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MOVIE
REVIEW:
AMERICAN ULTRA

08/21/2015

SYNOPSIS:
American Ultra is a
fast-paced action comedy about Mike [Eisenberg], a seemingly
hapless and unmotivated stoner whose small-town life with
his live-in girlfriend, Phoebe [Stewart], is suddenly turned
upside down. Unbeknownst to him, Mike is actually a highly
trained, lethal sleeper agent. In the blink of an eye, as
his secret past comes back to haunt him, Mike is thrust into
the middle of a deadly government operation and is forced to
summon his inner action-hero in order to survive.
REVIEW:
Mike Howell: I
just killed two people!
Phoebe: That's awesome.
Mike Howell:
They had guns and knives and they were being total
d--ks!
Meet Mike Howell, mild mannered everyday
young adult trying to make ends meet in small town America
whose primary loves are his girlfriend Phoebe and weed.
That's pretty much it, so as you can see, he's a simple guy.
But wait, there's something else, something hidden inside
him and it's going to have to come out if he's to survive.
As he is to discover, there is a reason why he has panic
attacks. It's all part of the package that is Mike's inner
bad assness. This film is ultra in so many ways beyond the
title. It has ultra action and thrills, it is ultra violent
thus ultra bloody and gory, it is ultra intense and actually
a bit funny too. Believe it or not, it is even romantic.
This movie combines several great aspects of other movies
and brings it all together in this fun filled adventure. Off
the top of my head, I would say that it's something like a
Scott Pilgrim meets Beatrix Kiddo meets Jason Bourne. Yeah,
something like that. Now I should mention that because of
its violent nature, it is a strong movie for the kiddies so
parents should keep that in mind.
Watching Jesse
Eisenberg kick ass is not something we see everyday and it
was a treat. I believe he along with Kristen Stewart in the
role of Phoebe were very well cast. They look the part and
they played the part well. They were quite convincing. Other
interesting performances include Topher Grace who is so good
at being a douchebag, John Leguizamo who is so good at being
wacko, and Walton Goggins whose character is appropriately
named Laugher, gives us an ultra creepy hitman/agent. You
might not recognize the name, but if you look him up I'm
sure you'll recognize him.
So how is this movie
reminiscent of the three characters I mentioned above, you
ask? Well, let me explain . . . see, first of all in the
character of Mike Howell we get the mild-mannered, regular
dude who reminds me of Scott Pilgrim (who later uncovers
some pretty amazing fighting skills). The violence, blood
and gore content reminds me of Kill Bill and Beatrix Kiddo
who takes a beating but keeps fighting back. Now the more in
depth comparison is that of Jason Bourne because the
storyline we get here is very reminiscent of the Bourne
story. Sure you can say that "it's already been done, thank
you" but this is a different angle and still plenty of fun.
So is the dialogue, which is kept simple and dare I say
almost light-hearted, probably on purpose to lighten up the
movie some. It fits well with this film. Director Nima
Nourizadeh (Project X) put this all together well in an
entertaining, not-to-be-taken-so-seriously movie. This being
only his second major motion picture direction, he is really
establishing himself and getting better. In the midst of
Summer blockbusters, this is a good slightly off beat
picture to enjoy.
Review
By Cine Marcos
cinemarcos@smartcine.com
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Director: Nima Nourizadeh
Writer: Max Landis
Genre: Action Comedy
Duration: 1hr 35mins
Starring: Jesse Eisenberg
Kristen Stewart
Connie Britton
Producer: David Alpert
Anthony Bregman
Distributor: LIONSGATE
Rating: R for strong bloody violence,
language throughout, drug use and
some sexual content
Release Date: August 21, 2015
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