Take 11: The Amateur

In The Amateur, Rami Malek plays Charlie Heller, a CIA decoder(translation- Nerd/geek) who is really good at his desk job. When his wife is tragically killed in a terrorist attack, he is determined to take matters into his own hands, which in this case means getting out from behind the computer and going out into the field to exact revenge with his own hands. He is told that he “couldn’t beat a ninety-year-old nun in an arm wrestling match”, but fortunately for him, there are none of those is sight and with a little training from the stodgy Henderson played by Laurence Fishburne, Charlie sets out for vengeance.

The premise is pretty straightforward, but there are still plenty of genuine surprises and twists along the way that somewhat buck expections for the genre. Fishburne is largely underused and Charlie’s training is quick and rushed and this quickly show when he confronts first encounters one of the people involved in his wife’s murder. In most movies, his crash course would have miraculously turned him into an instantly proficient grade-A bad @$$, but he basically flops. This stuff is not easy and we are reminded and he has to figure out his own methods and what will work for him. The moral of the story is, don’t tick off the nerd because he WILL jack you up in the end. His various revenge scenarios were definitely brutal and innovative, so yay.

It’s not to say it’s all groundbreaking. There are some bits that you can see from a mile away, but it does keep you guessing. It’s a fun movie and never slows down until the end. I would have enjoyed stein more of his struggle adjusting to the new world he has thrust himself into, but a pretty minor gripe overall. Some of the supporting players work well (Caitriona Balfe as Inquilline); others seem odd and forced like Jon Bernthal, the Bear, who I still don’t understand why he was even there. Maybe I missed something- certainly felt that way. The ending also seemed a little anticlimactic, but at the same time, seemed to intentionally buck expectations so I kinda liked that?

A mixed bag indeed, but a fun one nonetheless. My score, an 8. Some fleshing out of specific elements would have helped a lot.

Now, I have a few nuns to challenge, so while I attend to that, in your expert opinion (see what I did there?), tell me what you thought about The Amateur in the comments…