Director: Antonine Fuqua
Starring: Gerard Butler, Morgan Freeman, Aaron Eckhart, Melissa Leo, Angela Bassett, Rick Yune
Running Time: 117 minutes
Certificate: 15
From Antoine Fuqua (TRAINING DAY, SHOOTER) OLYMPUS HAS FALLEN is a story of redemption using a terrorist attack on the White House as its backdrop. Mike Banning (Butler) works for the Secret Service on the US Presidential staff protecting President Asher (Eckhart). Following a ‘judgement call’ Banning is banished to the Treasury far away from Mr. President. When South Korea come to visit all is not well as some “friends” from the north have tagged along to cause trouble and promptly take the President hostage along with some of his staff including Secretary of Defense Ruth McMillan (Leo), whose presence in this tripe is mystifying.
The troubles with OLYMPUS HAS FALLEN are many: weak characters both in terms of how they are built and their actions in proceedings; some of the most hideous CGI since WOLVERINE: ORIGINS with helicopters and explosions looking like a blamange has been thrown at the screen, and some pretty horrible dialogue. Added to the trio of problems are over-wrought performances, particularly from Aaron Eckhart who not only chews the scenery but swallows and regurgitates it.
In fairness to OLYMPUS HAS FALLEN it isn’t all bad as there is some real class on show in the form of Morgan Freeman, Angela Bassett and Robert Forster who are all confined to the Crisis Room in The Pentagon for the majority of the duration. The trio add some gravitas and really highlight just how much of a charisma vacuum Gerard Butler, and his character Banning, is. And he is the main problem above everything. Mike Banning’s introduction to the film is troublesome not because of the situation he is placed into initially which causes his banishment, but the selfish way in which he reacts even 18 months on, refusing to go to social occasions with his partner and being generally gloomy. Fortunately the USA, USA, USA sentiment at its core will have some cheering, but those it doesn’t will audibly sigh a number of times as Butler drags his wooden carcass through the film.
OLYMPUS HAS FALLEN is a film that has been made so lazily and without humour that it is impossible to care what is going on. Banning’s redemption is hollow given the unlikeable nature of his character and the silly backdrop is horribly constructed. Of course I could be looking at it from the wrong angle and it may actually be a story of hostage taking and gunfights with one man at the centre. Either way it’s absolute rubbish.
OLYMPUS HAS FALLEN is released on DVD and Blu-ray is released on 26th August via Lions Gate Home Entertainment
