The Big & Small Screen: Eisenberg – Stewart liven ‘American Ultra’

15 Nov, 2015 - 00:11 0 Views
The Big & Small Screen: Eisenberg – Stewart liven ‘American Ultra’

The Sunday Mail

I have always believed that Jesse Eisenberg and Kristen Stewart were never really supposed to succeed.
The thing is, the two Hollywood stars appear like they snuck in through the cracks and everyone kind of shrugged it off and let it slide. Do not get me wrong and mistake this for a dig, Eisenberg can act, well sort of, and Stewart deserves some credit for making that Twilight role her own, but there is something about their demeanour that just rubs me off the wrong way.
At their best, both Stewart and Eisenberg will give you a lifeless ‘zombie’ like performance, one that lacks both in method and emotion.
Stewart did it with the Twilight movies, which surprisingly did well at the box office. Then I have seen the latest “Batman v Superman” trailer and I already hate Eisenberg’s take on the iconic Lex Luther.
I mean like seriously, how bad does an actor need to be to ruin a trailer?
However, when you put them together as a stoner couple thrust in the middle of a CIA operation gone wrong, sparks fly.
It actually came as a big surprise that their performances are the thing that saves this drab spy movie. “American Ultra” tells the story of Mike Howell, a member of a CIA secret programme that experimented on human beings and transformed them into super killing machines.
Unfortunately, the programme never really got the green light and got canned in the planning stages while all the subjects got their memories wiped out clean and relocated to distant parts of the country.
Enter agent Adrian Yates (Topher Grace), an overzealous CIA field agent who decides to terminate these agents as a way to suck up to his bosses. Standing in his way, however, is another agent Victoria Lasseter (Connie Briton) who decides to activate Howell before Yates’ men can get to him.
What follows is a high energy, thrill by the second action movie, fitted with all the bells and whistles of your typical spy movie. Eisenberg and Stewart do what they do best and read lines, all the while appearing awkward and displaced.
The scenes that they do share are pure gold as they demonstrate a unique sense of chemistry that steals the spotlight from anyone unfortunate enough to share screen time with them.
The combined awkwardness is kind of endearing, heart-warming at times, and that works well with the script. Topher Grace is the ideal antagonist and plays the role well. He shifts from funny to scary seamlessly, something that appears to work at times but fails when genuine emotion is required.
Overall, the performances of the main cast and a few cameos from the likes of Bill Pullman (Raymond Krueger) and John Leguizamo (Rose) make the movie watchable and somewhat enjoyable.
The action sequences and fight scenes are competent at best, though I did not really enjoy the whole slow motion camera work during some of the fights. In fact, it is a technique I have never really been too fond of, as it appears lazy and most directors use it to disguise the actors’ physical weaknesses.
Given that this is Eisenberg we are talking about, I think this was the case. The main plot itself was the biggest weakness I saw in the movie.
It often appears as if they combined way too many movie adaptations or genres as I often found myself confused and wondering whether this movie was an action packed spy movie or a comedy.
One can argue that it was both, but then if that is true then Max Landis failed to strike a balance. The humour is found in one or two characters, chief amongst them Leguizamo, who unfortunately does not get enough screen time.
Any humour from either Stewart or Eisenberg is totally unintentional. The location is confined to one place, which does not make for good visuals.
The film’s texture, lighting and to some extent camera work is poor. This is the kind of movie one watches once and then discards, never to bring it out ever again.
If you do decide to watch it, play close attention to Eisenberg and Stewart, the odds are you might change your opinion of the duo or at the very least enjoy the film here and there.

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