By Kevin Rogers
Opinion Assignment Editor
If you’re looking for two hours of solid, go-America fun, give “Olympus Has Fallen” a look. Directed by Antoine Fuqua (“Training Day”), the film details the capture of the White House by North Korean terrorists and the subsequent efforts to rescue the president and his national security team.
The film stars Gerard Butler (“300”) as Secret Service Agent Mike Banning, who is forced into retirement after a tragic presidential motorcade accident. Resigned to a desk job at the Treasury Department, he jumps back into action when terrorists launch an aerial and ground attack.
The only survivor of the onslaught, Banning stalks the halls of the White House, trying to make his way to the bunker where a madman with plans to unite Korea through blood holds President Ben Asher, portrayed by Aaron Eckhart (“Battle: Los Angeles”) hostage.
All the while, Banning remains in contact with the Pentagon and Acting President Allan Trumbull, portrayed by Morgan Freeman (“The Dark Knight Rises”). While Banning battles through the White House, Trumbull has to decide how to approach the terrorists’ demand.
There are plenty of explosions, one-liners and gunfights throughout. But with strong performances from Butler, Eckhart and Freeman, the film offers something more than the typical action-hero story. Eckhart and Freeman sell themselves well as leaders, and Butler reaffirms himself as a likeable, top-quality action star. After a string of dreadful action movies and romantic comedies, Butler is back.
The film succumbs to nearly every action-movie cliché on record, however. There’s over-done symbolism (few audiences need 15 seconds of a tattered American flag falling in slow motion). The film’s Secret Service turncoat is poorly developed and seems driven by nothing but disgust with campaign finance. There’s even a ticking time bomb to a nuclear holocaust.
The most egregious offense is the fact that it takes 15 minutes for any sort of military response to a well-armed gang of terrorists running through the streets of the capital.
“It takes 15 minutes for your military to reach the White House,” the villain sneers. “We took it in 13.”
The terrorists have an elaborate plot, but a bit more realism would have been welcome. But for the good of the plot, it’s a necessity.
Like 1984’s “Red Dawn,” which featured Soviet-backed Nicaraguans invading the U.S. mainland, “Olympus Has Fallen” runs on a far-fetched premise. But both movies effectively play on the international tensions of their respective time periods, so it works.
Though the digital rendering is sometimes shoddy, Fuqua effectively creates Washington under siege. The collapsing Washington Monument draws heavily on images of 9/11 and the mobs of gunmen invading the White House to reports of last year’s attack on the American consulate in Benghazi, Libya. Coupled with the gruesome scenes of dead Secret Service agents and mangled citizens in a hospital, the viewer forgets that the story is implausible.
The brutality keeps the audience engaged. It creates tangible villains and forces the viewer to actively root for Banning. The growing threat from North Korea in real life adds to the intrigue and forces the viewer to ask questions. What would happen if we pulled forces from South Korea? What if the White House really was overtaken?
While it’s hardly a perfect film, “Olympus Has Fallen” is a rare action-hero movie worth watching. It’s not an overly intelligent movie, but plenty of entertainment can be drawn from its exciting story and solid performances.
