Olympus has Fallen

There is a moment very early on in Olympus has Fallen that made me start to take notice that this film was not going to be the cheesy film I went in thinking it was. It is a gorgeous shot during the initial attack lit by what looks like a gorgeous sunset, but focused on mayhem. There is a nice juxtaposition in it just like moments later when there is a gorgeously framed shot of a bullet riddled American Flag falling in slow motion in front of a decimated White House. These two scenes, both during the first half hour, caught my attention and from there, I was totally hooked. It did not surprise me when the film was over to realize that Antoine Fuqua directed it. Fuqua has directed some pretty awesome gritty movies such as Training Day, Shooter and Brooklyn's Finest. It is pretty rare that a detail like that escapes me going into a movie, but as the movie went on I thought it was probably him. He tends to direct very earnest straight forward action movies without too much humor peppered in. I admire his no irony take on the ridiculous material of some of his films and none of them appear to be as ridiculous as Olympus has Fallen.

Mike Banning (Gerard Butler)was once a Secret Service agent who ran the President's detail, but a Christmas time accident 18 months ago caused the President to request him be transferred. Banning has not recovered. He still longs to be back in the White House. He misses the President whom he called friend and he definitely misses hanging out with the President's son, Connor (Spark plug his is Secret Service handle). Banning and his wife have no real connection anymore and Banning hates his job. America is getting ready to play host to the South Korean Prime Minister, and no one expects what is about to happen. In 13 minutes (not real time) terrorists take complete control of the White House. Unfortunately for America it takes 15 minutes for American forces to get to the White House. Unbeknownst to the South Koreans, a North Korean man had infiltrated its Government and this was the ultimate terrorist act. With the President, Vice President, and a few other important members of American Government and military taken hostage, the Armed Forces must back down. During the mayhem, Banning shot his way into the White House and now he is America's only hope to take out the terrorists and save America.

It is easy to dismiss this film as Die Hard in the White House, because, well, it is Die Hard in the White House. However, I was really drawn into this film because of its earnest approach to the material. Fuqua establishes a sense of American Pride from the first frame (an American Flag and patriotic music) and he never lets that go. This is a film where the President (Aaron Eckhart) is well liked and by all accounts is a great man and leader. The secretary of Defense (A Viciously rambunctious Melissa Leo) is beaten to near death before she gives up her code, and Banning is willing to sacrifice himself to protect America. It is all done without winking at the camera, all done without irony. It believes in American pride and while it might sound ridiculous, it is actually pretty awesome to watch. The initial White House takeover is quite a spectacle as well. Violently paced, and violently played out, bullets fly hard and fast and the body count rises to an insane degree as soon as the action gets going. It is frightening to watch the White House go under siege with such ease. The terrorists are of the incredibly intelligent variety, and that is always scarier. Their plan is ingenious, oh and at some point they deploy a weapon simply called The Hydra. I do not claim to know much in the world, but I do know that a weapon called The Hydra can only be used to create serious harm.

Gerard Butler is the perfect choice for this movie. The man is built to be an action star and the sooner he stops making crappy Romantic Comedies, the better. Do you see Jason Statham making movies wear a female softens to harsh exterior? NO!! Butler is a bad ass and it is time he owns his badassness and this is a great start. A perfect marksman, brutal in hand to hand combat, and with an exceptional knowledge of the White House (displayed in an early exposition scene that seems innocuous at the time), Banning is the perfect soldier to fight an entire organization of North Korean terrorists. The White House makes for the perfect backdrop for the action as well. It is a giant building full of rooms, and secret pathways. It has these cool safes everywhere for Banning to get into and find more guns and information. Butler does it all while spouting out truly epic threats like "I am going to drive my knife into your brain." His every man growl has been perfected and like Bruce Willis' iconic character, Banning takes a beating, but finds a way to dig down and keep fighting.

There are two other sections of this story as well. The President and his people being taken and tortured for codes that act as a kill switch for all of America's Nuclear weapons, and the strategy room where acting President Trumbell (Morgan Freeman) leads a cast including Angela Basset and Robert Forster. The scenes in the strategy are not terribly successful only because they do not always listen to Banning and it costs Americans their lives, but I do admit the scene where the four helicopters get shot out of the air and one literally crashes into the White House is pretty damn cool. Eckhart's President Asher is a very admirable man and Eckhart certainly looks the part of a president. He does not get much to do, save for screaming at the terrorists to stop torturing his people, but he is presidential and that helps. It makes us believe that no matter what he will not give up his codes. We believe he would die for America to survive and I cannot ask for more from a fictional president.

There is a wonderful hashtag joke that I like to believe was intentional, but other than that, there are not many laughs to be found, except in Banning's killer threats. Fuqua keeps a great tempo to the picture. He never slows the action down for long enough, just enough for everyone to catch their collective breath. We do have to sit through a fair amount of fictional politics and exposition during the strategy room scenes, but Freeman, Basset and Forster are exceptionally talented actors and they keep the scene from feeling dragged out. The action is frenetic, but not difficult to follow to keep your eyes on and the bullets are not only loud, but they are so fast, they often give off light as they get ready to pierce an unsuspecting or expecting person. Watching the White House get taken is both awe inspiring in how swift it is and also kind of terrifying, even though I know it is fiction. Mostly though, there are a series of truly arresting shots. I was taken back by how perfectly lit and framed many of the exterior shots were. I found myself completely breath taken by 4 or 5 of the shots and that is not common for a movie like this.

Yes, Olympus has Fallen is a completely ridiculous action movie and improbable and there are probably plot holes and inconsistencies, but I had a hell of a time watching it, and that makes it a success in my book. I had zero expectations going in and about half way thought I turned to my girlfriend and whispered "This is way better than I would have thought." I can only hope this will push Butler back into the world of action movies where he clearly belongs.