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All George Clooney all the time sounds like a dream movie but even an actor of his remarkable talents could use a confidant or voice-over or bit of background in "The American."
The suspense thriller, opening in theaters today, stars Mr. Clooney as an American who specializes in crafting custom guns for assassins and who isn't afraid to use his own weapons if necessary.
- Starring: George Clooney. Violante Placido, Thekla Reuten, Paola Bonacelli.
- Rating: R for violence, sexual content and nudity. Mainly in English, with a few English subtitles for Italian dialogue.
- Web site: www.theamerican.com
As the movie unfolds, Jack must shoot his way out of snowy Sweden, leaving a vivid trail of blood in his wake. He flees to Rome and then to a small Italian village in the misty mountains of Abruzzo where he poses as a photographer specializing in architecture and landscapes.
An older priest (Paolo Bonacelli), who correctly suspects Jack has lost his way and possibly his soul, spots the holes in his cover story.
"A man can be rich if he has God in his heart," the priest later advises.
"I don't think God's very interested in me, Father," Jack responds.
A couple of others are interested in Jack, though. One is a mysterious woman (Thekla Reuten) who orders a custom weapon, another is an Italian beauty (Violante Placido) who works at a brothel, and the remainder are shadowy strangers who may or may not be watching, tracking or inquiring about him.
Jack never lets down his guard, whether dealing with his contact by phone or sipping coffee near an outdoor market. Gunfire or betrayal might lurk around any corner and as director Anton Corbijn ("Control") cranks up the tension and the story plays out, anxiety and paranoia quicken our hearts.
"The American" is based on the Martin Booth novel published as "A Very Private Gentleman." Screenwriter Rowan Joffe streamlined the novel and altered the ending along with other details.
Mr. Clooney, his graying hair short and his knock 'em dead smile under wraps, has become adept at letting emotions play across his face. He proved that in "Michael Clayton" and here, he lets us see Jack thinking, doubting, fretting, plotting and even allowing a glimmer of hope to shimmy into the crevices of his brain.
Jack is very much a solitary figure, a man who lives in a spare space, whose car is often the only one on the already isolated roads and who may share a meal but little information with someone else.
Although a voice-over can be a crutch for a troubled movie, it might have lent a richness and depth to Jack and explained how and why he came to be in this line of work and whether he considers redemption a possibility.
Take, for instance, this descriptive passage from the novel: "My job is the gift-wrapping of death. I am the salesman of death, the arbiter who can bring death into existence as easily as a fairground magician conjures a dove from a handkerchief. ..."
"The American" is a case where less is less although it provides a showcase for Mr. Clooney's dramatic skills and keeps the audience guessing about who will live, who will die and whose finger will be on the trigger.
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