American Assassin

The first five minutes of American Assassin are like a cold bucket of ice water dumped over your head while you’re trying to enjoy a piña colada. We’ve all seen the "tragic backstory" trope a thousand times, but Michael Cuesta (who directed the pilot of Homeland) stages the opening beach massacre with a jarring, handheld realism that feels uncomfortably close to the bone for a 2017 thriller. It’s a bold way to start a movie that ultimately wants to be a fun, popcorn-munching franchise-starter, and that friction between "gritty realism" and "James Bond-lite" defines the entire experience.

I watched this on my laptop while my roommate was loudly trying to assemble an IKEA dresser in the next room, and the rhythmic hammering of his mallet actually synchronized perfectly with the gunshots during the first training montage. It was a bizarre 4D experience I didn't ask for, but it oddly helped me lean into the film's percussive, aggressive energy.

The Teen Wolf Becomes a Predator

The biggest question mark back in 2017 was whether Dylan O'Brien could actually pull this off. At the time, he was mostly known for Teen Wolf and the Maze Runner series—the quintessential "boyish" hero. Seeing him grow a "grief beard" and transform into Mitch Rapp, a man who spends his weekends infiltrating terrorist cells via the dark web and practicing MMA until his knuckles bleed, was a pivot. I’ll be honest: he looks like he’s trying to win a 'Most Intense Stare' competition for the first thirty minutes, but once the action kicks into high gear, O'Brien sells the physicality.

He’s joined by Michael Keaton, who is clearly having the time of his life playing Stan Hurley, a Cold War relic who treats his recruits like disposable tissues. Michael Keaton is essentially playing the "angry dad with a Glock" version of his Spider-Man: Homecoming character here. He’s all sinew and sarcasm, and his chemistry with O'Brien provides the movie’s most stable anchor. When they’re on screen together, the film feels like a sharp, character-driven thriller. When they aren't, it occasionally drifts into the territory of a generic Call of Duty cutscene.

A Relic of the Mid-Budget Action Era

Released during that weird transitional period where streaming was starting to gobble up mid-budget movies, American Assassin feels like one of the last of its kind to get a proper theatrical push. It’s a "Dad Movie" through and through—the kind of film that used to rule the TNT Sunday afternoon slot. It doesn't have the neon-soaked flair of John Wick or the dizzying camerawork of the Bourne sequels; instead, it relies on solid, practical stunt work and a plot involving a missing nuclear-grade Russian plutonium (because of course it does).

The action choreography by the second unit team is surprisingly tight. There’s a scene in a hallway that involves some of the most efficient "bad-guy-dispatching" I’ve seen in a while. Mitch Rapp is basically a human garbage disposal for trauma, and the way he uses his environment—from kitchen utensils to hotel furniture—to neutralize threats is genuinely fun to watch. However, the film hits a snag with its villain, 'Ghost,' played by Taylor Kitsch. While Kitsch is a talented actor who I still think was criminally underserved by the Hollywood machine, his character is a bit of a "Spurned Student" cliché that we’ve seen executed better in movies like Skyfall.

The Cult of the "Could-Have-Been"

While it wasn't a massive blockbuster, American Assassin has developed a healthy life as a cult favorite among Dylan O'Brien’s fanbase and military-thriller junkies. It’s the "almost" franchise that lingers in the back of your mind. There’s a mountain of trivia that makes you wonder what a different version might have looked like:

The 10-Year Wait: The film was in development hell for nearly a decade. At one point, Bruce Willis was set to play Stan Hurley and Chris Hemsworth was offered $10 million to play Mitch Rapp but turned it down due to scheduling. The Recovery: Dylan O'Brien was still recovering from his horrific on-set accident during Maze Runner: The Death Cure when he started training for this. He’s mentioned in interviews that playing Rapp helped him deal with his own trauma and regain his physical confidence. Keaton’s Commitment: During the infamous "ear-biting" scene (you’ll know it when you see it), Michael Keaton reportedly refused a stunt double for the close-ups because he wanted the visceral reaction to be real. The Scott Adkins Factor: Action legend Scott Adkins is in this movie as Victor, though he’s arguably underutilized. Fans of his Undisputed series were mostly just happy to see him in a major studio production, even if he didn't get a twenty-minute kickboxing showdown. * Netflix Second Life: Despite a modest box office, the film became a massive hit on streaming platforms years later, proving that the appetite for R-rated, non-superhero action is still very much alive.

In an era of CGI-heavy multiverses, there’s something refreshing about watching Michael Keaton yell at a kid in a warehouse while they plot how to stop a boat from exploding. American Assassin doesn’t reinvent the wheel, and it certainly doesn't reach the heights of the genre's best, but it's a solid, muscular thriller that respects your time. It’s the perfect movie for when you want something a little darker than a Marvel flick but less depressing than a true-crime documentary. If you can get past the somewhat formulaic "rogue agent" plot beats, you’re left with a gritty, well-acted ride that deserved at least one more sequel to find its footing.