Director Doug Liman
Genre Crime | Thriller
Cast Tom Cruise, Domhnall Gleeson, Sarah Wright, Jesse Plemons
Rating R
Release Date September 29th, 2017
“A pilot lands work for the CIA and as a drug runner in the south during the 1980s.”
American Made is an action comedy/crime thriller based on the real-life of Barry Seal, and his involvement with the CIA, as well as what came to be known as the Medellin drug Cartel. The film is directed by the talented Doug Liman, the man behind The Bourne Identity as well as the hit 2014 sci-fi action flick Edge of Tomorrow. The cast includes Tom Cruise, Domhnall Gleeson, Sarah Wright, and Jesse Plemons.
With Tom Cruise delivering one of his absolute best performances in recent memory, American Made is relentlessly entertaining and one heck of a crazy story. Rarely is a big-screen adaptation able to truly capture the insanity of its real-life counterpart, but in this instance it is spot on. American Made introduces audiences to the risk taking and equally charismatic Barry Seal, a man who values family just as much as he values money and a good old fashioned dose of adrenaline. Doug Liman is working his way up the short list of my favorite directors after absolutely killing it with Edge of Tomorrow, also starring Tom Cruise alongside Emily Blunt, and now he brings us an extremely entertaining story based on true events. Liman has an eye for quality filmmaking, and it seems that he also prefers Cruise at his disposal. Something that stood out to me with American Made was a filming style that was reminiscent of a documentary that was perfectly edited to piece together a uniquely entertaining story. Utilizing creative camera work and top-notch cinematography, Liman found a way to make the film feel like raw footage, allowing viewers the opportunity to feel like they had an intimate look at Seal and his many escapades. The entertainment factor American Made provides is absolutely undeniable, essentially guaranteeing you will not take your eyes off the screen, and as soon as you leave the theater you will start researching the crazy story it was based on. American Made has a long list of pros, but it is not without its fair share of cons. Now a few things that stood out to me, which may not be an issue for casual viewers, included the lack of overall intensity of the film or what some may refer to as the "grit" factor. It was pretty clear early on that American Made was going to have a lighter tone overall, which to me took away from the realism as far as Seal's dealings with the Cartel etc. I am all for the lighter tone in general as I feel it does broaden the target audience, but I also feel that borrowing a few pages from Sicario or the Netflix series Narcos wouldn't have hurt. It is also quite possible that the Cartel was a bit on the soft side in it’s earlier years, I am far from an expert on that. Nonetheless, as far as the genre is concerned American Made is much more of an action comedy than it is a crime thriller, and that isn't necessarily a bad thing.
I can't say enough about the casting decisions for American Made, it was simply spot on. As I pointed out before, Tom Cruise was born to play Barry Seal. Cruise embodied the risk taking, act first and ask questions later mentality of Seal, as well as his limitless charisma. I could honestly watch him play this character all day long. I really liked Domhnall Gleeson's character, and he sort of reminded me of Bradley Cooper's character in American Hustle, a man essentially playing both sides. Gleeson's character is complex and shady from the start, yet still somehow likable. The son of Irish actor Brendan Gleeson, the 34 year-old Domhnall Gleeson has blown up in the last 5 years or so ever since the 2013 hit romantic comedy About Time, and I look forward to watching him continue to grow as an actor. The beautiful Sarah Wright takes on the role of Seal's wife and she plays it well, managing to find that fine line between an understanding wife and a woman willing to protect her family no matter what. Jesse Plemons is great as usual although he plays a very limited role. A good chunk of the supporting cast comes across as corny at times taking away from the believability of the story, but overall everyone did pretty well.
American Made is high quality entertainment from start to finish, keeping the tone relatively light considering the subject matter. Personally I would have preferred that the film be at least a little edgier in terms of the violence or just the crime thriller aspect, but I still commend the fact that it developed an identity and stuck with it. Dough Liman again proves his chemistry with Tom Cruise in the lead role, and I'm absolutely looking forward to the Edge of Tomorrow sequel. American Made unravels a uniquely fascinating story that will undoubtedly grab and hold the attention of viewers during the full 2 hours. Recommended
