on LONDON HAS FALLEN (2016, 99 minutes, R)
The Quick of It -
The return of the FALLEN duo bodes well for
those who wish an ’80s action flick.
Mike Banning (Gerard Butler) must once again save President Benjamin
Asher (Aaron Eckhart) from terrorist plotting… sounds familiar... This time London gets the unlucky draw as
the scene of all the magnificent devastation.
Banning, like those before him (reference: John McClane, John Matrix, John Rambo…),
carried the lone-wolf torch quite successfully (even without the first name of
John). At one point, you could see the
filming and battle choreography being a cut-scene in any first-person shooter
game, and that is a good thing for this style of action. Butler’s character is reminiscent of so many
of the ’80s action heroes; you are awed by the violence and giggle at the
one-liners. Yes, he even says in this
one, “Get to the choppers!”
Although touted as racist propaganda, I would
almost say that the plot also shows the villains as a family desiring
vengeance, making it hard to dismiss them as ‘pure evil’ when having a legit
gripe. But after countless deaths, you
work your way out of the moralistic stance.
The special effects are average (they may have
tried too hard) and the dialogue just filler between action sequences. I would only recommend rushing out to see if
you are wondering what it was like to experience an action flick in the 1980’s
and don’t have access to a time machine.
Grade: C+
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