"The Amateur" Movie Review

For a guy who has shown a skill for intrigue by directing not one but two episodes of the critically acclaimed Black Mirror, he doesn’t seem to have much experience with pacing and keeping the audience engaged in the otherwise slow-paced world of a spy thriller.

Rami Malek burst onto the scene many years ago through Mr. Robot and although I’ve never seen that series, he sure came across as Mr. Robot in this movie.  Despite having lost his wife in a confusing and never fully explained international terrorist something-or-other and then uncovering a deep government conspiracy that literally threatens his career and life, he never shows any more emotion than, well, a robot.

The premise of The Amateur is certainly appealing, and the trailer got me excited for an international spy thriller full of action and revenge.  It turned out to be a touch of each but not enough of any.  Malek’s CIA computer expert Charlie Heller finds himself traipsing around the world as he racks up more frequent flyer miles than any James Bond or Ethan Hunt caper.  And he does this without so much as a cell phone charger, stack of cash, or even a change of clothes.  He’s on one continent and literally appears halfway around the world a moment later with no time elapsing and obviously not using his credit card as he does everything he can to stay off the grid.  Naturally, he is chased by everyone he meets, he stays one step ahead of those that want to hurt him and gets caught by those trying to help him.  It’s all very neat and clean but since the audience never gets to really connect with him, there’s no satisfying ending or any sense of retribution other than he was doing what any other person with the means would do, kind of like a robot.

With stock actors playing nefarious CIA upper-management characters and the underused but beguiling Rachel Brosnahan as Charlie’s wife, we can only look to Jon Bernthal and Laurence Fishburn to elevate our interest but even they are wasted in very small supporting, yet conveniently placed, roles.

What looked to promise two hours of a solid spy-revenge thriller was nothing more than a globetrotting mishmash of terribly coincidental interactions, clumsy bad guys, and Mr. Robot trying to shed a tear for his dead wife while mustering up the angst to bring her killers to justice.

- Paul Rosen