Movie Review by Cindy Summers
Angel Has Fallen
2 palm trees out of 4
After a drone attack during a fishing trip that takes out his whole team, Secret Service Agent Mike Banning is accused of being the mastermind behind the assasination attempt on President Allan Trumbull, and sets out to clear his name while trying to protect president from the real danger that exists which is actually being carried out by those closest to him who he trusts and would never assume were involved. Released by Lionsgate, Directed by Ric Roman Waugh, Written by Katrin Benedikt, Robert Mark Kamen, Creighton Rothenberger and staring Gerard Butler as Mike Banning and Morgan Freeman as Allan Trumbull.
In “Angel Has Fallen” the saga continues with Mike Banning (Gerard Butler) serving as the most trusted secret service agent to now U.S. President Alan Trumbull (Morgan Freeman) who is targeted by drones on a fishing trip resulting in only the two of them surviving the attack. Banning wakes up handcuffed to his hospital bed with his only concern being the safety of the president and learns that his DNA evidence was found at the scene and he’s the prime suspect in the drone attack.
After being arrested for the attempted assassination of the president, Banning’s convoy is attacked and he’s kidnapped by masked men who he overcomes and discover work for his military buddy and mercenary business owner Wade Jennings (Danny Huston). Jennings and his men also carried out the original attack on the president under the secret direction of Vice President Kirby (Tim Blake Nelson).
With the whole world thinking he’s guilty, and on the run able to trust no one, Banning elicits the assistance of his estranged father Clay Banning (Nick Nolte), who he finds in the woods having gone off the grid believing in government conspriacies after serving in the military when he was younger. Clay ends up having some unexpected clever resources to help his son Mike clear is name and save his family.
This film is the third in the franchise staring Butler and Freeman (who previously played the role of vice president), the first being “Olympus Has Fallen” released in 2013 and “London Has Fallen” in 2016 which received poors reviews both from the public and critics, some of which called the film “effortlessly racist” and “ugly, reactionary fear-mongering.”
“Angel Has Fallen” is more like a grown up version of Spiderman 3 without the costumes but the same hero becoming the hunted with very predictable storylines and character personas. The movie has the usual unbelievable millions of bullets fired at the hero who’s only minorly injured, the great friend actually being a lying, ruthless enemy behind the scenes, no suspense as to whether or not the hero would prevail and outside Nick Nolte’s great comedic relief found this action adventure to fall flat.
Rated R 114m
