jack, the other facing Mathilde, switching between the two as they talk. When the camera is facing Jack, Mathilde has her sunglasses in her hand, but when the camera is facing Mathilde, the sunglasses are on the table. The position of the sunglasses on the table also shifts during the course of the scene.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Ingrid: You know, I thought I maybe drive into town. You want something?
Jack: No.

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Crazy Credits

The credits at the end are in order of appearance. However, the 3 hookers are listed in the order: Hooker #2, Hooker #3 and Hooker #1, which logically doesn't make sense.

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Connections

Featured in Being George Clooney (2016)

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Soundtracks

Timmy
from the Motion Picture Once Upon a Time in the West (C'era una volta il West (1968))
Composed and Conducted by Ennio Morricone
Courtesy of Paramount Pictures and IDM Music Ltd. o.b.o. GDM Music s.r.l.

User Reviews

A victim of bad marketing

As an action thriller, I'd give this film maybe a 2/10. But that is not what it was intended to be. The ads and marketing of the film falsely suggest this is an action film, and that is a great disservice both to the film and to the audience. I suspect that the film's rating would be higher had the marketing been honest. It is almost the opposite of action: it's a quiet, introspective film. I didn't expect a thriller and so I wasn't disappointed.

As usual in this kind of film, there is not a lot of backstory. We never find out exactly where Jack came from, how he found his job, why he could take such a job, etc. But that's not really the point. We never really find out much about the back story on the other characters, either. I think we actually found out more about the priest.

I enjoyed the film in about the same way I would enjoy a short story, which focuses on a few points rather than furnishing a history and full explanation.