• The only reason the film did well in the box office is that there is no other big release
Image: COURTESY
Starring: Gerard Butler, Morgan Freeman, Jada Pinkett Smith, Lance Reddick, Tim Blake Nelson, Piper Perabo, Nick Nolte
Release date: August 23
With a name like Angel Has Fallen, fans had high expectations of a dramatic third instalment of the franchise. Following its predecessors, Olympus Has Fallen (2013) and London Has Fallen (2016), the film follows it’s lead protagonist Mike Banning as he fights to clear his good name.
Mike Banning is a Secret Service agent protecting President of the United States, Allan Trumbull. On a fishing trip, President Trumbull wants to recommend Mike for the position of Secret Service director, but before Mike can accept the offer, the team is ambushed by a swarm of drones on a mission to kill all of them. Mike manages to save the President, but the rest of the team is killed. Mike and the President are rushed to hospital for treatment, but President Trumbull is in a coma. FBI Agent Helen Thompson tells Mike that there is substantial evidence against him on the attempted assassination of the President.
As Mike is being transferred to a detention facility, his transport unit is attacked and Mike manages to escape the assailants and runs to the one person who he knows will believe him… his father.
There’s no hiding the fact that Gerald Butler is not a young man anymore. They incorporated into the storyline how his character is becoming slower and more susceptible to injury. At least that was believable. But everything else in the film is either predictable or cliché. Everyone could deduce the friend is the bad guy character is predictable from his first scene.
Although Butler is ageing gracefully, he still manages to save the choppy story with his loveable on-screen charm mixed with his dedication to the action sequences. The addition of Nick Nolte as Clay Banning is a notable boost to the cast.
The only reason the film did well in the box office is that there is no other big release. Hollywood needs to stop force-feeding the audience dry sequels and provide fresh new stories that give the moviegoers value for money.
Star rating: 3 stars