More or less does its job.
Charles Heller is a cryptographer for the CIA and happily married to his wife, Sarah. Life seems to be going well until Sarah is kidnapped and killed in a London terrorist attack. Infuriated that his superiors are not pursuing the case, Charlie takes matters into his own hands. Blackmailing his employers, he gets training as a field operative and goes on a worldwide man-hunt to find and kill his wife’s assailants.
The Amateur is based on the novel of the same name by spy-thriller novelist Robert Littell. It had been previously adapted into a 1981 film of the same name, directed by Charles Jarrott. Its reviews, at the time, were mild at best. This gives this new adaption, directed by British television director James Hawes, an advantage to improve upon its output. Boasting a great cast including Rami Malek, Rachel Brosnahan, and Laurence Fishburne, this film has the potential to be a success. Sadly, though, the film acts too much as its title suggests.
What is strange about this film is that it feels emotionally restrained when it shouldn’t be, especially regarding Charlie’s loss. Of course, regarding grief, there is no true rulebook to how someone should behave. This argument is null, however, thanks to the scenes showing him and his now deceased wife. These scenes should suggest a happy life between the two and emphasize Charlie’s loss. Sadly, there is no chemistry between the two actors, and thus, no reason to care. They act more like co-workers than as a happily married couple. Since this is the emotional backbone to justify Charlie’s actions, it fails to give viewers a chance to empathize.
On the contrary, Charlie seems to have more chemistry with his co-workers. Even though this goes against the plot of the book, the film would be more affecting if he lost a co-worker. Granted, there are moments that perhaps suggest Charles is suppressing his emotions, given the nature of his job, which is an interesting idea to explore. These moments of intrigue may have been accidental, though, because the film seems more focused on his revenge than his mindset.
When Charlie does pursue his wife’s killers, the film starts to come alive, albeit barely. Seeing Charlie routinely evade capture by his superiors in fun, only when looking past how implausibly it’s handled. Nevertheless, these scenes do provide thrills, as well as some spectacular kills. This is clearly where the true heart of the film lies, and it delivers well here. The film also has a decent enough pace despite being over two hours long, mostly thanks to the location changes. Since the emotional core of the film is non-existent, the film wisely makes the decision of not dwelling too much in that area. The film may not work as an invitation into the world of a CIA employee, but it does work for mindless entertainment.
All of the actors are clearly doing their best with the material and do have moments where they shine. Malek, as usual, shows how much of a commanding screen presence he is and is genuinely menacing when carrying out his plans. Laurence Fishburne has some incredible moments as Charlie’s trainer, and possibly some of the best scripted lines. If anything, another problem the film has is not using enough of Fishburne, despite receiving second billing. It uses even less of Rachel Brosnahan, another actor who is more than capable of leaving an impression.
In the end, The Amateur does exactly what one does. It does its job, pats itself on the back, and then disappears slowly into the background. For some audience members, this could be exactly what they are looking for on an uneventful weekend. It does not demand anything from audience members. For those, however, who are looking for a gripping thrill ride, this film is not going to deliver. If the film had just fleshed out the characters a bit more and let them breathe, the film would have had more to offer beyond the typical spy thriller.
