Focus Features
It’s easy to imagine London Has Fallen as a lost entry in the Cannon Films’ canon, buried three decades ago and only recently unearthed, touched up with shoddy CG, and unleashed into cineplexes for our viewing pleasure. It’s gleefully violent, vociferously pro-American/anti-other, ridiculously plotted, and willfully ignorant of politically correct concerns — and if a smile crept up your ’80s action-loving face while reading that sentence then, like me, you’ll probably also find it to be pretty damn entertaining. It’s Chuck Norris’ Invasion U.S.A. updated and relocated to the U.K. with all of its aggressive patriotism and mass slaughter intact.
Secret Service Agent Mike Banning (Gerard Butler), Stabby McHeadshot to his co-workers, was promoted after saving the lives of President Asher (Aaron Eckhat) and his son three years ago, but with a child of his own on the way he’s decided it’s time to sheath his knife and retire from duty. The untimely death of the British Prime Minister interrupts his plans though necessitating a quick trip to London for the man’s funeral alongside several other Western world leaders. Hundreds of terrorists have descended on the city too, and after a coordinated attack of epic proportions leaves most of London dead or in hiding Banning and the president are forced to choose between fight and flight through the city’s empty streets.
2013’s Olympus Has Fallen was expected to play second fiddle in the “Die Hard in the White House” duel to the bigger budget, higher star power, and box-office friendly PG-13 rating of Roland Emmerich’s White House Down, but Antoine Fuqua’s cheaper, grittier bloodbath prevailed. Not only did it earn more money but it also earned a sequel. Swedish/Iranian director Babak Najafi takes the reins from Fuqua on the follow-up and shows a similar affinity for bloody deaths and half-baked CG effects.
Returning writers Creighton Rothenberger and Katrin Benedikt are joined by two more scribes, but it’s difficult to see what took eight hands to write as the story here is just as one-note and simplistic as it needs to be. There’s no commentary on the current geo-political climate, no satirical take on the cyclical nature of America’s war on terror — although the mastermind behind the attack, Aamir Barkawi (Alon Aboutboul), is an arms dealer looking for revenge after a drone strike meant for him killed his daughter — and instead it’s once again as simple as evil foreigners trying to kill the American president and meeting stiff resistance from Gerard Butler.
Eckhart and Angela Bassett get to taste a little more of the action this time around, but Morgan Freeman, Robert Forster, Melissa Leo, and Jackie Earle Haley spend all of their time in a situation room sharing pained expressions and a minimal amount of dialogue. Make no mistake though — there may be no fewer than five Oscar nominees/winners mugging for the camera and getting paid for a day’s work here, but this is Butler’s movie.
He may not have the fighting skills of action stars like Donnie Yen or Jason Statham, but Butler convinces (and revels in the role) as the indestructible and highly competent hard-ass you’d want in your corner when faced with endless waves of nondescript extremists out for blood. You might tsk-tsk Banning for telling one terrorist to “go back to Fuckheadistan,” but you’ll still nod your head with approval as he stabs another to death in slow motion. To be clear, the scene isn’t in slow motion — he’s just inserting and twisting the knife in an intentionally sluggish manner. Forget those rom-coms Butler. This is where you belong.
The action satisfies, both in its euphoric brutality and its constant presence, and while most of it is pretty straightforward Najafi does deliver a solid car chase sequence and a terrifically immersive “one-take” gun fight down the length of a street. That latter scene eventually grows sloppy with some less than impressive and far from seamless cuts, but it remains a visually engaging way to capture the assault. That slapdash attitude is present elsewhere too — this definitely isn’t what you would call a polished film — but there’s a charm to its ugliness. It’s a brawler of a movie content to slug away with no concern for its own bruised and battered visage as it throws rough dialogue, forgettable characters, and bodies across the screen.
Its stabs at humor are just as messy at times with some gags earning laughs while others hit the floor with the thud of a recently eviscerated body. Death, nationality, and even the president’s masculinity are all fair game, and while I still can’t comprehend the moment where Banning grunts “I’m thirsty as fuck!” before downing a glass of water I most certainly applaud it.
London Has Fallen is ’80s action dolled up with dodgy CG, recognizable actors, and a sense of humor, and if you count yourself a fan of Stabby McHeadshot’s first adventure you’re almost guaranteed to enjoy this one too. Put simply, if mid-’80s Chuck Norris’ beard emigrated from his face, went to film school, and directed a movie — this would be that movie. I for one am looking forward to seeing what this hairy auteur does next.
The Upside: Strong, fun action beats; frequently funny (mostly intentional); embraces an ’80s action movie aesthetic
The Downside: Weak digital effects; sloppy edits; simple story; Radha Mitchell is wasted once again
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