Gerard Butler stars in this preposterous but ultimately enjoyable action-thriller. He plays Mike Banning, an ex-Special Forces and former Secret Service agent who finds himself trapped inside the White House when it comes under attack from a rogue North Korean terrorist organization. With the President himself taken hostage in the bunker, Mike is the only contact the remaining US government have left and it’s up to him to save the day.
You may have a feeling of déjà-vu watching Olympus Has Fallen. It’s nothing hugely original but for what it is it’s more than serviceable stuff, benefiting hugely from Butler as the type of leading man he more than proves he’s able to take on. It reminds us that he has lots to offer as an action star when given a half-decent role to sink his teeth into, including spitting out one-liners in a fashion not seen since Guy Pearce in Lockout last year.
Butler is clearly having a lot of fun in a physically demanding role where hand-to-hand combat is just as prevalent as the requisite shootouts. While not exactly The Raid, it’s a surprisingly and pleasingly violent film with a lot harder of an edge than you may be expecting from one with such a ludicrous premise. While completely ridiculous it’s hard not to get caught up in it all as the film puts on-screen what it might be like if the White House – “the most protected building in the world,” as a piece of news footage makes sure to let us know – was actually attacked by a rogue terrorist organisation.
It may ultimately be a silly blockbuster but it has more between the ears than some. The plot may not escape predictability but it goes about things in such an assured manner that it almost doesn’t matter. Director Antoine Fuqua’s (still best known for directing Training Day) taut direction, commitment to giving the action sequences some real punch (no pun intended) and a cast of acting heavyweights including Morgan Freeman, Angela Bassett and Melissa Leo, make for a perfectly enjoyable couple of hours.
Some people may have an issue with its arguably jingoistic mentality – shots of the American flag bullet-ridden and falling in slow motion to the ground couldn’t be anymore heavy-handed if it tried – but taken at face value as a piece of action cinema in the vein of Air Force One meets Die Hard it does the job with confidence and bravura.
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Olympus Has Fallen is released in UK cinemas on April 17th.