At times, the shots are beautiful and surreal. At times the film is chaotic and indecipherable. Mostly though, it is a tense yet enjoyable film that, despite a few bumps and bruises, you will find yourself enjoying immensely. This is Olympus Has Fallen, and if you like hardcore action films, get your butt to the theater.
Written by Creighton Rothenberger and Katrin Benedikt, and directed by Antoine Fuqua, the film concerns former Secret Service agent Mike Banning (Gerard Butler) who is forced to save President Asher (Aaron Eckhart) when the President, his son Connor (Finley Jacobsen), and the President’s security detail are trapped in the White House by terrorist Kang Yeonsak (Rick Yune). The film is marketed as an action thriller, and it doesn’t disappoint, starting with the casting. Butler does a wonderful job as Banning, being endearing to the audience almost immediately after trying to gain salvation after an unspeakable tragedy forces him off the President’s security detail. The nature of the role is mainly physical with bits of humor attached, and Butler does the part justice, being a joy to watch on screen. He plays the part so well that I wanted the film to go even longer if it meant he would be in more action sequences. The other member of the cast that truly shines is Eckhart as the President. Rather than just being an object to be rescued, his President Asher is introduced immediately as a man who boxes in his spare time (a point that strangely does not come back later in the film, despite ample opportunities), showing him to be a human first and a president second. He does a good job of being strong-willed, but is skilled enough to let his concern for the welfare of his security detail shine through, making for a character that is more fleshed out than one would expect.
The script is mostly solid, though has some weak points. By and large, relationships are developed well, particularly the core ones between Banning, Asher, and Connor. There isn’t a super amount of introspection, but what there is works well enough. There are definitely issues however, the main one being that the stakes are lowered significantly midway through the film, evaporating the tension. The villains’ plan is to kidnap the son of the President to force him to reveal secret codes, so one would expect the rescuing of the son to be the main point of the film. Oddly enough, not only is it not the main point of the film, it is barely a factor. Connor gets minimal screen time, and is found and rescued with little drama, giving the villains no leverage…with almost half the film remaining. As a result, though what follows is well-written and well-executed, the film loses a lot of power, as the stakes drop fro
m the fate of the world to just the life of the President.
Due to its action-based nature, one expects the nature off the action scenes and quips to be the highlight of the film though, rather than any lapses in pacing– and in that regard the piece can be declared a rousing success. After the initial setup, the opening scenes of actions are admittedly quite rocky. The initial attack is planned as a mass chaotic attack, and it is filmed as such, with scenes that go by far too quickly, barely allowing the eye to make out what is going on, let alone be affected by it. People are killed off by the boatload, but it happens so quickly there is no time for horror or revulsion. The good news is that once the initial strike is done, the film becomes a treat to watch. It evolves into what it was meant to be—a cat-and-mouse game between Banning and Kang, where it is one man against an army. The action choreography is beautiful, and the directing calms down as well, packing each shot full of important visuals, while making certain shots (particularly the exteriors) as pretty as possible. The quippage is strong as well, though there is far too little of it. When Banning speaks, it is usually with a pithy line that contains a few curses. Are there times when he uses it too liberally, such as when speaking to the Speaker of the House? Yes, but the film works best when one just sits back and enjoys the ride.
It would be a great injustice to describe many of the action scenes in the review, as that would not only spoil some good moments, but detract from the thrill of the film itself. While the film has its moment of drag early on, when it picks up it becomes an exhilarating ride, not to be missed. If you get the chance, see it. You won’t be disappointed.
Rating: 7/10
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