Summary
- Ian McShane shines as an aging hitman in American Star, delivering a powerful performance.
- The supporting cast is excellent as well, and the Canary Island setting is perfectly suited to the film's somber tone.
- However, the film's slow pacing and lack of cohesion, along with bad CGI, hinder the overall experience.
Without a shadow of a doubt, moviegoers are going to compare director Gonzalo López-Gallego’s latest mystery thriller to the blockbuster Keanu Reeves action franchise, John Wick. Not only does sophisticated British actor Ian McShane star in both of these cinematic endeavors, but both titles are about finely dressed assassins who have monumental backgrounds and go on one last mission before they can finally be done with their lengthy careers. The biggest of many differences, though, is how each movie goes about executing this plot. While John Wick provides an endless amount of frantic action and constant violence to stimulate the audience with adrenaline, American Star instead focuses on stirring the soul with a thought-provoking look at a hitman’s last days in the business.
Presented by IFC Films and produced by EMU Films, Lopez-Gallego and writer Nacho Faerna present a visually somber but also intimate corner of the world where McShane’s character, Wilson, is tasked with a final assignment. He has to kill a man who is located on Fuerteventura, one of the Canary Islands. Wilson arrives earlier than anticipated and decides to stay on the isle until his target becomes available. During this time, he seems to go through a sudden but heavy transformation which remolds the mindset of the aging executioner.
Wilson's Last Assignment Is Not Easy
American Star
- Release Date
- January 26, 2024
- Writers
- Nacho Faerna
- Studio
- EMU Films
- Ian McShane is great as an aging hitman in American Star.
- The supporting cast is excellent as well, and the setting is perfect.
- The film's slow-burn is just a bit too slow.
- The abundance of supporting characters never really cohere.
As he comes face to face with what life could be about (that is, outside this soulless occupation), McShane does a wonderful job conveying the subtle internal shifts of spirit. A female barkeep named Gloria (played by Nora Arnezeder) captures Wilson’s attention by not only having a childlike interest in natural phenomena, but also by her trance-like connection with music. Staying at the same hotel, an attentive child named Max (brought to life by young Oscar Coleman) pulls Wilson back into his locked youthfulness with the use of nostalgic toys and yesterday's games.
As the movie goes on, it is fascinating to see the resounding effects that these two supporting characters have on Wilson. Even from the very beginning of the movie, the audience can see that Wilson is tired of this career, but he ends up dropping the cold enforcer stature that his younger coworker Ryan still holds dear (who was sent to Fuerteventura to oversee Wilson’s completion). While the dashing British actor may deliver his lines a bit over the top at times, Adam Nagaitis still does well going all-in on this portrayal of someone who’s totally been taken over by this heartless profession.
Taking advantage of Fuerteventura’s wide open landscapes and vast bareness, American Star’s director of photography, José David Montero, clearly understands how to visualize Wilson’s inner emptiness. Spread-out valleys and rolling dirt roads are the types of backgrounds that accompany Wilson as he drives (or walks) from point A to point B in this maybe too methodical thriller. These long and drawn-out transitional scenes are exactly where American Star starts to burn out, though.
As much as this type of slow pacing creates a very grounded and realistic type of world, American Star also attempts to manifest Wilson’s innermost desires by symbolizing them through some climactic computer-generated sequences that just feel unreal. These scenes not only draw viewers out of the realism held within this small private world but also diminish the impact of the character interactions that they are connected to (Gloria and Max, specifically). The same emotional value could have easily been constructed elsewhere and with practical effect that didn’t need overdone theatrics to get the point across.
Mixing Business and Pleasure
While the supporting cast is memorable and all serve a purpose, the various personalities that Wilson meets while stationed in Fuerteventura seem to only circle around him rather than making an interconnected world. Sure, these seemingly separate arcs could be an allegory for the types of relationships that the main character has disappointingly lost throughout his curtailed and cold type of life, but American Star tends to feel like episodes out of a nomadic TV series.
While Ryan is sometimes in scenes with Gloria, his intention is only to maliciously pivot Wilson back into his lane of being a hitman and not one of a human being. Gloria herself seems to become a romantic opportunity for Wilson until her mother (played by the great French actress Fanny Ardent) warns him of her daughter’s desires and weaknesses. While all of these cast members play their roles superbly, the missing character cohesion breaks the film down rather than helping to show how an assassin’s life is permanently cursed by loneliness.
Even with the disjointed parts of American Star, there is more than enough in the 107-minute runtime to make this film interesting and enjoyable. It's engaging to study the real reason why we are really following this man on his last mission. With the possibility of a decent life in his hands, Wilson’s struggle to hold onto something real eventually withers away. Any wishful thinking that he might have been carrying ever since meeting people like Gloria or Max must be discarded in order to survive. Hidden beneath the alluring and captivating thrills of gunmen who shoot to kill and the many types of fruitful relationships one can make on a secluded isle like Fuerteventura, American Star turns into a cinematic and thematic tragedy that is ultimately moving.
American Star will be released in theaters and everywhere you rent movies on January 26th. Check out the trailer below:
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