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One Sentence Synopsis: When Mike Howell (Jesse Eisenberg), a stoner from a small town, discovers that he’s actually a highly skilled government agent, his life is thrown into mayhem when the CIA targets him as a threat that must be eliminated. |
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American Ultra is an ultraviolent action comedy where the two main characters just so happen to smoke pot. Despite what the advertising may have you believe, it’s not a stoner comedy, or at the very least, it’s not a stoner comedy at its core, and there’s nothing wrong with that. I just wish American Ultra understood that.
The film is at its best when it embraces the high-octane action and pure over-the-top nature of its violence, and thankfully, there’s plenty of this to go around. It even features some more meaningful, heartfelt moments every so often, and those hit very well too, thanks to the honest, natural screenplay from writer Max Landis. However, the film begins to stumble when its forced to integrate another wholly separate tone into the mix, that of a stoner comedy. Several scenes, for a variety of reasons, left me scratching my head as to how I should feel while watching them. Whether it was because of the cinematography, the script, or simply the atmosphere, all of it evoked the feeling of a stoner comedy, and it just felt very out of place.
What’s worse is that Mike Howell’s pot-centric lifestyle could’ve easily been replaced by some other running gag, one that doesn’t involve a whole sub-genre dedicated to it, but because of this decision, the film deals with some serious tonal dissonance that holds it back from being a far better film than it is currently.
This is unfortunate, seeing as there’s a lot to like about American Ultra.
For example, its lead should be an immediate draw. Jesse Eisenberg has proven time and time again that he can pull off any character given to him. Whether he’s kicking undead ass in Zombieland, running Facebook in The Social Network, or mastering magic in Now You See Me, I am always impressed by Eisenberg’s sheer ability to simply become another person, and here is no exception. Eisenberg adds a shy likability to Mike Howell, and its that which makes the film’s heartfelt moments work.
While we’re on cast, I think it’s worth noting that Topher Grace is stellar as the sailor-mouthed, pure evil crybaby, and deserves more work as that role and only that role from now on.
And while American Ultra’s plot is nothing new, there is some serious potential within the details. I don’t want to spoil anything, but I will say that if you look closely, and if you really think about it, you can see where the film had the chance to make some brilliant choices regarding character development, thematic structure, and social commentary. But these intelligent moments are few and far between, and not taken advantage of. The film is too busy making sure you see the bullets going through the victim’s chest…
…but hey, I can’t complain. After all, the film’s action set pieces are easily the best part; they are incredibly well shot, and tons of fun to watch from start to finish. There’s a great variety of combat on display here, like gunfights, hand-to-hand martial arts, and even plenty of hilarious weaponry flying around, and it all plays out like a well-paced, stylized thrill ride. Though it’s a tad early, it may rank as some of the best action I’ve seen all year.
I haven’t even mentioned the quirky humor, or the excellent soundtrack, or even the solid dynamic between Eisenberg and Stewart. The makings of a great action film are all here, but I keep finding myself coming back to those moments where I just couldn’t fully invest myself into what I was watching. Even though it all goes away by the final third, I just can’t forgive American Ultra’s serious tone problem.
On a side note, I also can’t forgive it for a very abrupt ending, one that feels as though a decent chunk of its resolution was left on the cutting room floor.
I can easily recommend this film to anyone who’s looking for a fun time at the theater, no question. I just wish I could recommend it to you more strongly. There is a best film of the year here, but it’s shrouded under its murky stoner comedy vibe. If you can look past it, then you’ll enjoy it, but for now, American Ultra stands as a fun popcorn flick that unfortunately fails to achieve greatness.
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