Director: Doug Liman
By Alex Watson
The second collaboration between Tom Cruise and Doug Liman proves the former Top Gun is still terrific flying a plane. American Made and its subject Barry Seal is the perfect fit for its big star. Throughout we see a man who is always going after the ultimate adrenaline fix. The bigger the danger, the more he thrives on the risk involved. Although it doesn't dig particularly deep, knowing this story is real makes it all the more mindblowing.
Barry Seal (Tom Cruise) is a bored TWA pilot who has a side business smuggling Cuban cigars. Noticing his success, shady CIA agent Schafer (Domnhall Gleason) offers him the chance to 'serve his country'. At first taking reconnaissance photos of Soviet enemies in South America, Seal soon gets an offer from the Medellin cartel to smuggle drugs. Making money and living fast, Seal will begin flying too close to the sun.
American Made feels much like its real-life subject- fast and furious. Constantly running on adrenaline and forever looking to push the envelope, Barry Seal was no ordinary man. Although he has a solid career and a loving wife (Sarah Wright), being ordinary makes him feel restless. Liman fully exploits the wild factor in this movie, both in the air and on the ground. Seal seemingly has no limit to the dangers he will risk. Watching him fly kamikaze style through the trees to make his tiny plane filled with cocaine take off shows his determination. Always on the lookout to up the ante, Barry gets himself into some pretty hairraising situations. Seeing him land in the middle of a suburban street covered in the devil's powder is possibly the most out there moment. When he first meets cartel members Jorge Ochoa (Alejandro Edda) and Pablo Escobar (Mauicio Mejia), there is a wonderful air of subtle menace which carries throughout Liman's film.
The success that Barry attains smuggling is shown as a both blessing and curse. At first, he reveals in the hard living and the cash that flows freely whenever his 'snowbirds' squadron takes the air. With great hilarity we soon learn he is earning so much- he has trouble storing it away. Coming off as an airborne version of Scorcese's 'Casino' soon Seal finds himself getting into all sorts of trouble. Our hero is never shown as a sympathetic figure and his constant need to get his danger fix causes a great strain on his family life. Despite the potential to show a family in turmoil and the stress having a daredevil husband causes, Liman sadly treats his family as a footnote in this outrageous tale. Frustratingly we never really get to fully know Seal as a man. We know he has the business savvy and a distaste to playing by the rules. Outside of seeing the grainy and wiggly home movie tapes, he makes to explain parts of the story- there is no real insight into his motivations.
While American Made flies under the radar when it comes to character development- the thrills it offers make the film soar. There is a sense of impending doom each time Seal embarks on another business venture. What makes us give him respect is how he manages he dodge so many landmines throughout. His Louisiana charm is infectious on many high ranking government officials, lawmen and even Pablo Escobar. When in a tight spot, Seal shows some great brains and quick thinking to get out of trouble. This larger than life tale couldn't have been told any other way. In places, it might feel overblown and we quickly learn that Seal isn't a reliable narrator. Ignore any misgivings and just enjoy the flight.
Tom Cruise has had a rather barren run of form in 2017. Jack Reacher: Never Go Back and his disastrous The Mummy reboot were both poorly received. American Made shows that Cruise still has plenty of pulling power and with the right director, he can be wonderful onscreen. Its unlikely he will be rewarded with a first Oscar, but this is still a highly skilled turn. Barry Seal and Top Gun's Maverick Mitchell would have gotten along just fine.
American Made is a story that is just mindboggling! Doug Liman has the perfect pilot for this flight and Tom Cruise makes it fly smoothly.
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