Review: 'London Has Fallen' has fun quips amidst serious action
Vice President Allan Trumbull (Morgan Freeman) in “London Has Fallen.” (Cathay-Keris Films)
Marcus Goh is a Singapore television scriptwriter. He’s also a Transformers enthusiast and avid pop culture scholar. He Tweets/Instagrams at Optimarcus and writes at marcusgohmarcusgoh.com. The views expressed are his own.
Secret ending? No.
Running time: 99 minutes (~1.75 hours)
“London Has Fallen” is an action film that’s the sequel to 2013’s “Olympus Has Fallen.” It revolves around Mike Banning, the U.S. President’s bodyguard, and President Benjamin Asher as they escape a besieged London. It stars Gerard Butler (Mike Banning), Aaron Eckhart (Benjamin Asher), Morgan Freeman (Allan Trumbull), Alon Moni Aboutboul (Aamir Barkawi), and Angela Bassett (Lynne Jacobs). It is rated NC-16.
“London Has Fallen” is exactly what it says on the can. If you watched and enjoyed “Olympus Has Fallen” then you’ll enjoy the “24” style antics of Gerard Butler and Aaron Eckhart as they live through yet another terrorist attack, this time on a far larger scale than just the United States. It’s an action adventure for the modern age that thrills and delights.
President Benjamin Asher (Aaron Eckhart) is escorted to safety by Mike Banning (Gerard Butler) in “London Has Fallen.” (Cathay-Keris Films)
Highlights
Sense of foreboding
You’re going into this film expecting disaster to strike (since that is the premise of the film after all), so any pretense that it’s going to be a normal day for the protagonists is thrown out the window. Instead, the film opens with a heavy, oppressive atmosphere that foreshadows the impending crisis to come. The solemn mood, the sombre colour correction and the finality of the situation all increase the tension, as we wait for the inevitable explosions to begin.
High stakes
The film goes to great lengths to establish that this is no longer a crisis isolated to one country’s soil, but a problem that affects the international community. Politically important characters of all nationalities are named and given short vignettes (where they speak their native language), even if their overall importance to the story is minuscule. As a result of all this world building detail, we get a better understanding of why the hero’s mission is critical not just to America, but the world at large.
Fun quips and one-liners
The film doesn’t take itself too seriously, which is fortunate because it allows the characters to poke fun at the situation with some incredibly corny lines. It helps to break the everpresent apprehension you have at the protagonists’ situation by adding humour in small doses. And it gives the characters a bit more dimension besides “grown men in suits with guns.”
Mike Banning makes short work of his attacker in “London Has Fallen.” (Cathay-Keris Films)
Letdowns
Pyrotechnics look artificial
The pyrotechnics feel like there’s something off. Explosions are either too small or too clean, or there’s not collateral damage appearing in proximity of the location. There don’t seem to be enough reactions to the copious number of explosions either. The explosions look too perfect, with not enough layers or depth for it to be believable.
Pro-American message comes on too thick
Admittedly, the heroes of the story are American. But that’s no excuse for the amount of American propaganda that bombards us, especially towards the end of the film. It makes sense in the context of the previous movie, but when it covers a global scope now, it just feels like one-upsmanship.
President Asher and Mike try to avoid notice in “London Has Fallen.” (Cathay-Keris Films)
“London Has Fallen” is an entertaining return to the action adventure world of political intrigue and terrorist explosions.
“London Has Fallen” opens in cinemas 3 March, 2016 (Thursday).
Should you watch this at weekday movie ticket prices? Yes.
Should you watch this at weekend movie ticket prices? If you like action films.
Score: 3.5/5
