“Angel Has Fallen” (R)
Gerard Butler is back for a third and presumably final go-round as an Army ranger-turned-Secret Service superstar with a particular set of skills in “Angel Has Fallen.” It’s Butler’s third “Fallen” movie since 2013, beginning with “Olympus Has Fallen” where the president of the United States, played by Aaron Eckhart, came under attack by terrorists, followed by “London Has Fallen,” when the UK city came under siege by terrorists on a presidential visit.
AUDIO: Hear Tim’s review of “Angel Has Fallen” with Paul Douglas and Jordana Green on “Paul and Jordana” live from the Minnesota State Fair on WCCO-AM. Segment is brought to you by Michael Bryant and Bradshaw & Bryant.
“Angel Has Fallen” mixes up the formula a bit, where Bannon, code name “Angel” becomes the prime suspect in an assassination attempt on President Allan Trumbull (Morgan Freeman), who assumed the Oval Office after playing speaker of the House in the first film and vice president in the second. The target of a drone attack that killed all of Trumbull’s Secret Service agents with the exception of Bannon, Trumbull becomes incapacitated and unable to defend his loyal bodyguard, who has been framed by ruthless defense contractors who are hoping to land a big payday and change the way things are done with private companies in Washington.
Directed by stuntman-turned-filmmaker Rick Roman Waugh, “Angel Has Fallen” feels distinctly like three films. It’s a combination of the first two films in its brutal, unrelenting violence as Bannon takes out the bad guys with extreme prejudice; and has heavy overtones of the Harrison Ford blockbuster “The Fugitive,” where an innocent man framed with a deadly crime is faced with the insurmountable task of proving his innocence.
Like all three of the aforementioned films, “Angel Has Fallen” delivers on thrills with intense action and a solid cast and will easily please fans of the “Fallen” movies and “The Fugitive.” Upping the appeal of the film is strong performance by Jada Pinkett Smith as an FBI agent on Bannon’s tail, and the grizzled but always great Nick Nolte as Bannon’s estranged father.
At this juncture, the only thing working against “Angel Has Fallen” is the predictability of the story line and basic framework of films that we already know too well. Thankfully, a solid veteran like Nolte was added to juice the film up with some welcome laughs. In the end, “Angel Has Fallen” is a good film but not a great one and will leave its fan base more than satisfied.
Lammometer: 7 (out of 10)
Tim Lammers reviews movies weekly for “The KQ92 Morning Show,” WCCO Radio, WJON-AM, KLZZ-FM, “The Tom Barnard Podcast” and “The BS Show” with Bob Sansevere. On TV, Tim has made hundreds of guest appearances on “KARE 11 News at 11” (NBC).
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