Cruisin’
American Made, a first class delight.
There is an annual film experience that I’ve been loving over the last couple of years and that is the annual Tom Cruise film. We’ve been delighted with greats like Edge of Tomorrow, Oblivion, Misson Impossible Rogue Nation and Ghost Protocol and the Jack Reacher films. This year though we got The Mummy which is a good Tom Cruise film but not necessarily a great film. Just when I decided to put my annual time of Tom Cruise celebration behind me the film American Made, starring Tom Cruise as pilot/smuggler Barry Seal, flew in to save my annual Tom Cruise celebration time.
American Made, Directed by Doug Liman, follows the true story of pilot/smuggler Barry Seal who was an airplane pilot hired by the CIA to take photos of the ongoing trouble in Central America during the Cold War. Barry ended up working for Medellin Cartel transporting cocaine from Colombia and Panama to the United States while making an insane amount of money.
The film is set up to be Barry’s retelling of the whole story after he’s been caught by the police and other forces. This form of telling the story enriches the film’s coolest aspect which is simply making the audience think how ridiculous the whole situation is and how insane the amount of money is that Barry was recieving. You know that Barry is doomed to be caught and fail but you get to see this truly remarkable rise in his wealth and outrageousness before his inevitable fall.
Tom Cruise does a fantastic job at playing Barry and at times gives some very comedic moments, something we don’t see from Cruise often enough. This is thanks to the film’s script which gives him room to act out the hilarious moments within the serious laws that Barry has broken. The film does a great job of not boring you down with the logistics of whats happening and it’s not completely about the law trying to get Barry but more about how the situation got out of hand and the exhilarating moment that was the whole situation of Barry’s life.
American Made could’ve been made as a film that was in the running for Oscars and awards, as it is a biopic of large proportions, but all that has been put aside to simply make an entertaining piece of entertainment. You find yourself learning a new story that you may have not known before, while also watching a film that will more than likely go into you favorite films list. The style of the film, it’s crazy escapades and heist like moments, and the acting is all mixed together to create a film that is entertaining from start to finish. A little more seriousness I think would’ve ruined the film’s cool vibe and stopped it from being a film you’ll want to watch again on a boring Saturday night one day.
My annual Tom Cruise celebration looked to be slightly ruined with The Mummy, although I didn’t mind the film, it has, however, been saved thanks to American Made. It’s a film that knows what it wants to be and how it should tell its story to it’s audience. American Made isn’t trying to be anything else or something else but is simply trying to be some cool first class entertainment. Keep cruisin’ Tom!