Review: "The American"

Even if the movie calendar has at least slightly turned away from summer, I'm still sure George Clooney and Anton Corbijn's "The American" will be a tough sell (though I haven't seen any box office numbers yet.)

After all, when you dig through the simply gorgeous layers of cinematography in the Italian country side, what Corbijn and screenwriter Rowan Joffe, from the Martin Booth novel "A Very Private Gentleman," have cooked up is nothing short of a meditation, and if you aren't susceptible to its many languid charms, it can indeed be a very tedious one at that.

If you give into the rhythm of it, however, I really think there's a lot to like here (or at least there was for me). I've most often seen Corbijn's movie described as a matter of style way overshadowing substance, but though there's plenty of the latter, there's a lot going on under the extremely pretty surface here too.

When we meet Clooney's Jack, he's an assassin who's either finishing up a job or has been discovered while hiding out after completing one (that's one of the many unanswered questions that hover over "The American" and give it much of its tension.) Either way, it doesn't end terribly well for our hero. Though he survives, it's a bloody escape that will haunt him as he goes into hiding again, this time in Italy (tough life, eh?)

While there, he's commissioned by his handler, a suitably mysterious Johan Leysen, for one last mission for which, he's promised, he "won't even have to pull the trigger." He's commissioned to build a rifle/shotgun hybrid for a beautiful Italian assassinette (Thekla Reuten), and as far as story, that's pretty much what you get.

Now, for the style, which if you're a fan of cinematography, Corbijn delivers on in spades. He lingers on all the right moments and makes the most of the crazy angles you find in those Italian mountain towns. One of my favorite moments comes when Clooney's Jack drives into the center of Castelvecchio, looks around at a few curious townfolk, and then simply gets back into his Audi and drives away - rather than being the world's worst tourist, he's actually just scouting out the location of a pay phone, but it's a really funny scene.

As he's hiding out, though he's warned to "don't make any friends," Jack strikes up a friendship with Father Benedetto (Paolo Bonicelli), who is as interested in what is tormenting Jack's soul as the no-longer-bloodthirsty assassin is too. And more importantly, he meets and, at least initially, pays to have sex with the beguiling prostitute Clara (Violante Placido.) Not terribly James Bond-suave that, but since we've already seen Jack throw his cell phone out the window, we knew he was never really going to be that kind of hero. And for fans of Italian beauty, be advised going in that Placido really doesn't have much time for clothes at all through much of the movie, though I really can't call that a fault.

You can probably tell where this is going, but I guarantee that if you stick with "The American" until its splendid finale, there are plenty of small surprises along the way. What makes it all work, along with Corbijn's camera, is Clooney, who plays Jack with a weariness of the soul that keeps us (or at least me) engaged until the very end. Yes, it's essentially "Up in the Air" without much of the humor but almost as much jaded heart, and it sends summer off not with a bang but with a low-key "thriller" that works on almost every level.

And if you'll excuse me now, I'm off in an almost completely direction to have all my senses assaulted by "Machete." Peace out

Yes, I really did go see Piranha 3D

And I even kind of liked it too. Far from anything approaching high or even low art, Alexandre Aja's movie is what so many others just claim to be: A genuine B movie, chock full of gore, nudity and, best of all, humor.

It's no surprise to me, then, that the movie not only did fairly well at the box office ($10 million in week one), but also that Dimension has already announced a follow-up. In spite of its many excesses (just as a word of warning, I'm certain I didn't have to see a robotic piranha belch up a severed penis - yes, it's often that silly and gross, too), it's a really fun ride, and I'm almost certain I'll climb on board again, especially since the ending leaves open the possibility of something really wild (I won't spoil it for you.)

I have, however, and probably shouldn't admit this, committed my first bit of thievery since I was 8 years old or so. Instead of "recycling" the 3D glasses this time, I just kept them, and plan to, the next time I give in and watch a movie in 3D, simply buy a ticket for a 2D release showing at nearly the same time, then just slip in to the 3D movie. Juvenile and crooked? Sure, but charging a $3.50 or so surcharge for each 3D movie is at least as criminal, and I'd argue much more so.

But enough about my latest petty scheme, since there's some other actual good movie news out there this week, starting with easily one of my favorite directors, the Japanese animation giant Hayao Miyazaki, who, thankfully, doesn't seem ready to slow down any time soon.

In an interview with the Japanese magazine Cut, thankfully translated by the Miyazaki-obsessed portal Nausicaa.net, he hinted that though he doesn't have any directing options in the immediate future, he does plan to hopefully produce a sequel of sorts to one of my favorite of his flicks, "Porco Rosso."

If you haven't seen that magical movie about a fighter pilot who's cursed to live his life as a pig (yes, really), it really is a delight, and here's some of what Miyazaki had to say about a sequel:

"So I want to escape to "Porco Rosso: The Last Sortie". I have all its materials."
"It should be interesting."
"It is set for Spanish Civil War."
"If next two films succeed and [studio president Toshio] Suzuki-san lets me make it (Porco) while saying, 'It cannot be helped because it's a hobby of the old man', I'm happy. It's my hobby."

The most beautiful animated movies around simply the "hobby of an old man"? You gotta love that, and a "Porco Rosso" sequel set in the Spanish Civil War? Sounds like its not yet a done deal, but I can only say bring it on.

And finally today, does anyone remember the original "Spy Kids" movie? Though Robert Rodriguez's movies lost more and more of the fun in its sequels, the first movie (starring Reel Fanatic fave Carla Gugino, among others) was a perfect little bit of escapist entertainment.

Well, Rodriguez, never one to tire of an idea quickly, has now decided to launch a reboot of sorts of the "Spy Kids" franchise, this time with Jessica Alba sort of in the role started by Gugino.

This time out, Alba will play a retired spy who has been reactivated. Her character is the mother of a baby and two preteen stepchildren. This will, of course, mean casting new "Spy Kids," since the originals, Alexa Vega and Daryl Sabara, are surely too old by now. The only other thing that's known so far is that the villain is known as the Time Keeper, whose goal it is to stop time.

That last bit, at least, gives me hope that this will return the series to its roots, which would be a fun turn. And Alba, of course, stars in Rodriguez's "Machete," which will cut a bloody swath through theaters beginning Sept. 3.

It's just about time for me to go to the job that still pays my bills, but I'll leave you with a clip from another movie opening that week, Anton Corbijn's "The American," starring one George Clooney. With its retro look and feel, the tale of a hitman trying to retire is one I'm certainly excited to see. Enjoy the clip, and have a perfectly passable Tuesday. Peace out.