Based on the 1981 novel of the same name by Robert Littell, the film adaptation of The Amateur has plenty of solid storytelling and assured writing and direction, but the casting of Rami Malek as the titular character fails to give this movie the necessary gravity it needs. It isn’t that Malek is horrible in the film, but in some of the more dramatically demanding scenes, the actor frankly comes across as stiff. The story is a run-of-the-mill revenge story, but Malek’s acting never truly sells what the movie promises.
Malek stars as Charles “Charlie” Heller, a CIA cryptographer who is quite intelligent and has a special set of skills. Now, I don’t mean the type of ass-kicking skills that gave Liam Neeson a run in action cinema, but the kind of talent that works best from the safety of a computer. When Charlie’s beloved wife Sarah (Rachel Brosnahan) gets tragically killed during an act of terrorism, the tech genius wants blood. Somehow, he manages to talk his superiors at the CIA into letting him undergo training for the mission. Though his trainer, Robert Henderson (Laurence Fishburne), feels that Charlie is not prepared to do what is necessary, the green operative proceeds with his plans.
Overall, the film is enthralling enough, but I often felt myself distracted by Rami Malek’s weak acting in some of the more important dramatic beats. His stiffness works well when he portrays a nerdy tech guy, but when it comes to portraying a grieving widower, he just doesn’t show the chops here.
As far as the story goes, the movie doesn’t deliver anything too dynamically new. Still, I see the appeal of the source story and can tell that it works decently as an espionage/revenge thriller. The Amateur is fine overall. Thankfully, there aren’t too many dramatic scenes demanding Malek to grieve. I believe this franchise has the potential for more installments, but it would be better off with a more talented lead actor taking the role of Charlie Heller.