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In the latest overblown and underpowered instalment of the Fallen franchise, Butler’s beleaguered secret service agent goes on the run after being framed, seeking out estranged and unintelligible dad Nick Nolte
Is Gerard Butler hellbent on remaking every last action movie of the 90s? The thought arose during last year’s Den of Thieves, in which Butler bellowed his way through the Al Pacino role in a cut-price Heat; it was followed by Hunter Killer, a Crimson Tide-ish sub thriller in which Butler tried something close to character work. With that project having sunk commercially, he’s returned to his signature role of Mike Banning, patriot, dad and secret service agent par excellence, introduced in Olympus Has Fallen (2013) and London Has Fallen (2016).
Angel, which sets a weary Banning scrambling to prove his innocence after being framed for a drone attack that leaves President Morgan Freeman comatose, qualifies as a twofer: it’s Gerry doing In the Line of Fire and The Fugitive. As with many of the star’s recent projects, it’s been compiled with minimal quality control, insistently cancelling out its better ideas with turns for the derivative. Continue reading...